Spinach Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

A couple of weeks ago, I went to a co-worker going away dinner at the Village Tavern. This was right after our dessert social so I wasn't hungry enough for a full on meal but I was hungry. Decided on the spinach salad with apples, blue cheese, spicy nuts and tossed with a poppyseed dressing. It also came with a hard boiled egg and a banana nut muffin. It was so delicious that I couldn't get it out of my head and vowed that I would try to copy it. The following is what I came up with and while it is pretty good, the restaurant version had more of an acidic kick. I might bump up the amount of vinegar in the dressing the next time I make this.

Spinach Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

Salad components (this is all stuff that I eyeballed so no measurements):

Fresh baby spinach

Granny smith apples, thinly sliced

Crumbled blue cheese

Spicy pecans (recipe below)

Crispy bacon bits (recipe below)

Poppyseed Dressing:

1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons onion powder
3 teaspoons ground mustard
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil

In a small bowl, combine the first six ingredients. Slowly add oil, while whisking briskly. Cover and refrigerate overnight until serving.

Spicy Nuts:

¼ cup veggie oil
2 tsp chili powder
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp tumeric
Pinch of cayenne
½ tsp salt
3 cups pecans

Preheat oven to 300◦. Combine oil and spices in small saucepan over low heat. Heat until hot but not smoking. Remove from heat and add walnuts, tossing to coat. Spread walnuts in a single layer on a baking pan lined with parchment or wax paper. Place in oven for 10 minutes.

Crispy Bacon Bits:

1 pound of thick sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

Prepare bacon in a pan until very crispy. Drain on paper towels.

To assemble the salad:

Toss the spinach, apples and blue cheese with the poppyseed dressing. When plating, sprinkle each plate with warmed bacon and nuts.

Pass: Fantastic Black Bean Chili

I've made this recipe! The verdict is "Pass". Click here for my review.


Fantastic Black Bean Chili
Recipe from allrecipes.com

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey
3 (15 ounce) cans black beans, undrained
1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat; cook onion and garlic until onions are translucent. Add turkey and cook, stirring, until meat is brown. Stir in beans, tomatoes, chili powder, oregano, basil and vinegar. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 60 minutes or more, until flavors are well blended.

Old-Fashioned Pound Cake

I made this recipe for a recent monthly birthday celebration at work. They requested a pound cake so I scoured my cookbooks and this recipe was the one I ended up using. The outside of the cake baked up crisp and golden while the inside had a dense, velvety texture. I added a teaspoon of lemon extract but I think that the addition of lemon zest would have really made a really good lemon pound cake into a spectacular one.

Old-Fashioned Pound Cake
Recipe from Southern Living

2 cups butter, softened
2 3/4 cups sugar
6 large eggs
3 3/4 cups flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer 2 minutes or until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating 5 to 7 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until yellow disappears.

Combine flour, salt and nutmeg in a large bowl; add to butter mixture alternating with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Mix at low speed after each addition just until mixture is blended. Stir in vanilla. Spoon batter into a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 to 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan and cool completely on wire rack.

Banana Pineapple Bread

I sought out a banana bread recipe since we had some bananas that were really ripe. I like banana bread but when I ran across this recipe that had pineapple too, I thought that this recipe couldn't be all bad. It is incredibly moist and the hint of pineapple flavor doesn't overpower the banana. I omitted the raisins and added a teaspoon of coconut extract. Very good!

Banana Pineapple Bread

3 Cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cinnamon
3/4 tsp Salt
2 Cups sugar
3 Eggs -- Beaten
1 Cup Oil
2 Cups Mashed Bananas
2 T Vanilla
1 Can Crushed Pineapple (8 ounces)
1/2 Cup Raisins

Combine the first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl; set aside. Mix remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Spray 2 loaf pans, with nonstick cooking spray. Pour batter into pans. Bake in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 50-60 minutes.

Pending: Venetian Panino

Pending recipes are those that I have not made yet and I will get around to... one of these days.

Venetian Panino
Recipe: Giada De Laurentiis

1 garlic clove
8 ounces Gruyere cheese, shredded
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temp
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
12 ounces sliced turkey
12 slices wheat or sourdough bread
6 Tbsp olive oil

Finely chop the garlic in a food processor. Add the cheese, butter, and mustard. Blend until the mixture is thick, smooth and spreadable.

Spread the cheese mixture over one side of each bread slice. Arrange the turkey slices over the cheese mixture on 6 of the slices. Top the sandwiches with the remaining bread slices, cheese side down, pressing gently to adhere. Trim the crusts from the sandwiches and cut in half on the diagonal.

Heat 3 Tbsp of oil in a large, heavy griddle or skillet over medium-low heat. Cook half of the sandwiches until golden brown and heated through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a serving platter and tent with foil to keep them warm. Repeat with the remaining 3 Tbsp of oil and sandwiches. Serve immediately.