Recent Posts

About the Site

This site will help make you a better cook, an adept gardener, and good-looking. Also, I'm not from or in Tuscany, and I'm a man.

something coming soon.

When I can figure out how to get a list of the other posts in this category here, it will be. For now, just some pictures. =)

flickr stream.

rss feed

LA Style Chopped Salad

It sucks to be a housewife when you burn your hand ( not badly ) because you still have to wash the dishes. =)

So tonight’s dinner was the LA Style Chopped Salad. Since my Mom called asking what that meant, I figured I’d better document the meal. It was quite a hit with J, although the Princess didn’t dig it. I call this “LA Style”, because the recipe is inspired by Nancy Silverton’s story of La Scala, a Beverly Hills hotel that invented the chopped salad. Also, she calls the dressing Eye-talian, which I thought was sweet.

LA Style Chopped Salad

all ingredients are chopped to around a 1/3rd inch dice, except the lettuce which I just chopped at about 1 inch width.

ingredients

  • Eye-talian dressing ( recipe below )
  • 2 hearts of Romaine
  • 1 head Iceberg
  • 2 cups Mâche
  • half a cucumber
  • 1 chicken breast ( left over from last night, braised, but however you want to cook it. )
  • 1 cup Pepper Jack
  • 1/2 cup Cotija
  • 4 small tomatoes
  • 1 can Garbanzo beans

things I forgot to add, but would not hesitate to add next time:

  • 2 hard-boiled eggs
  • 1/2 cup salami
  • Italian parsley

I know, I’m an idiot for forgetting these ones. It would have added a great freshness to have that parsley. Ah well, next time.

method

I rinsed and dried the lettuces, and then starting chopping. I used the Pepper Jack for a little bite, and the Cotija ( a Mexican crumbly cheese ), because it has this great salty pungency, and it gives it a very LA feel to me. I tossed it with the dressing, and served with some French bread and butter and fresh pepper at the table. Cotija is in every grocery store in So Cal, and frankly anywhere I’ve been on the West Coast. It’s got the saltiness of Parmesan, but without the sharpness.

Eye-talian Dressing

I added everything to a 12oz jar, and shook like crazy. Credit The Naked Chef for reminding me to use those jars I save for something.

ingredients

  • 2 cloves garlic, through the press or minced
  • 2 heaping teaspoons, dried oregano
  • juice of one large Meyer lemon, about 3 tbsp
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 3/4 cup Spanish extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup Extra Light olive oil ( or other vegetable oil )
  • salt and pepper to taste

This dinner, like many, is all about the ingredients. The Spanish olive oil was very smooth, and buttery, and not too much bite. The Extra Light just sort of supported the olive taste, without competing or adding too many other flavors. All said, this was a great light meal, with a nice balance of pungency and richness. I would definitely make this again.

posted to , at 08:37 PM.

Post a comment

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)

Name:

Email Address: (required)

URL:

Comments: (you may use Markdown for style)

« Santa Ana Winds | Main | Cream of Green Chile Soup »