K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
Mixed Baby Greens Salad with Buttermilk-Strawberry Vinaigrette and Shrimp Cake 'Croutons'
Here is last night's first course for a rib dinner. The base of the salad is simply packaged baby greens from the market plus a few romaine leaves added in for crunch along with some sliced fresh strawberries. This mix is tossed with an easily prepared buttermilk dressing that has a few strawberries included to tie it in well with the mix. Thin sliced rings of Vidalia top the salad and, perched on the onion slices, a few shrimp cakes, nicely browned so that they look a little like croutons. Placing them atop the onion keeps them from getting soggy but the salad really tastes best if you cut the shimp cakes and mix them in before eating. The warm slightly crisp cakes, the flavor of shrimp, the tang of the buttermilk, sweetness of the strawberries and vegetal notes of the lettuces really work well together.
The dressing should be made ahesd of time and chilled. The shrimp cakes can be made ahead of time, cooled, refrigerated in a covered container layered with paper towels, then reheated in the oven or in a lightly oiled skillet on top of the stove.
1 bag mixed baby greens from the supermarket, washed, dried, chilled
6-8 leaves from the interior of a romaine head, washed, dried, chilled
6-8 fresh strawberries
1/4-1/2 Vidalia onion, peeled, sliced thinly into rings
1/2 recipe of shrimp cakes*, hot
1 recipe dressing (see below)
Put the greens in a large salad bowl. Tear the romaine into small pieces and add to the bowl. Hull the strawberries, slice them, then add them to the bowl. Sprinkle the salad with a little Kosher and a turn of the black peppermill; toss to blend well. Pour on a half the dressing, toss well, then pour on a little more and toss again. Add more dressing, if desired, and toss.
Mound the salad on individual plates and top with a 2-3 Vidalia rings. Place the hot shrimp cakes atop the the onion rings so that they stay crisp for serving; serve.
Buttermilk-Strawberry Dressing
1 small onion, sliced thinly
2 t evoo
1 t unsalted butter
pinch salt
pinch dry thyme
2 T dry sherry
1 T Dijon
2 t honey
3 strawberries, hulled
1/4 t thyme
1/8 t ground celery seed
1/2 med clove garlic, peeled
3/4 c buttermilk
1 1/2 T lemon juice
1 T sherry vinegar
salt and black pepper to taste
Heat the evoo in a small saute pan over med-high heat. Melt in the butter and when the foam strarts to subside add the sliced onion; stir to coat. Add the pinches of salt and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, till the onion slices are caramelized to a medium brown. Deglaze the pan with the sherry allowing it to reduce to paractically nothing.
Scrape the contents of the pan into a blender. Add the rest of the ingredients and puree till smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste; chill.
Not the best pic but click for a larger image.
* Make the cakes on the small side, about 1 inch across.
Here is last night's first course for a rib dinner. The base of the salad is simply packaged baby greens from the market plus a few romaine leaves added in for crunch along with some sliced fresh strawberries. This mix is tossed with an easily prepared buttermilk dressing that has a few strawberries included to tie it in well with the mix. Thin sliced rings of Vidalia top the salad and, perched on the onion slices, a few shrimp cakes, nicely browned so that they look a little like croutons. Placing them atop the onion keeps them from getting soggy but the salad really tastes best if you cut the shimp cakes and mix them in before eating. The warm slightly crisp cakes, the flavor of shrimp, the tang of the buttermilk, sweetness of the strawberries and vegetal notes of the lettuces really work well together.
The dressing should be made ahesd of time and chilled. The shrimp cakes can be made ahead of time, cooled, refrigerated in a covered container layered with paper towels, then reheated in the oven or in a lightly oiled skillet on top of the stove.
1 bag mixed baby greens from the supermarket, washed, dried, chilled
6-8 leaves from the interior of a romaine head, washed, dried, chilled
6-8 fresh strawberries
1/4-1/2 Vidalia onion, peeled, sliced thinly into rings
1/2 recipe of shrimp cakes*, hot
1 recipe dressing (see below)
Put the greens in a large salad bowl. Tear the romaine into small pieces and add to the bowl. Hull the strawberries, slice them, then add them to the bowl. Sprinkle the salad with a little Kosher and a turn of the black peppermill; toss to blend well. Pour on a half the dressing, toss well, then pour on a little more and toss again. Add more dressing, if desired, and toss.
Mound the salad on individual plates and top with a 2-3 Vidalia rings. Place the hot shrimp cakes atop the the onion rings so that they stay crisp for serving; serve.
Buttermilk-Strawberry Dressing
1 small onion, sliced thinly
2 t evoo
1 t unsalted butter
pinch salt
pinch dry thyme
2 T dry sherry
1 T Dijon
2 t honey
3 strawberries, hulled
1/4 t thyme
1/8 t ground celery seed
1/2 med clove garlic, peeled
3/4 c buttermilk
1 1/2 T lemon juice
1 T sherry vinegar
salt and black pepper to taste
Heat the evoo in a small saute pan over med-high heat. Melt in the butter and when the foam strarts to subside add the sliced onion; stir to coat. Add the pinches of salt and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, till the onion slices are caramelized to a medium brown. Deglaze the pan with the sherry allowing it to reduce to paractically nothing.
Scrape the contents of the pan into a blender. Add the rest of the ingredients and puree till smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste; chill.
Not the best pic but click for a larger image.
* Make the cakes on the small side, about 1 inch across.