Cobb Salad

The Cobb salad was developed in the 1920’s at the Brown Derby in Hollywood, CA. Sense then there have been other ingredients added or subtracted. The blue cheese is sometimes replaced with cheddar but will never be right in my opinion. I do love blue cheese but if you don’t try going light on some Gorgonzola cheese. This is a milder type of blue-veined cheese. The flavors and textures are all perfectly balanced. If you just can’t do the blue cheese then try another strong cheese like feta.

It would seem that this wouldn't be the healthiest of salads because yes it is high in fat but the fat in this is the really good kind. The dressing made with olive oil and the olives and avocado are all polyunsaturated fats that help control cholesterol.

1 head...... Romaine Lettuce

1 ea........... Avocado

2 ea........... Tomato

¼ c............ Green Onions

½ c............ Sliced Black Olives

½ lb........... Bacon

2 ea........... Boneless Chicken Breasts

4 ea........... Hard Boiled Egg

½ c............ Bleu Cheese Crumbles

Dressing

4 Tbs........ Red Wine Vinegar

½ c............ Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 Tbs........ Dijon Mustard

1 ea........... Garlic Cloves

to taste...... Salt and Pepper

1. Mix dressing ingredients together and chill.

2. Grill Chicken then cool and dice.

3. Cut cleaned and chilled lettuce into 1” pieces and place in a bowl.

4. Chop bacon into ½” pieces and cook until crispy.

5. Dice avocado, tomato and egg into ½” pieces.

6. Chop green onions into ¼” pieces.

7. Place everything in a bowl with dressing and toss thoroughly.

Be creative, have fun and enjoy!

Gearing up for Superbowl...

Muffaletta

Magic Muffaletta

(A New Orleans style hero sandwich)

You can find a Muffaletta anywhere in New Orleans or most of Louisiana.  It was supposedly made at the Central Grocery on Decatur Street first.  When I visited New Orleans, I waited in a line that rapped around the building for about an hour just to get an authentic one… Well worth the wait! 

I used regular ham in this recipe but traditionally you should use Mortadella ham.  Capicolla will also work.  Both are Italian hams that can be found at Specialty grocers.  The Muffaletta should always be served at room temperature- never toasted! The sandwich is best after it has been out for a bit because the juices soak into the bread. All of the flavors mesh together. Because of this, the Muffaletta is great for parties.

If you want to make this sandwich vegetarian, try grilling eggplant, mushrooms, zucchini, and/or yellow squash.  The olive salad is the magic- it is what makes the sandwich.  I found several recipes for Muffaletta.  Some had chopped carrots, chopped cauliflower, red onions and/or anchovies, but they all shared the important olive salad!

Make this sandwich for a Superbowl party, sit back and relax! Be creative, have fun and enjoy!!!

Olive Salad

1¼ c... Green olives with pimientos (chopped)

1¼ c... Pitted Kalamata olives (chopped)

½ c..... Cocktail onions (chopped)

4 Tbs. Capers

1 c...... Celery heart with leaves (chopped)

½ tsp.. Fresh ground black pepper

2 Tbs. Fresh garlic (chopped)

1 Tbs. Fresh oregano (chopped)

¼ c..... Fresh parsley

¼ c..... Olive oil

4 Tbs. Red wine Vinegar

Sandwich (will feed 1-4 people)

1 ea... 10” Round focaccia or Italian bread

4.5 oz Genoa salami

4.5 oz Ham

4.5 oz Provolone cheese 

1 c...... Olive salad 

1.      Mix salad ingredients together and refrigerate overnight.

2.      Pile on salami, ham, cheese and olive salad.

3.      Cut into fourths and enjoy.