Delicious Summer Salad (and Pizza, too!)

Do you know Ree Drummond of The Pioneer Woman?  She always has the best recipes!  When I came across her Grilled Peaches & Pecans post, my mouth started watering!  She has some great ideas of concoctions you can make with grilled peaches, but my favorite was the salad.

Ree's rendition calls for blue cheese and a maple syrup dressing, which aren't really my style.  So instead here's what I did:

1. Pre-heat your grill. Cut and de-pit a few peaches.  Rub the tops of them with brown sugar, then toss them on the grill on med or med-high (depending on your grill) for about 10 minutes.

2. Rinse off some spinach, or whatever green you choose!

3. Rough chop some pecans, maybe about 3/4 cup or so and throw it over your spinach.

4. Crumble some goat cheese over your spinach and drizzle with some olive oil and balsamic dressing, or the same dressing used here.

5. Take your peaches off the grill and cut them in half again.  

6. Take this little treat to the face!

And while you're at it, why not make a few little pizzas to scarf down, too?

I like to use a dough recipe from a Williams-Sonoma cookbook I have:

Combine 1 1/4 cups warm water, 2 envelopes active dry yeast, 2 tsp red wine vinegar and 3 Tbsp olive oil in a bowl of a stand mixed fitted with a dough hook.  Mis on low speed until just blended, about 30 seconds.  Add 1 cup of flour and mix on low speed for 30 seconds.  Continue to slowly add 3 cups of flour, 2 tsp sugar, and 1 Tbsp salt and beat on low speed.  After all ingredients have been added, raise the speed to medium for a minute more until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Remove bowl from stand and drizzle dough with oil.  Turn the ball of dough several times so it is fully coated.  Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest at room temp for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 4-6 equal pieces and roll each into a smooth ball and place of baking sheet.  Cover with damp towel and let rest for 10 minutes at room temp.  Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 6-8 hours.  If you're dough has been chilled, let it rest at room temp for about 30 minutes before rolling it into a delicious crust!

Top with whatever toppings you like.  Above: a classic pepperoni and mozzarella and a roasted red pepper, feta, and basil.

You can also freeze your extra dough then let it thaw out the day you want to make your pizzas!

Enjoy!

Domestic Goddess

Here is one of my all-time favorite recipes.  It's great for a cook out or just a romantic night in with the hubs!  Even though I have the salad version here, is is just as yummy as a slaw-just substitute shredded cabbage and carrots for the lettuce.  It's sweet and tangy, and you just wait.....people will be asking for the recipe!!

 

 

Sweet Basil and Feta Salad

 

1 head of lettuce, chopped, or 1 bag of salad

1 bunch of green onions

3/4 package of basil (about 1 1/2 cups julienned)

4-6 ounces crumbled feta cheese

 

Dressing

1/2 cup balsalmic vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

2 T sugar (I use 2 packets of splenda)

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

 

I start by dumping all my chopped and rinsed or bagged lettuce into a big ole bowl. 

Rinse and pat dry onions.  Using scissors, cut ends and throw away.  Then, use scissors to slice onions into 1/4-1/2" slivers.

Rinse and pat dry basil.  I usually buy a package of basil in the herb section at Publix.  There's a lot of basil in there so I only use about 3/4 of it, and use the rest later on chicken or a sandwich or pasta.  I love basil, so finding a use is no problem here!  OK, back to the recipe.... pull leaves off stems and stack up 4 or 5 at a time.  Roll them lengthwise.  Cut into 1/4" julienned slivers.

Add feta, as much as you think you might like!

Mix together dressing, and pour over entire salad, or over individual servings.

Makes 6 servings.

 

Serve with anything else yummy, such as roasted sweet potatoes and a black bean burger, as seen above.  Yum!