Cooking for Alan – Dinner #5 Salad and Soup
I know I must sound like a broken record. But today the weather where I live was blustery and cold. Nearly all day long we got mini-blizzards that would move through the area. It’s days like today that I’m motivated to fill the house with the aroma of a delicious soup simmering away. I came up with an impromptu Caprese Salad with Arugula and Spinach that has traditional Italian flavors we love…thinking it would pair well with the 16 Bean Pasta e Fagioli soup. It was just me and my Alan for this simple dinner of salad, soup and a sweet treat. A cozy night at home with good food, good cooking and good eats.
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Caprese Salad with Arugula and Spinach
16 Bean Pasta e Fagioli
Frozen Hot Chocolate
Caprese Salad with Arugula and Spinach
Caprese Salad with Arugula and Spinach
Ingredients
- 1 8 ounce carton mini mozzarella balls in water drained
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 cup green olives your favorite
- 1/4 cup kalamata olives pitted and sliced
- 1.5 tablespoons basil pesto jarred
- 1 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin
- sprinkle kosher salt
- 2 cups arugula
- 2 cups baby spinach
Lemon Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 1/4 cup olive oil extra virgin
- juice half of lemon
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar good quality
- pinch kosher salt
- pinch black pepper freshly ground
Instructions
- In small bowl combine mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, olives, pesto, olive oil and kosher salt. Stir until everything is coated.
- Let mozzarella cheese, tomato, olive mixture sit for at about 30 minutes to allow flavors to combine.
- For Lemon Balsamic Vinaigrette: using a protein shaker fitted with wire mesh ball...or a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid: combine oil, lemon juice, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper. Shake vigorously until well combined. You can also whisk ingredients together by hand.
- Gently toss the arugula and spinach greens with a small amount of vinaigrette. Only use enough to barely coat the leaves. Store the leftover vinaigrette in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Place tossed greens on to a platter. Top with reserved caprese salad ingredients.
Notes
16 Bean Pasta e Fagioli
This is another great Ina Garten recipe found in her cookbook, Cooking for Jeffrey. It contains many delicious ingredients that we enjoy; tomato, beans, red wine, pancetta, tiny pasta and of course some great parmigiano reggiano cheese. While authentic pamigiano reggiano cheese comes from Italy and can be pricey, you can find domestic versions of this cheese that are more affordable. However, I bite the bullet and buy the real thing and reserve its use for topping soups, salads and other dishes where you don’t need a massive amount of it to enjoy its powerful salty flavor. You can use a more affordable, domestic version in recipes like soups or stews that call for at least a cup or more of cheese.
Okay…here’s another PLAN AHEAD notice. You need to soak the beans overnight. This helps them plump up, gets rid of the complex sugars and cuts cooking time down considerably. I made just a few modifications to Ina’s original recipe. Since I’m married to a carnivore, I added half a pound of ground Italian sausage. I also increased the cheese in the soup from 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup…just because we love cheese. You’ll notice that Ina recommends you run 1/3 of the cooked beans through a food mill. Since I don’t have one, I just put mine in a blender and pureed them before adding them to the soup. I’ve used this technique before and found it works well to thicken a soup.
This recipe calls for a cup of red wine. Tonight I used a Coppola 2014 Black Label Claret Cabernet Sauvignon. Whenever a recipe calls for wine, I only use one that I enjoy drinking. I usually portion out what I need for the recipe, sip some of the same wine while cooking and share the rest with my dinner companions. Cooking with wine is always a good time.
