the perfect in-between meal for holiday guests

Between a fancy brunch spread one day and a traditional Christmas dinner the next, sometimes you just need a light {but tasty} go-to recipe for those in-between meals.

This one is my very favorite.

We make this all year long for both lunch and dinner and it is always a crowd pleaser.

What’s not to love about grilled bread, fresh mozzarella, toasted pine nuts and kalamata olives?!

This recipe is from Tom Douglas’ Seattle Kitchen and served at one of his famous Seattle restaurants, Dahlia Lounge.

Tuscan Bread Salad {serves 6}

for the mustard vinaigrette:
2 T. red wine vinegar
1 t. Dijon mustard
1 t. minced shallots
1/2 t. chopped fresh thyme
1/2 t. minced garlic
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper

for the salad:
1 loaf rustic bread, sliced 1 inch thick
extra virgin olive oil
24 oil-cured black olives, pits removed
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
6 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced or cubed
4 cups loosely packed flavorful salad greens, such as mache, radicchio, arugula, spinach, romaine, endive, washed and dried, torn into bite size pieces
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
Freshly ground black pepper

optional: shredded rotisserie chicken

Make the vinaigrette {I use a mason jar and shake to combine}. It will store in the fridge up to a week.

Liberally oil the slices of bread then grill on the grill or under the broiler until golden. Use a serrated knife to cut the bread into bite size cubes.

In a large serving bowl, put the bread in with the olives, tomatoes, mozzarella, parmesan, pine nuts, chicken, basil and greens.  Pour vinaigrette over the salad and mix well.

Enjoy!

 

Posted by emily | 15 comments

raspberry jam + printable labels {oldie but goodie}

{originally posted 07.11.11 but a good one to revisit}

I’ve been wanting to make homemade jam for a few years, but was intimidated by the intense process of preparing the jars, boiling the liquid, timing everything just right.

But last weekend my Aunt Laura eased my fears and clued me in to the quick and easy way to make berry jam … freezer jam. Since raspberries are perfectly in season, I decided to give it a try. If you have never made jam before, let me encourage you … it is super easy.

Here’s what you’ll need:

:: 6 cups of fresh raspberries {about 5 6oz baskets}

:: 5 1/4 cups sugar

:: 3/4 cup water

:: 1 box of Sure Jell Fruit Pectin

::8 half pint mason jars

The actual recipe I used is right here, but I’ll walk you though the steps below.

STEP ONE: rinse jars in boiling water and dry thoroughly

STEP TWO: measure 6 cups of ripe raspberries and mash

STEP THREE: strain seeds

I didn’t have much patience for the straining process, so I gave up after a few sieve-fulls, but you can remove as many seeds as you wish.

STEP FOUR: add sugar to berries

It is a lot of sugar, but from what I read, the sugar acts as a preservative for the berries so you can’t skimp. If you’d like a sugar free version, Sure Jell sells a no-sugar-needed pectin.

While the sugar is dissolving in the berries …

STEP FIVE: add the fruit pectin to water and bring to a boil

Stir constantly and allow to boil for one minute.

STEP SIX: Add pectin to berry mixture and stir for three minutes

STEP SEVEN: pour jam into prepared jars and seal tightly

Allow the jam to sit out for 24 hours, then it is ready to eat. You can store an opened container in the refrigerator for up to three weeks and in the freezer for one year.

I had a fun time decorating my jars of jam using scraps of fabric, bakers twine {from here}, flax colored yarn, houndstooth & dotted papers from my printable paper collection, and a faux raspberry from the craft store.

What special gifts these will make {maybe with some fisher scone mix? Yum}.

I created two different labels that you are welcome to download and print:

{click on the image to download the pdf}

And just in case you are making strawberry jam, here are labels for that:

Just to show you behind the scenes while I’m doing craft projects, here is what my office looked like while I was embellishing my jam jars. What a mess!

Posted by emily | 14 comments