Honey Chipotle Peach Salad

August is national peach month so I've been trying to consume my fair share to support the local farmers. While I love peaches in cocktails, desserts and salsas, nothing seems to beat a plain perfectly ripe peach. However, with the Georgia heat, peaches seem to ripen so quick that I have to find  creative ways to eat them before they're past their prime. This salad was an easy weeknight summer meal and the different flavors and textures were a great combination! I received some honey roasted chipotle almonds from Blue Diamond and added them to the dish and the spice was a heavenly match to the sweet Georgia peaches. What's your favorite way to enjoy a summer peach?

// Ingredients //

1 peach, pitted, peeled and chopped
1 cup spinach
1/8 cup sliced red onion
1/8 cup roasted garbanzo beans
1/8 cooked and crispy diced pancetta
1/8 cup Blue Diamond honey roasted chipotle almonds

Dressing:

1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp dijon mustard

// Instructions //

1. Roast garbanzo beans at 400 degrees for 20 minutes and set aside to cool. Then saute pancetta over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until crispy. Set aside to cool.

2. Mix dressing ingredients and set aside. Assemble salad starting with spinach. Layer additional ingredients and top with homemade dressing. Serve and enjoy!

*This post is sponsored by Blue Diamond. All opinions are my own!
** Photography and styling by Amy Mikkelsen

Stacked Summer Salad

As you can tell by my blogging schedule as of late, we've been keeping things pretty simple around here for summer and this salad is no exception.  My garden is only doing okay but it's finally starting to yield some tomatoes which was my inspiration for this masterpiece.  There's something about a stacked salad that I really like.  It's simple yet elegant.  Yep, you're gonna need a fork and a knife to eat this one! It shows that you put some thoughtful consideration into the salad instead of just throwing it all together in a big bowl.  It's food.  And art.  It's pretty awesome.

Here's how I made this stackable sensation.

// Ingredients //

1 medium/large tomato
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
1 tbsp. feta cheese
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
Maldon sea salt flakes to taste (seriously, worth the investment)

// Instructions //

Stack ingredients carefully, alternating tomato and avocado slices.  Then, sprinkle the top of the salad with feta cheese.  Whisk together olive oil and vinegar until combined and drizzle over salad.  Season with salt flakes to taste.

Masters Party: Green Jacket Salad

Tomorrow marks the start of the Masters in Augusta, Georgia and already golf enthusiasts are prepping for weekend festivities and viewing parties.  Whether you're making the trek to Augusta or watching from the comfort of home, it's sure to be an exciting weekend! The boys and I will be watching at home all weekend and we certainly plan to get into the Masters spirit with lots of pimento cheese sandwiches and Azalea cocktails.  Also on the menu is this Green Jacket Salad.  The homemade dressing really brings the simple iceberg lettuce to life. After a few personal tweaks, here's my version of the green jacket salad that was originally served years ago at the Green Jacket Restaurant. 

***** Green Jacket Salad *****
(makes about 1 cup of dressing - serves 4)

// Ingredients //

1 head iceberg lettuce, washed and chopped
croutons for garnish
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
4 tbsp. olive oil
6 tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. Lawry's seasoning salt
2 Roma tomatoes chopped
1 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. red pepper
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/8 cup flat parsley, chopped


// Instructions //

1.  Place iceberg lettuce in a bowl.  Then, in a blender or a food processor, combine remaining ingredients (with the exception of the croutons and cheese) and mix until blended.

2.  Pour dressing over lettuce.  Garnish with cheese and croutons.

Kale Salad with Roasted Peanut Dressing

My husband and I recently discovered our favorite date spot  is closing its doors next week.  Cue the tears! The service is superb, the wine list is great, the food is a sure thing and the atmosphere is just right.  And it's really, really close to home.  Boo.  Okay, worse things in life can happen, I admit. 

On Saturday we took one last trip to the local Houston's and we both had this kale salad with roasted peanut dressing as a side to our entrees.  It blew us away!  My husband and I got every last ingredient out of the waiter and I quickly returned home to recreate it the next day.  I'm happy to say I got pretty close!  I love finding new and fresh ways to prepare greens.  I guess there is a happy ending to this story after all.

***** Kale Salad with Roasted Peanut Dressing *****

// Ingredients //

4 cups finely chopped kale
2 cups finely chopped savoy cabbage
2 scallions finely chopped, white and green parts
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1 tbsp. diced mint
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp. sugar
feta and cranberries for garnish (optional)

// Instructions //

1.  Combine kale, cabbage, scallions, cilantro and mint.

2.  In a food processor, combine peanuts, sesame oil, olive oil, rice vinegar, salt, garlic and sugar and combine until completely smooth.  Poor dressing over kale, stir and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

3.  Garnish with a sprinkle of fresh feta and dried cranberries if desired.  Serve cool or room temperature.

*photos by Amy Mikkelsen