Two Hungry [Artichoke] Hearts

We were watching Sandwich King the other day on Food Network, and Jeff was whipping up a grilled artichoke sandwich with a roasted garlic ricotta spread.  All of the components sounded great, so we took them, and morphed them into a delicious grilled salad.

Start by roasting your garlic.  It takes about at least 30 minutes for it to roast, so you'll want to start with this step so it can caramelize and soften while you prepare everything else.  I peeled away some of the outer layers of the garlic skin first.  Then, you'll want to slice off the top of the head so the cloves are exposed.  Drizzle olive oil over the top, and sprinkle on some salt and pepper.  Wrap up the garlic in foil and place it in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until it is fragrant and soft.

While the garlic is roasting, you can start preparing everything else.  We wanted to make the salad a little more hearty, and we had a couple chicken breasts on hand, so we simply seasoned with salt and pepper and a little oregano, and threw them on the grill.  The romaine heart was quartered, and a whole can of quartered artichoke hearts were drained.  The romaine, artichoke hearts, and a red bell pepper all received a liberal brushing of olive oil, and sprinkle of salt and pepper.  Then we threw them on the grill.  The romaine and artichokes only took about 5 minutes, while the pepper took about 10 minutes.  You want the pepper to get nice and charred so you can easily peel the skin off.

Once they've cooled down enough for you to handle, give your romaine a rough chop.  Peel the skin off your pepper, and slice it into thin strips.  Add this all to a bowl with your grilled artichokes.  For some freshness, we tossed in some mixed greens and thinly sliced red onion.  You can also toast up some pine nuts to top your salad, for some added crunch.  Now just plate your salads, and add the sliced chicken on top.  For dressing, we just drizzled some balsamic vinegar over the top.

Now, don't think I forgot about our roasted garlic.  When it's soft, and sweet smelling, pull it out of the oven, and squeeze out your cloves.  They should be a golden brown, and nice and soft.  Using the side of your knife, you should be able to smoosh the garlic into a paste.  You can add a little salt to add some coarseness and help  assist you in making the paste.  Then just add your garlic to a bowl with ricotta, parmesan, and lemon zest.

Mix it all together so it's well mixed, and you're ready to spread it on some crostini, topped with fresh basil.  The velvety ricotta with the sweet roasted garlic was the perfect compliment to our grilled salad.

Kara Had a Little Lamb (Sausage)!

With March Madness getting underway, we opted for a quick and easy meal we could throw together in between games.  We found this recipe, and just made a few tweaks, as always, and paired it with a simple salad.

I was a bit surprised to get tomatoes in our share yesterday since it's still pretty chilly down here in DC.  We sliced up a few of them and topped them with some olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, garlic and parsley.  Then they went under the broiler for about 10 minutes.  We laid them on top of our salad and dressed with with a bit of olive oil and some white balsamic, for some added sweetness.

For the main dish, we started by slicing the sausage into whatever size pieces you want.  We had pork & lamb sausage on hand from our share, so we went with those.  Once those get cooking in the pan, just toss in your artichokes, and in our case, some sun-dried tomatoes.

I know, I know...the recipe says to use bacon, and you're surprised that we didn't...but the bacon was at Justin's, and that's where it stayed.  So instead, we threw in the sun-dried tomatoes.  I know it's not really an equal substitute, but it still ended up being quite tasty.

While the sausage finished cooking, we poached the eggs.  You'll want to fill the pot with just enough water to cover the eggs, and add a little salt and about a teaspoon of white vinegar to the water.  This will help your whites stay together.  Let your water get close to a boil, but just under to it is still and a little steamy.  Then just crack your eggs into the water and let them cook up.  They'll be done in minutes!

All that's left to do is pile your sausage, artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes into a bowl, and top with the egg.  We sprinkled a little black pepper and fresh parsley on top to garnish.