Salad of Mesclun Greens with Grapes and Feta Cheese

Crisp, juicy sweet grapes, savory feta cheese, and colorful greens ~ this salad is a splendid starter!

It’s a refreshing salad with lots of good flavors and textures.  Feta cheese delivers a tang to the salad; however, if you’re a fan of blue cheese, swap it for even more bite. 

Years ago, I learned from my mother, the oil to vinegar ratio for making a vinaigrette dressing; and now, after making it for years, I rarely measure the ingredients. 

The perfect ratio is 3 parts oil to 1 part acid (vinegar or lemon.)  Reverse that ratio, and you will be puckering up!  And, depending on the level of acidity, the ratio may have to be adjusted so ~ go by what tastes good to you!

To take the edge off the acidity, I usually add a touch of sugar to the dressing, whether it is white sugar, honey, jam, or even Splenda.  Embellish it with fresh herbs, if you wish.

This colorful simple salad satisfies me for a main course!

Mesclun Salad with Grapes and Feta Cheese

Ingredients for dressing:

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

½ teaspoon Splenda, optional

Salt, to taste

Seasoned pepper, to taste

Prepare dressing by whisking in a bowl or shaking in a jar, all ingredients until blended.

Salad:

8 cups mesclun salad greens

1 head radicchio, thinly sliced

2 cups (1-pound) halved seedless red and green grapes

¾ cup crumbled feta cheese

To prepare salad:

Just before serving, toss greens and radicchio in a large bowl. 

Drizzle dressing on top and toss to coat.

Divide the salad among 8 plates.

Scatter grapes and cheese over each salad.

Serve immediately.

8 servings

ENJOY!!!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

“Christmasizing” with Cranberry-Grape Compote

The turkey is over and done with ~ the fall décor stashed away ~ readying me for “Christmasizing” the house the last few days.  The short tree in the living room was trimmed with lights and ornaments, only to be dismantled the next morning, and replaced with a 7.5-foot slim tree, and even more trimming.  

What I really wanted to do was get in the kitchen and do a little cooking. There was a bag of cranberries waiting in the refrigerator for a makeover, and I was happy to oblige.  I like the canned variety, but always like to try something new.  

The credit for this recipe goes to Martha Stewart.  Plump, juicy red grapes complement tart cranberries perfectly.  Fresh or frozen cranberries can be used, with there being no need to thaw frozen ones. 

This is a great sweet/tart accompaniment for savory meats such as steak, turkey, pork chops, and probably even wild game.  If you like cranberries and grapes, it’s worth a try!

Cranberry-Grape Compote

Adapted

Ingredients:

1 package (12-ounces) cranberries

3 cups seedless red grapes

1 cup sugar or Splenda

1/8 teaspoon salt

½ cup water

Method:

In a large saucepan over medium-high, bring cranberries and

Place all ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, and simmer until most of the cranberries have popped and grapes are falling apart, 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

Compote will thicken as it cools.

Serve at room temperature.

Enjoy!

 

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Creamy Grape Salad Dessert

I just love desserts that masquerade as "salads” or, is it salads that pretend to be “desserts” ~ and Aunt Phyl too!

I’m sure most of you have an “Aunt Phyl.”  Back in Ohio, my parents and many others have passed on ~ Aunt Phyl is the one who keeps the remainder of us connected; us cousins, in particular.  

This isn’t her only good quality; she’s also fun-loving, has a really keen sense of humor, always wears a smile on her face and, she knows a great recipe when she meets one!  Everyone needs an Aunt Phyl just like mine!

Aunt Phyl & Uncle Jake 

Aunt Phyl sent me an email a few days ago, telling me about this dessert which was served at her euchre club recently.  I read the recipe, rushed to the grocery store, and hurried home to get this salad made.  It is sinful!

Those crunchy pecans and the rich brown sugar are the special finishing touches, hiding the grapes below, in a creamy smooth sauce.   Who ever thought of combining grapes with cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and pecans?  This has a plethora of textures and the colors are good too, especially if you use red grapes.  It can be made a day ahead of time as well.

This can be a salad served on greens or it can be a yummy treat for dessert.  Even though, it has grapes in it, and no apples, the flavors remind me of a caramel apple at the county fair or at Halloween time.  This will be a great ambrosial dish for our cook-outs this summer, or a potluck, and yours too! 

Just beware ~ no matter whether it’s a salad or a dessert ~ it’s HIGHLY ADDICTIVE!!!

Creamy Dessert Grape Salad

Ingredients:

3-4 pounds of seedless grapes, red or green

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

8 ounces sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup sugar (or Splenda)

Topping:

2/3 cup brown sugar (or 1/3 cup Splenda brown sugar)

1 cup chopped pecans

Method:

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla and sugar with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.

Add grapes to the sauce and combine well.

Top grapes with brown sugar.

Sprinkle pecans over all.

Refrigerate a few hours or make the day before.

Mix together before serving.

Makes about 8-10 servings

It’s heavenly luscious!!!

Thank you, Aunt Phyl!

Is there an “Aunt Phyl” in your family, or are you “Aunt Phyl?”

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes!

Chicken with Grape Chutney

Why not make some chutney?  It is the perfect accompaniment to chicken ~ there’s something about the delicious way sweet and sour chutney balances out the flavor of savory chicken. 

This recipe is from my Cooking Light cookbook.  It calls for both green and red grapes.  I knew from making Roasted Italian Sausage with Grapes, that it makes no difference in taste or color, which grape is used, so I used only green grapes.  I then added crushed red peppers to the mix for a little heat.  

I really like this recipe, and am looking forward to the next time I make it with chicken straight from the grill.  It will be delicious!

Chicken with Grape Chutney

Adapted

Ingredients:

½ cup chopped onion

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup dry red wine

2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon crushed red peppers

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 cinnamon stick

2 cups seedless green grapes

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

2 teaspoons canola oil

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon seasoned pepper

Method:

In skillet over medium-high heat, add oil.

When hot, add chicken breasts.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Sauté until golden brown and juices run clear, turning once.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine first 7 ingredients over medium-high heat.

Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes.

Stir in grapes; reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes.

Remove cinnamon stick.

Serve chicken with chutney on the side.

It is delicious!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes!

Roasted Italian Sausages with Grapes

I always knew good things come from Ohio.  I did!   ☺ 

I came across this recipe in the little cookbook Farm and Foods of Ohio by Marilou Suszko and have also seen many variations of it over the internet.  Ina Garten even cooked it on the “Barefoot Contessa.”

Italian sausages; hot or sweet, are delicious things ~ combine them with some luscious grapes and you have a mouthwatering dish.  

The grapes pop and burst their sweet juices as they cook slowly scattered around the sausages.  

The sauce is excellent, but there’s just not enough of it so I doubled it and it could even be tripled.  

I mixed red and green grapes ~ don’t bother; you won’t be able to differentiate the colors or taste after cooking.

This is a delicious dish that I’m glad I finally tried and you should try it too!  It contains the simplest of ingredients which yields the most amazing flavor you can imagine!

Hot             and            Sweet

Roasted Italian Sausages with Grapes

Ingredients:

1-1/2 pounds hot Italian sausage
1-1/2 pounds sweet Italian sausage
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2-1/2 pounds red or green seedless grapes, stemmed (6 to 7 cups)

8 tablespoons dry red wine

6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Method:

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.

Prick the sausages with a fork and add them to the boiling water.

Boil gently for 8 minutes and drain.  Set aside.

Melt the butter in a large roasting pan over low heat.

Add the grapes to the pan and toss to coat them with the butter.

With tongs, transfer the parboiled sausages to the pan and push them down into the grapes so that the sausages will not brown too quickly.

Roast the sausages and grapes in the preheated oven, turning the sausages once, until the grapes are soft and the sausages have browned, 20 to 25 minutes.

With a slotted spoon, transfer the sausages and grapes to a heated serving platter.

Place the roasting pan on top of the stove over a medium-high flame and add the balsamic vinegar. Stir to scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan and cook the vinegar and juices until they are thick and syrupy.

Pour the sauce over the sausages and grapes and serve immediately, accompanied with mashed potatoes.

This is unique and delicious!!!  A keeper!!!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and recipes.