"Peach Chicken Salad"

1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 (15 ounce) can peaches
1 lime, juice of
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 dash onion powder
1 dash garlic powder
1 cup water
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 head lettuce
1 (12 ounce) package chow mein noodles
4 chicken breasts
1 large carrot
1 tablespoon sesame seeds (opt.)

1. Mix together well: olive oil, canola oil, soy
sauce, maple syrup, juice from canned peaches, lime juice, sesame
oil, balsamic and cider vinegar, onion powder and garlic powder.
2. Reserve 1 cup of this mixture for the salad dressing.
3. Season the reserved 1 cup of dressing with salt
to taste.
4. Refrigerate the dressing until needed.
5. To the remaining mixture, add the rest of the
salt as well as the water and pepper.
6. In a large bowl or freezer bag place the
chicken breasts in this mixture and marinate for at least 3 hours or
overnight in the refrigerator.
7. After marinating, grill the chicken on hot
grill until cooked through and no pink remains in the center, about 15 to
20 minutes depending on the grill and the thickness of the
chicken breasts.
8. Discard the used marinade- do not use this for dressing the
salad (that is what the reserved cup of dressing is for).
9. Arrange lettuce leaves on 4 single-serving
plates and decorate with fried rice noodles.
10. Using a peeler, slice the carrot into thin strips and arrange
on the plates.
11. Slice the chicken breasts and arrange on top of
the salad with several peach slices.
12. Before serving, drizzle with the reserved dressing (shake well
first) and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Enjoy!


Contessa

What a fantastic sounding summer recipe! Thank you!!!

Thanks , I will try it this weekend !!!! you have such great tastes I enjoy your postings of recipes .

Just wanted to let Contessa know that I tried her recipe yesterday and was really good. I didn't have all the ingredients so I improvised on a few but still came out really good. I laid the chicken slices on my mandarine-toasted almond salad instead, and so the melding of the peaches and mandarines made for a delightfully fresh summer salad. I didn't drizzle the chicken with the remaining dressing because the salad dressing already there. Thanks so much for sharing this!

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

Glad you enjoyed. Here's another good side dish!!


Broccoli Salad Recipe


This is a broccoli salad with raisins and bacon and a sweet and tangy mayonnaise and balsamic vinegar dressing.

INGREDIENTS:
2 bunches broccoli, florets only (5 to 6 cups florets)
1 medium red onion, chopped
1/2 cup raisins
10 to 12 slices bacon, fried and crumbled
.
Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar

PREPARATION:
Separate florets from broccoli stalks. Save the remainder of the broccoli for another use or freeze for later. Combine salad ingredients; top with dressing mixture. Chill and serve.

I make it the day before serving to allow the flavors to marry!!

Contessa

Again, thank you for another great sounding recipe. Next weekend I'll pick up some broccoli and try it out. Not sure if Rick will go for it as he doesn't like spicy or vinegary things but one never knows do one....

Question though...can the raisins be left out or is this something that is vital? I'm not too keen on raisins...weird because I'll eat raisins out of the box but mixed with something else or cooked and it turns me off.

Vicki

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

The raisins add to the sweetness and give it another texture. I'm sure you could use another dried fruit. How about dried pineapple or mango? Sure would be interesting. Try one and let me know. I love improvising and finding another taste treat!!
Good Luck!


Contessa

Excellent idea...I think the dried pineapple (or maybe even fresh chunks) would suit both of us. The Club serves an awesome salad called Hawaiian Chicken Salad that's a hit with the Members. They use fresh pineapple chunks so it sounds like a great match with the mayo dressing.

If I can find the recipe for the Club's salad, I'm sure you would love it. It's got fresh pineapple, toasted macadamia bits, a delicious dressing and topped with deep fried wonton strips. On Monday when I put together the peach dish, I cut up some wontons with a pizza slicer and deep fried them for no more than 20 seconds,and used them instead of the noodles. I was still nibbling on the left over strips all day today! So much for my diet....

Thanks again!

Vicki

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

OK...Since I format the Chef's recipes for his cooking classes, I found it and well worth it too! Keep in mind that it does make alot of dressing though...

Coconut Ranch Dressing

Ingredients
1 quart Mayonnaise
1 pint Buttermilk
3 cloves Garlic
3 ounces Lemon juice
½ bunch Parsley, chopped
12 ounces Coco Lopez
Salt and pepper to taste

Tools

Blender or food processor
Mixing bowl
Wisk

Details:

In a blender or food processor, puree garlic in lemon juice.

In mixing bowl place the garlic juice, mayonnaise, buttermilk, and Coco Lopez. Wisk the mixture until all lumps are gone. Add the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: For Hawaiian Chicken Salad add to romaine lettuce:
Grilled pineapple pieces, bite sized
Honey Roasted Macadamia nuts, chopped
Thin fried wontons noodles (homemade or store bought)
Teriyaki sauce marinated chicken breast, cooked and sliced into bite sized pieces

Enjoy!

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

Sounds FAB!! I'll definitely give it a try!



Contessa

Broccoli is so good for you too, I really enjoyed this dish, and everyone at my BBQ enjoyed it also , and good pork, chicken or beef summer recipes ???

I have lots of grilled chicken recipes because I eat primarily chicken & shrimp.
But, will dig for some beef & pork recipes.
Here's a favorite:

Raspberry Glazed Chicken Breasts


This super simple sauce is brushed onto chicken breasts, then grilled to glazed perfection. You could use this recipe with peach jam and peaches, strawberry jam and chopped strawberries too.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 16 minutes

Ingredients:

1/2 cup raspberry jam
3 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
dash white pepper
1 Tbsp. honey
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1-1/2 cups fresh raspberries

Preparation:

Prepare grill. Brush rack with vegetable oil. Mix raspberry jam, honey, pepper, and mustard. Place chicken on grill, cover and cook for 8-9 minutes per side, brushing frequently with the jam mixture, until juices run clear and center of chicken is no longer pink when thickest pieces are cut. Discard remaining jam mixture and serve chicken topped with raspberries. Serves 6

(Sometimes I'll make double the recipe and marinate the chicken overnight in 1/2 the mixture. Then brush chicken while grilling.)

Contessa

And another great recipe.......and from my favorite chef, Mario Batali!



Shrimp Shish Kebabs: Spiedini di Scampi



Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 4 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 30 minutes
Ease of preparation: intermediate

3 pounds giant shrimp U 10 size, peeled
4 long branches rosemary, leaves removed to yield skewers, leaves set aside
2 lemons, zested and juiced
2 ounces limoncello
2 bunches oregano, leaves removed and bruised
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Divide the shrimp into 4 equal portions and skewer them on each of the 4 rosemary branches. In a large, nonreactive casserole, combine the lemon juice and zest, limoncello, oregano and olive oil and place shrimp in the marinade, turning skewers to make sure that shrimp are well-coated. Cover, place in the refrigerator and allow to marinate for 30 minutes. ( I put in plastic bag.)

Preheat the grill or broiler. If using a charcoal grill, just before beginning to cook the shrimp, scatter the rosemary leaves over the coals. Cook each skewer for 3 minutes, then turn and cook for 1 minute more, basting with marinade. Serve either hot, or cooled.

btw....don't panic if you don't use rosemary skewers, regular ones are fine!


Contessa

Yum, yum, yum!!!! You have some great recipes... and I say this because we are really particular with what we eat and like simple ingredients melded together to give unusual tastes. Rick is basically a meat and potato guy. Give him a grilled steak (chicken or pork as well), a baked potato (or fries) and a simple veggie and he's in heaven. Me, I'm a little adventurous but not so much to turn Rick off to eating.... Every so often he'll go with these types of simple ingredients you list as a change of pace so thank you once again for giving me yet another day of non-boredom in the kitchen.

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

John Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yum, yum, yum!!!! You have some great recipes...
> and I say this because we are really particular
> with what we eat and like simple ingredients
> melded together to give unusual tastes. Rick is
> basically a meat and potato guy. Give him a
> grilled steak (chicken or pork as well), a baked
> potato (or fries) and a simple veggie and he's in
> heaven. Me, I'm a little adventurous but not so
> much to turn Rick off to eating.... Every so often
> he'll go with these types of simple ingredients
> you list as a change of pace so thank you once
> again for giving me yet another day of non-boredom
> in the kitchen.

Vicki,

Give the broccoli recipe a try, complete with raisins unless you absolutely deplore them. I'm betting you'll love it if you like broccoli and even if you aren't a fan of the raisins. They really do give it that little bit of extra sweetness that makes it so delicious. It's been a favorite of mine for years.

Respectfully,

pat