arugula

Orzo, Arugula and Tomato Salad

September 21, 2014 by figandpie · 189 Comments

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked orzo

baby arugula (or spinach)

cherry tomatoes

goat or feta cheese

balsamic vinegar

olive oil

salt

pepper

Directions:

1) Boil orzo according to package directions. Rinse in cold water and let cool.

2) Wash the arugula and cherry tomatoes; slice the tomatoes in half.

3) In a large boil mix together about 3 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar (more/less of each depending on preference). Add a pinch of salt & pepper (again, more if you want). Mix the dressing up.

4) Put the cooked/cooled orzo, wash arugula, tomatoes and a handful of goat or feta cheese in the dressing. Stir to coat. Serve immediately.

Filed Under: recipes, salads, side / appetizer · Tagged With: arugula, balsamic vinegar, feta cheese, olive oil, orzo, orzo salad, salad, spinach, tomatoes. goat cheese

Orzo, Arugula and Tomato Salad

September 16, 2014 by figandpie · 178 Comments

I love salad, and I like interesting salads. This one combines arugula (though I’m sure it would be just as yummy with spinach!), orzo pasta, goat (or feta) cheese and tomatoes. Super simple and full of flavor – how can you go wrong!??

serves: about 6

time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

baby arugula

1/2 cup dry orzo, cooked

tomatoes (I used cherry), sliced

goat or feta cheese

5 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

salt

pepper

Directions:

1. Boil the dry orzo according to package directions. After it has cooked let it cool.

2. Wash and chop the tomatoes. Wash the baby arugula

3. Mix the olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt & pepper (to taste) together in a large bowl. Throw in the baby arugula, cooked & cooled orzo, cut tomatoes and a handful or so of goat or feta cheese (the amount of cheese is to taste).

4. Gently stir the salad to combine all ingredients, serve immediately.

Filed Under: main dishes, recipes, salads, side / appetizer · Tagged With: arugula, baby arugula, balsamic vinegar, feta cheese, goat cheese, olive oil, orzo, salad, side, spinach, summer, tomatoe

Beer Glazed Citrus Chicken

June 12, 2014 by figandpie · 451 Comments

This dish had the perfect amount of citrus – it made me wonder why I never make dishes with orange in them. I don’t like orange marmalade on it’s own, like in a sandwich, but man oh man is it good in this dish! And, if you add arugula, tangerines and pine nuts to any dish you have a winner! In the summer I also aim to have “summer” dinners and this one sure hit the mark! It was light, fresh, super tasty and refreshing!

Serves 4

Beer Glazed Citrus Chicken

1/2 cup wheat beer
1/4 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons orange marmalade
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 – 2 pounds mix of boneless chicken thighs and drumsticks
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Orange Arugula Salad

handful of baby arugula
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
canned tangerines
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon freshly squeeze orange juice
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2) Combine the first 1/4 cup beer plus the orange juice, orange marmalade, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium heat; whisk until the mixture comes to a boil then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes.

3) Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Add the salt & pepper seasoned chicken to the hot skillet, browning on both sides (about 5 minutes per side). After both sides are brown add the beer mixture to the skillet and use a wooden spoon to scrape any bits off the bottom of the pan. Pour in the remaining 1/4 cup of beer scraping off any stuck bits off the pan; stir in the beer & orange marmalade mixture and turn off the heat.

4) Place the chicken in the oven uncovered basting the chicken with the glaze in the bottom of the pan every 5 minutes and bake for about 20 minutes / until the chicken is cooked through.

5) Whisk together the olive oil, orange juice, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper until combined. Toast the pine nuts.

6) Place a handful of arugula, tangerines, red onion and one chicken breast on each plate. Drizzle with the dressing and sprinkle a few toasted pine nuts on top.

Filed Under: main dishes, recipes · Tagged With: arugula, arugula salad, beer chicken, beer citrus glazed, beer glazed, beer glazed chicken, Beer Glazed Citrus Chicken, chicken, chicken dinner, chicken drumsticks, chicken thighs, citrus chicken, citrus glazed, dinner, orange juice, orange marmalade, pine nuts, pinenuts, salad, summer dinner, tangerines, wheat beer

Wild rice, Chicken, Sweet Potato, Cashew Arugula Salad

June 4, 2014 by figandpie · 163 Comments

I love adding wild rice to my salads, I am now a believer in adding sweet potatoes to my salads too! Did you know that wild rice isn’t actually rice? It is actually four species of grasses forming the genus zizania and the grain which can be harvested from them.

Chicken Marinade:

3-4 chicken breasts, sliced into fourths

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup honey

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

pinch of salt

Salad Ingredients:

cooked wild rice (we used 2 cups uncooked, this was too much)

1 sweet potato

Arugula

cashew pieces

dried cranberries

olive oil

salt

pepper

Dressing:

2 lemons, squeezed

1/3 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons honey

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1) Combine the ingredients for the marinade (minus the chicken) and boil on medium heat for about 10 minutes until the sauce becomes thick. Cool for about 10 minutes and pour over the chicken pieces. Marinade for at least 1 hour (which should be the amount of time it takes to prepare the rest of the meal) or overnight.

2) Cook the wild rice.

3) Heat your oven to 375 degrees F. Peel the sweet potato and cut into 1/4″ squares. Place into a baking dish drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt/pepper, stir to coat. Bake for about 30-40 minutes stirring every 10 minutes to make sure the sweet potatoes do not burn. Once they are cooked through remove from the oven and set aside.

4) Combine all ingredients for the dressing and place in an airtight container so you can shake and combine the ingredients more easily.

5) Cook the chicken pieces in a medium-high heat skillet pouring in the marinade.

6) Once the rice/chicken are cooked, place a handful of arugula on each plate, place a scoop of rice on top of that, add a few pieces of chicken, and top with the sweet potato pieces, cashew pieces, dried cranberries and sprinkle with the lemon honey dressing.

Filed Under: Gluten Free, main dishes, recipes, salads · Tagged With: arugula, arugula salad, cashew, chicken, chicken marinade, dried cranberries, Honey, lemon, lemon dressing, lemon honey dressing, salad, sweet potato, wild rice

Pasta Rosa Verta

February 11, 2014 by figandpie · 560 Comments

This was a really simple meal to make, and took maybe about half an hour to make. I really need to get better at timing how long my meals take so that I can tell you. I really liked the flavors of the standard diced tomato sauce with the arugula, pine nuts and blue cheese – I will certainly be making this dish again! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! If you make it let me know what you think – I love comments!

serves 4

Ingredients

1 box penne pasta

4 hot Italian sausage links

olive oil

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can diced tomatoes

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

3 cups arugula, watercress, or spinach (I used arugula)

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

2 tablespoons crumbled Gorgonzola or other blue cheese

Directions

1. Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and cover to keep warm.

2. Boil the sausage links for about 12 minutes, drain the water and slice into bite sized pieces.

3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. throw in the the onion and garlic and saute until the onion is tender. Stir in the canned tomatoes, salt, pepper, and red pepper, add more to taste. Add the cooked sliced Italian sausage. Continue to cook for about 5 minutes.

4. While the tomato & sausage mixture is heating, toast the pine nuts until lightly browned.

5. Mix in the arugula, watercress, or spinach into the tomato & sausage mixture and heat until just wilted.

6. Spoon the pasta onto individual dishes and top with the tomato mixture. Sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts and crumbled cheese.

Filed Under: main dishes, recipes · Tagged With: arugula, blue cheese, blue cheese pasta, diced tomatoes, easy dinner, easy pasta, hot Italian sausage, Italian sausage, pasta, pasta dinner, pene pasta, pine nuts, quick dinner, quick pasta, quick pasta dinner, spinach, watercress

Beet and Citrus Salad

October 3, 2013 by figandpie · 374 Comments

I love salads, and I love getting creative with salads.

Ingredients:

lettuce (I used baby arugula, but any mixture will do)

canned beets, drained – amount depends on your preference

mandarin oranges, drained – amount depends on your preference

grapefruit cup (or fresh), drained – amount depends on your preference

1 orange, peeled and divided into sections

pistachios, shelled – amount depends on your preference

goat cheese, crumbled- amount depends on your preference

1.5 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

pepper, to taste

Lawry’s seasoned salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Wash and drain lettuce, place a portion on each plate.

2. Place a portion of the remaining ingredients through goat cheese on top of the lettuce.

3. Mix the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper, and Lawry’s seasoned salt in a bowl and pour over each citrus salad (I forgot to put the dressing on my salad and I didn’t even notice!)

Serve with your favorite summer main dish!

Filed Under: Gluten Free, recipes · Tagged With: arugula, balsamic vinegar, beets, citrus, goat cheese, grapefruit, mandarin orange, olive oil, oranges, pistachios, salad, summer salad

Tomato & Feta Toasts

July 23, 2013 by figandpie · 192 Comments

I cannot believe how amazing this salad / toast was. In fact, I want one right now. I’m pretty much drooling. This recipe will be a go-to summer salad recipe. See, there are so many amazing ways to eat your veggies!

prep/total time: approximately 20-25 minutes

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme

handful basil leaves, chopped

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

sliced tomato or cherry tomatoes

1 English cucumber, thinly sliced

1 bell pepper, diced

1 lemon, juiced

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

freshly ground black pepper

pinch of kosher salt

feta cheese, crumbled

goat cheese, crumbled

toasted French bread, 2 slices each person

handful pine nuts, toasted

handful of arugula per person

Directions:

1. Chop, slice, and grate all needed ingredients.

2. Mix the olive oil, pepper and salt together, stir in the chopped, sliced, grated ingredients. Gently fold in the crumbled cheeses. Let stand for 10 minutes.

3. Slice and toast the bread.

4. Toast a handful of pine nuts – careful not to burn, you only want them golden brown.

5. Place a handful of washed arugula on each plate.

6. Place the toast on the sides of the plate. Arrange the cucumber on the bed of arugula, and scoop out the cheese and olive oil mixture on top of the toasts and arugula. Enjoy!

Filed Under: recipes · Tagged With: appetizer, arugula, basil, bell pepper, bread, cheese, cucumber, feat, French bread, goat cheese, olive oil, recipe, salad, side dish, summer meal, tomato, tomatoes

Orzo, Arugula and Tomato Salad

Orzo, Arugula and Tomato Salad

Beer Glazed Citrus Chicken

Directions:

Wild rice, Chicken, Sweet Potato, Cashew Arugula Salad

Pasta Rosa Verta

Beet and Citrus Salad

Tomato & Feta Toasts

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