Jessi's Steakhouse Salad

My sister Jessi is one of the best salad makers I know, second only to my aunt Nancy - who as a vegetarian, has 3 decades more experience then she does.  When I told Jessi about Salad Week, I obviously had to have her make one for me.

Places like Chop't or Mix'd or Sweetgreen give me a bit of agida at the expectation of making my own salad.  I always panic and either select just lettuce, tomatoes and dressing or put together a cacophony of flavors in an attempt to be exotic and end up with an inedible bowl of veggies and cheeses and toppings.  I seriously cannot fathom putting together the ingredients she does, but somehow she always makes it work. And this delectable steak salad is no difference:

Start by grilling up a nice lean flank steak marinated in soy sauce, red wine vinegar and some minced garlic.

While I sat back and enjoyed a nice glass of Pinot Grigio, Jessi got to work chopping the veggies. First the red peppers,

Followed by a few baby bella mushrooms.  (I'm adverse to fungi but for Jessi I allowed it.  And then I promptly picked them out and put them in her bowl when she wasn't looking)

Red Onion - Thiiiiiiinly sliced

Next chop up some candied walnuts

Finally, halve a few grape tomatoes,

Add to all that, some crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese

While the steak rests, it is time to mix up the dressing.  Jessi combines some dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar and minced garlic.

She mixes all that with the cutest teeniest whisk I've ever seen.  She loves anything in miniature so I shouldn't have been so surprised that she had a mini whisk to go with her mini dressing prep bowl.

She streamed in some lovely extra virgin olive oil to bring the vinaigrette together.

Finally it was time to assemble the salad.  In a large salad bowl filled with mixed field greens (Jessi suggests filling your individual bowls with lettuce first to get the portions just right) add the veggies and sprinkle a generous portion of salt and fresh cracked black pepper.  This will really flavor the individual vegetables before adding the dressing.

Finally add in the cheese and dressing and toss together.

Cut the meat very thinly on a bias.  If you - like Jessi - recently received an electric knife for your wedding, this would be the perfect time to use it.

After serving up the two portions, she fanned out a few slices of steak onto each and sprinkled the top with those amazing French's Fried Onion bits.  Oh yeah, you know what I'm talking about.  Those wonderful, crispy little bites of heaven that usually hibernate until Thanksgiving when it comes time to make the green bean casserol.

Steak-ey, Cheese-ey, Crisp-ey, a hint of sweetness from the candied walnuts and saltiness from the fried onions.  I give it an enthusiastic two thumbs up.

Huh... it appears that my wine glass must have a hole in it.  Oh well, its time to dig in. 

Shopping List for Jessi's Steakhouse Salad (Makes 2 Entree Size Servings)

• 6 Cups of Mixed Field Greens
• 1/2 a Red Bell Pepper
• 3 Baby Bell Mushrooms
• 1/4 Red Onion
• 1/2 Cup Chopped Candied Walnuts
• 8 - 10 Grape Tomatoes
• 1/4 Cup Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• 6 oz Flank Steak
• 1/8 cup French's Fried Onions

Dijon Vinaigrette Dressing

• 1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 1/8 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 Teaspoons Minced Garlic
• 1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Strawberry Fields Forever

This time last year, Hubby and I went to Disney World for a long weekend.  We learned a lot of things on that trip: Never ever go to Florida in late August; Never get involved in a land war in Asia; Never go against a Sicilian when death is on the line;  And finally, strawberry balsamic on a simple green salad is a gift from the gods. 

When we got home I went on a hard target search for strawberry balsamic.  Oddly enough, we had recently purchased roughly $95 in assorted flavored balsamic vinegars and olive oils while on our honeymoon. ("it was an impulse buy, the guy spoke with an accent and said it suited us") but sadly, we had skipped the strawberry.  We were so naive!

I finally found some at this little specialty store in Frederick and did a little happy dance.  No seriously, ask my friend Jen, she was there and very embarrassed by my happy dance.  When I got home that night, I was so excited to re-make the salad we'd had at Disney World, but I couldn't remember some of the details.  I knew it was made with field greens and I knew there were onions in it.  I vaguely recalled some cheese but wasn't sure which, and I knew there was something salty and crunchy but Hubby and I couldn't agree on what it was.  So I just started experimenting.  And I'm happy to say, I came up with this delicious salad.  It isn't exactly the same, but it is sublime in its own right.  I whole heartedly suggest you go out and get yourself some strawberry balsamic today and make this salad:

Start with a nice big bowl of Field Greens.  I used to hate this variety of lettuce, but I've recently started appreciating the different flavor notes it provides.  I do usually pick out the Frisee though since that texture kind of freaks me out. 

Next slice up some Red Onions.  I use about a third of an onion sliced very thinly.  Sprinkle these over the lettuce.

For the cheese, I finally settled on Goat Cheese.  I love the creamy, tanginess which is a little more subtle then Feta.  I actually think the in the original Disney salad, the cheese was a nice slice of hard Parmesan.  But when I was experimenting I had the goat cheese in my fridge so I went with that and I decided it was a winner.

Also in my cupboard that day were some Pistachios.  I don't know what possessed me to add them, but I even went so far as shelling a few dozen that night, and I'm not sorry I did.  They bring a lovely salty crunch to this sweet, soft salad.  I have since discovered that Trader Joes sells a little bag of already shelled pistachios, and it'll last a while so I go ahead and splurge on it. 

Finally drizzle on the Strawberry Balsamic - I typically cover the mouth of the bottle with my thumb and do a nice wide spiral twice around the bowl.  You don't want too much because this stuff is powerful. 

I also add a drizzle of olive oil along with a pinch of salt and pepper. 

Toss it all together and enjoy this sweet, delicious, summery salad with a side of that grilled chicken we made a few weeks ago (well... a new batch, not the same batch from a few weeks ago.... )

So sweet, so tangy, so salty, so good!

Shopping List for Strawberry Balsamic Salad (Makes 2 small servings or 1 large serving)

• 2 Cups Field Green
• 1/3 Red Onion - sliced very thin
• 1/2 Cup Goat Cheese - crumbled
• 1/2 Cup Salted Pistachio Nutmeats (did you know that is what the inner nut is called? According to the bag it is)
• Strawberry Balsamic Vinegar
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• Cracked Pepper