what's for dinner??

hi there my friends!!!!!! how are you and how was every one's weekend?? all great i hope!! well... if you are like me... a common question around our house is... what's for dinner?? today i just wanted to share with you this great salad i made over the weekend, Cape Cod Chopped Salad!! it is soooooo yummy... my whole family just LOVED it!! i'm not really one for store bought dressings... and am always looking for new, easy and delicious ones... this dressing was just scrumptious and so very easy to make!!! also i have never cooked bacon in the oven before, who knew it's so much easier to roast bacon in the oven on a wire rack than frying it in a pan on the stove!!! talk'in about easy clean up!!


we just love this blue cheese... Socie't'e' B Roquefort

Cape Cod Chopped Salad
'The Barefoot Contessa'

8 slices (8 ounces) thick-cut bacon
8 ounces baby arugula
1 large Granny Smith apple, peeled and diced
1/2 cup toasted walnut halves, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
6 ounces blue cheese, crumbles

The Dressing
3 tablespoons good apple-cider vinegar
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
Kosher salt, to taste
1/2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
2/3 cup good olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Place a baking rack on a sheet pan and lay the bacon slices on the rack. Roast the bacon for about 20 minutes, until nicely browned. Allow to cool.
3. In a large bowl, toss together the arugula, apple, walnuts, cranberries, and blue cheese. For the dressing, whisk together the vinegar, orange zest, orange juice, mustard, maple syrup, 1 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the pepper in a bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil.
4. Chop the bacon into large pieces and add it to the salad. Toss the salad with just enough dressing to moisten. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and toss well. Serve immediately.

i sure hope your family enjoys this salad as much as we did. it was mouth-watering, easy to make and just perfect for a hot summer nights dinner!! as Martha Stewart would say... "it's a good thing"!!

PS... check 'LFDD' to see my newest kit, it's 99cent monday at 'For The Luv Of Art'.