May 18 Salad

Here’s a good, colorful lunchtime salad with mixed greens, grape tomatoes, chopped carrots, English cucumber and shaved Parmesan and Romano cheeses. In order to add some zest to this mid-day meal I made an Italian-inspired dressing by whisking together ¼ cup red wine vinegar, ¼ cup olive oil (infused with dried red peppers and herbs), a teaspoon of dried oregano and some salt and pepper to taste.

An ever-evolving soup recipe

Sunset Magazine recently featured some chicken soup recipes that looked mighty tasty, including one for Italian Chicken Sausage and Artichoke Soup. 

The shopping list is pretty simple — sausage, some broth, chard, a pound of artichoke hearts and Parmesan cheese.

How I did it:
I made some changes based on the fact that I only wanted to hit one grocery store on my way home from work. Trader Joe’s had most of what the recipe called for, with the exception of chard, so I bought a one-pound bag of their pre-cut Southern greens instead.

The original recipe also suggests starting with two tablespoons olive oil, and adding the sausage to the pot once the oil is heated. The sausage I used yielded a lot of fat once cooked, which I drained, so I don’t really think starting the recipe off with oil is necessary.

1 pound chicken Italian sausage, casings removed
8 cups chicken broth
12-ounce bag frozen artichoke hearts
8 ounces (half bag) Southern greens blend
2 cloves garlic, minced

Cook sausage and garlic in large pot over medium-high heat until browned, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Drain fat from pot. Add broth and artichoke hearts. Bring to a boil and add greens. Cover pot, reduce to a simmer and cook until greens are soft, which will take a few minutes (the chard the original recipe calls for will probably wilt faster than the heartier greens I used).

How I’ll do it next time:
I really like tangy twist the artichoke hearts give this soup, and the sausage was good too. I’d change things up a bit by using baby spinach instead, anywhere from 8 ounces to a pound, stirred in just a minute before the soup’s served. I’d also thicken the broth up. Two eggs and two tablespoons grated Parmesan whisked together in a bowl and then stirred into the soup should do the trick.

Fried chicken at farmerbrown a little piece of heaven

I just can’t say no to fried chicken. I don’t eat it often, maybe once a year, but when I do I’m in seventh heaven.

While in the Bay Area this weekend, friend Lucy (fellow food lover) took me and the special man friend to Farmer Brown, which serves up farm-fresh soul food on the cusp of Union Square and the Tenderloin.

We sat at the bar and, while really only planning to order drinks and snacks, something on the menu caught my eye — fried chicken and a beer for $15.

This was no small plate — the dish came with two perfectly fried pieces of chicken, a breast and a drumstick that had a wonderfully seasoned, just-like-grandma-used-to-make flavor. Accompanying the chicken was some of the best macaroni and cheese I’ve ever had (so rich and sharp) and extremely flavorful, earthy, salty ham hock greens. Thanks to all that, and a glass (well, a jar) of Marin Brewing Company Mt. Tam Pale Ale, I left stuffed, sassy and satisfied. Their entire menu looked divine, but I’d order this again in a heartbeat.