Creamy Tarragon Dressed Butter Lettuce with Crumbled Croutons

Unless you live under a rock, you are a ware that 2012 is an election year in the good old USA.

No, I am not about to spill my guts to you about all my political beliefs and then go on and on and on and on and on about why I am right and why you should believe what I think.

I don’t really care if you believe that the whole universe is run by a unicorn named Janice or that the earth is really just a marble in some alien kids pocket.

What I do know is that I find most of the political figures these days very similar to circus performers.

I just feel like people I can trust are few and far between. On both sides of the aisle. And more than wanting to convince others of my political views, I just hope as a whole our country can get to a more honest place.

And there is my deep thought of the week.

Even though I don’t trust politicians, I do trust a really REALLY good salad.

Ignore a politician, eat a salad.

You will need…

1 cup homemade croutons
 (store bought work fine) smashed

2 heads butter lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces

¼ cup shaved (you can use a veggie peeler) good Parmesan cheese

1 large tomato, diced

1/4 cup diced red tomato, plus and extra tablespoon

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

3 tablespoons Greek yogurt or sour cream

1 lemon, juiced

1 tablespoon chives, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves, finely chopped

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

On a large platter, combine the tomato, lettuce, cheese, and ¼ cup of onion.

Then in a food processor or in a small bowl combine the remaining ingredients. Blend or whisk until they are completely blended.

Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss well.

Top with the crushed croutons, lightly toss again and serve.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela 

Creamy Tarragon Dressed Butter Lettuce with Crumbled Croutons

1 cup homemade croutons
 (store bought work fine) smashed

2 heads butter lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces

¼ cup shaved (you can use a veggie peeler) good Parmesan cheese

1 large tomato, diced

1/4 cup diced red tomato, plus and extra tablespoon

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

3 tablespoons Greek yogurt or sour cream

1 lemon, juiced

1 tablespoon chives, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh tarragon leaves, finely chopped

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

On a large platter, combine the tomato, lettuce, cheese, and ¼ cup of onion.

Then in a food processor or in a small bowl combine the remaining ingredients. Blend or whisk until they are completely blended.

Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss well.

Top with the crushed croutons, lightly toss again and serve. 

Smoked Salmon Corn Chowder

 

My favorite part of hanging out in a new neighborhood is finding new restaurants.

Since I hang out at Wes’s a lot (you know, because I live at home and all), I’ve gotten to test out a ton of new eateries.

So far, we have found our favorite barbeque spot, nailed down our go-to Mexican and have spent plenty of nights in eating our neighborhood Chinese.

But my favorite of all of our finds is our breakfast spot. It’s within biking distance, the food is awesome and everyone there is so nice.

The bonus, recently our breakfast spot started serving dinner.

After a couple months of wanting to try it, we finally made it there.

And they had the best freaking soup I have ever had.

Since they weren’t particularly forthcoming when I asked for the recipe, I had to figure it out for myself.

And damn did I do a good job.

You will need…

2 slices thick cut bacon, diced

2 tablespoons butter

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

4 tablespoons flour

4 cobs fresh raw corn, sliced off the cob or 1 bag frozen corn if raw corn is out of season

4 red potatoes, chopped

½ tablespoon tarragon, finely chopped

4 cups chicken stock

½ pound smoked salmon, skinned and chopped

1 cup milk

½ cup heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste (you won’t need very much because the bacon and salmon are salty)

Start by adding the bacon to a large soup pot and cook it over medium heat until it is browned and crisped. About 7 minutes.

Then, add in the onion, carrot, celery, garlic and butter.

Cook the veggies down until they start to soften, stirring occasionally. About another 7 minutes.

When the veggies have softened, add in the flour and mix it in well.

Add in the chicken stock, the potatoes, the corn, the tarragon and a little pepper.

Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer for about 30 minutes. Cook the soup until the carrots and potatoes are tender.

Pour in the milk and the heavy cream and add in the salmon.

Stir so that everything is completely combined.

Cook the soup for a couple more minutes until the salmon and soup are hot.

Serve immediately with your favorite crusty bread.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Smoked Salmon Corn Chowder

2 slices thick cut bacon, diced

2 tablespoons butter

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

4 tablespoons flour

4 cobs fresh raw corn, sliced off the cob or 1 bag frozen corn if raw corn is out of season

4 red potatoes, chopped

½ tablespoon tarragon, finely chopped

4 cups chicken stock

½ pound smoked salmon, skinned and chopped

1 cup milk

½ cup heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste (you won’t need very much because the bacon and salmon are salty)

Start by adding the bacon to a large soup pot and cook it over medium heat until it is browned and crisped. About 7 minutes.

Then, add in the onion, carrot, celery, garlic and butter.

Cook the veggies down until they start to soften, stirring occasionally. About another 7 minutes.

When the veggies have softened, add in the flour and mix it in well.

Add in the chicken stock, the potatoes, the corn, the tarragon and a little pepper.

Bring the soup to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer for about 30 minutes. Cook the soup until the carrots and potatoes are tender.

Pour in the milk and the heavy cream and add in the salmon.

Stir so that everything is completely combined.

Cook the soup for a couple more minutes until the salmon and soup are hot.

Serve immediately with your favorite crusty bread. 

Grilled Finglering Potatoes with Creamy Tarragon Vinaigrette

It is National Fried Chicken Day ya’ll! How are you going to celebrate?

I’m going to celebrate like any good woman should, barefoot in the kitchen.

Well, barefoot and in bikini bottoms with a long sleeve shirt on.

It is insanely hot out today (bikini bottoms) and I’ll be slaving over a boiling pot of oil (long sleeve shirt).

How does one become aware that it is National Fried Chicken Day?

Your fried chicken loving, youngest brother sends you a text message telling you it is. And then he demands that you make him some since he’ll be home.

But, I’ve already made fried chicken for the blog, so I will NOT be posting a fried chicken recipe.

You know that whole NEW food thing and all. But, I do have a phenomenal recipe on hand for a great fried chicken side dish.

One where you don’t have to worry about burning yourself on a giant vat of bubbling oil.

You will need…

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

Water as needed

1 tablespoon chopped shallot

1 tablespoon mustard

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon leaves, plus leaves for garnish

1/2 cup olive oil, plus more as needed

Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

12 fingerling potatoes, par-boiled and halved

(Parboiling is where you get them slightly cooked, but not cooked completely. You can do this by microwaving them for about 10 minutes or boiling them till they are slightly soft.)

Start by preheating a grill to medium heat.

Combine the vinegar, a splash of water, the shallots, mustard, mayonnaise and tarragon in a blender and puree until smooth.

With the motor still running, slowly pour in the oil and blend until the vinaigrette has emulsified. Adjust the seasoning with salt and black pepper, to taste.

Brush the potatoes with some oil and season them with salt and black pepper, to taste.

Grill them, cut side down, until they are lightly golden, then turn them over and continue grilling until they are just cooked through.

Transfer them to a platter and immediately drizzle with the vinaigrette.

Garnish with a few tarragon leaves and serve.

That’s right. I'll be cooking in my bikini bottoms. Summer is here people. Get used to it.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Shrimp with Shallot-Tarragon Sauce on Wilted Spinach

My favorite food in the whole wide world is…

Wait for it…

Red Vines.


When I was a little and my mom would give me money for the swim meet or little league snack bar, I would always spend all five dollars on mass amounts of Red Vines. I prefer them to be stale, but I will take them either way.

Imagine my surprise when I was introduced to black licorice. All I could think was gross. What is this? This is nothing like my beloved Red Vines! They are the same shape. Why don’t they taste the same? It was horrible.

Knowing my general distaste for black licorice, I have been hesitant to use black licorice like herbs in my cooking. Both tarragon and fennel have intense licorice flavor and until lately it has sent me running for the hills.

Last night I decided to give it a try, of course in a recipe that involved LOTS of other ingredients. I decided to make this shrimp dish with tarragon, ginger, parsley and shallots. I’m not sure if was the tarragon or the butter and cream that worked, but the whole thing was delicious.

To serve two you will need(can be doubled for four)…

10 uncooked large shrimp, peeled and devained
¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided


5 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon, divided


2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger, divided


2 large shallots finely chopped


2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

6 ounces fresh baby spinach

Toss the shrimp, parsley, 2 tablespoon olive oil, 2 tablespoon lemon juice, 6 teaspoons tarragon and 2 teaspoon ginger in a medium bowl. Sprinkle mixture with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté for 5 minutes.


Add the shrimp mixture and sauté until the shrimp are almost cooked through and pink (about 3 minutes).


Add the butter and cream and bring just to a simmer. Add remaining 2 teaspoons of ginger. Season with salt and pepper, remove it from the heat and set it aside.


Heat the remaining oil in another large skillet over high heat. Add the spinach and remaining lemon juice. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss until the spinach is just wilted (about 25 seconds). Mound the spinach in the center of the plates and surround with shrimp and sauce. Sprinkle the shrimp with the remaining tarragon.


Black licorice haters, fear not. This recipe is damn good. I had to fight Lindsey B, my Mom and Dad to save FIVE shrimp for Eric. Vultures.

Love and Beer Floats
Angela