you know Winter’s getting old when you’re out in your yard checking to see if anything’s happening yet! My Hellebores haven’t budged in about a month! And, this rhododendron lies in wait.
Three things happened today. First and foremost, the SUN came out!
Then, I decided to indulge my recent craving for a good old Spinach Salad – you know, they’re hard to find anymore in restaurants and when they are, they usually seem old. Third, I was looking around in my fruit bowl and I found a couple of near-the-limit of ripeness Bosc Pears.
Lunchtime came around the corner and I decided to try to make something of this. Oh yes, and I had a perfectly ripe organic avocado, too! This might seem like an updated variation of a Green Goddess dressing, but I found it infinitely more refreshing and new. You can add a couple of crumbles of gorgonzola if you want to gild the lilly – but I like this just as it is!
SPINACH SALAD WITH CHICKEN, AVOCADO, PEAR AND TOASTED PECANS WITH PEAR, GINGER, PARSLEY AND LIME VINAIGRETTE – serves 1
1 grilled boneless chicken breast half, cooled slightly and sliced
1/2 ripe organic avocado, sliced
1 1/2 cups organic baby spinach
1/2 very ripe (but not over-ripe- still sliceable) bosc pear, peeled, halved, cored and sliced in 1/4″ slices
1/2 cup toasted pecans chopped
For Dressing:
1/8 cup champagne vinegar
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
3-4 slices of the bosc pear
3 small slices of fresh ginger, peeled (nickel size circumference)
scant 1/8 cup fresh parsley sprigs
scant 1/2 tsp fresh lime zest
2 pinches fine sea salt
2 pinches freshly ground black pepper
Make the dressing:
In a blender, add all the ingredients and purée until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings*.
To make the salad:
Arrange the spinach leaves on a luncheon or dinner plate. Arrange the avocado slices on one side, the chicken in the middle and the pear slices in a fan or 2. Sprinkle the toasted pecans over the chicken. Nape the dressing over the chicken, avocado and pears. It almost tastes like Spring!
*Notes – you can, as noted above, add a bit of gorgonzola to this dressing or a few red pepper flakes for a touch of heat. This is a great dressing that I’m going to play around with in all sorts of dishes.
Enjoy – the sun!!!!!, the end of January, and something fresh!
