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September 24, 2006
Arugula and Pear Salad with Roast Chicken
I threw this salad together as a quickie dinner. I used a store-bought rotisserie chicken to keep it quick and easy, though any type of cooked chicken would be fine as long as the spicing doesn't clash with the salad.
Ingredients
For the salad:- several handfuls baby arugula
- 1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
- 1/2 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 ripe-but-firm pear, quartered, cored, and cut into thin slices (I used an Asian pear, because I had those on hand. Those add a nice crunch, but a suitable conventional pear would probably be even better)
- A couple of ounces of good blue cheese, crumbled (I used Blue d'Auvergne. I bet Roquefort would be even better, but any good blue cheese would work.)
- ~6-8 ounces roasted chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
For the dressing:
- A few tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (actually, if you wanted to be really slick, you could replace some or all of the olive oil with walnut oil.)
- A couple of tablespoons raspberry vinegar (you can use ordinary red wine vinegar)
- About a tablespoon Dijon mustard
- A few leaves of fresh tarragon, finely chopped (optional)
The dressing is not exactly rocket science. (Oh, ha, ha - rocket science!)* You could substitute your favorite vinaigrette recipe or even bottled dressing. Just try to go for something that tastes vaguely French.
The Steps
- Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add the walnuts, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the walnuts start to smell toasty. (About 5 minutes or so. This does make a noticeable difference in the flavor of the walnuts, so it's worth doing.) Let the walnuts cool a bit.
- While the walnuts are cooling, make the dressing - whisk the olive oil, vinegar, Dijon mustard, and tarragon together in a small bowl until combine.
- Toss the arugula, pear slices, walnuts, tomatoes, and blue cheese in a large bowl with a few spoonfuls of the dressing. Taste a leaf, and add salt, pepper, or extra dressing as needed.
- Dish out the salad into plates or bowls, and arrange slices of roasted chicken on top.
I loved the combination of flavors in this salad, and particularly loved the combination of pears and blue cheese. Mr. Spaceling picked out all the pears and walnuts and ate them separately, as a kind of dessert course.
* In the UK, arugula is commonly referred to as "rocket" (from the French "roquette"). When I was in Scotland, I ate it as often as possible, just for the sheer pleasure of being able to order a "rocket salad". (Well, also because it was good.) "Arugula" derives from the Italian name for the plant.
Posted by spaceling at September 24, 2006 12:22 PM
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