Lunch: Quinoa, Feta, Spinach & Berry Salad

My sister introduced me to this salad in the Spring. It’s super easy to make the night before, and keeps great all day while you dream about eating at lunch.

What you’ll need…


When I package it, I tried to keep the spinach, berries and cheese separated from the quinoa (this got a like roughed up on my way to work this morning), because I’m always worried the quinoa will wilt my lettuce. I don’t know it is actually will, but I hate wilted lettuce and don’t like to take chances.

Do you bring your lunch? What is your favorite lunch for work?

Copy Cat: Endive Salad

This past Easter, due to a bunch of crazy scheduling conflicts (mostly my fault), Hubs and I ended up with my parent’s dinner reservation at a local French restaurant, Savoie's Fare. They had a set three course Champagne Dinner that included a salad, main dish and dessert.

Hubs ordered the Endive Salad for first course and fell in LOVE! He's asked a couple times since if I thought it was something we could easily recreate, so I broke down and made it this weekend when my family came over for dinner.

Here is the salad description from Savoie's Fare's Menu…

And here’s how I made it…

(Click recipe to enlarge)

I’m not gonna lie, Hubs said my version was just as good or better than the restaurant salad! And he doesn’t lie about these things.

Have you ever recreated a meal from a Restaurant? Did it taste the same or better than the original?

Heirloom Tomato, Basil, Parmesan and Balsamic Vinaigrette Salad

Leading with the blurry picture...

This past Sunday the Hubs and I went to dinner at another couple's house. Jane made a delicious dish from this month's Cooking Light (I gave her a subscription for her birthday) and I was in charge of bringing a salad. I'd seen some great heirloom tomatoes at Trader Joe's earlier in the week so I decided to make this salad.

Ingredients

Heirloom Tomatoes - Sliced

Fresh Basil
Shaved Parmesan
Balsamic Vinaigrette

Balsamic Vinaigrette Ingredients

(Adapted fromEmeril Lagasse's Recipe)

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup olive oil