I am feeling like Noah's wife this week. It has rained, and rained and rained here and will not stop. Oh wait, except that they are saying it will snow tonight...not kidding.
The only wonderful saving grace is that I am saving money on not having to water the lawn...and my husband's cancelled rounds of golf. The drawback to that though is he gets cabin fever really bad. Thank goodness I bought him a practice golf net for the garage last winter, so he can keep busy with that until the sun decides to return here.
The other downside to all the gray skies and dreary weather, it makes me want to bake like crazy...and I'm not even that good of a baker. I have been trying out new recipes and flavor combinations which makes the house warm, cozy and smell amazing.
That being said, I (and my tight pants) needed to take a break from the desserts and I made this salad for dinner the other night. It goes together fairly quick and has incredible layers of flavor.
6 ounces goat cheese
1 egg, beaten
4 Tbls. canola oil, divided
1/2 cup bread crumbs (or panko crumbs)
Salt
Pepper
3 Tbls. butter
1 Tbl. balsamic vinegar
2 Tbls. olive oil
1 Tbl. freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 to 6 cups mixed salad greens
1 cup thinly sliced fresh strawberries
1/4 cup chopped pecans
Slice goat cheese into 12 small rounds, about one-third of an inch thick. If you freeze the goat cheese for about 15 minutes before you cut it, this should help the ease of cutting the soft cheese.
Combine the egg, 1 tablespoon canola oil and 1 tablespoon cold water in a small bowl and mix with a whisk. Spread the bread crumbs over a plate and season with salt and pepper. Dunk the cheese rounds, one at a time, into the egg mixture, letting the excess drip back into the bowl, then roll in the bread crumbs to fully coat on both sides. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes.
Heat the butter and remaining 3 tablespoons canola oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Carefully place the breaded cheese rounds in the pan and fry until light brown, about 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels.
After skillet has cooled enough, carefully drain out any excess oil from skillet and clean off. Add the chopped pecans and cook on medium heat until just starting to get fragrant and turn light brown. (Watch carefully, so you do not let them burn)...I speak from great experience here!! Remove pecans from pan and let cool.
For the vinaigrette, place 1 tablespoon vinegar in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and slowly beat in the olive oil and lemon juice. (If you like more dressing on your salads, you may want to double the vinaigrette ingredients here).
Combine the salad greens, sliced strawberries, vinaigrette and chopped pecans in a bowl. Place a small amount of salad greens in the center of 4 (side salad size) or (2 dinner/meal size), surround each plate with 3 (or 6 for dinner size) cheese rounds. Enjoy!!
**Served with mushroom-Parmesan flatbread and a chilled bottle of Butternut Chardonnay.
