Insalata ~

This little  salad is a scrumptious meal 

in itself or a delicious first  course.

I served it up, in dainty

portions, at our

last  ‘Girls Night In‘  Soiree,

with the Meyer Lemon Rosemary Chicken,

on petite skewers. (This  platter above is heading to

my sisters. I’ll finish dressing it, once I

get there.)

The romaine is

 drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with

salt & pepper and then I hit it with a little freshly squeezed

lemon juice...before  IT hits the grill.

 Once grilled, the romaine becomes

a bit charred, wilted and

so good.

Add to that, chicken breast marinated in

olive oil, lemon juice and

fragrant rosemary

plucked right out the garden…

Hey, I have to do something  with all of

that Tuscan Blue rosemary I planted right?

Thus…the brioche 

croutons with

rosemary.

Just drizzle the cubes with olive oil,

a little salt & pepper and chopped

fresh rosemary.

Pop them in the oven at 375 for a few minutes until

they get toasty.

I Toss this salad with my

yummy ceasar dressing, pepped up with

salty capers, Dijon, Meyer lemon juice &

zest…(I always use zest!)

I only use a scant amount of garlic and

a smidge of anchovy paste and of course…

good  olive oil. Whisked all together and

finished with freshly grated parm…

It’s pretty yummy.  Oh, did I mention the

pancetta  bits? You know, anything  sprinkled with

Italian  bacon…

I hope you like it,

Monica

Recipe ~

Heads of crisp romaine, rinsed, dried & partially  cored.

(We put the heads, whole, on the grill and pull off the leaves

as they  char & fall apart.)

Drizzle romaine with olive oil & lemon juice

& sprinkle with

salt & pepper.

Grill for a few minutes on all sides.

Chop into bite sized pieces.

Meanwhile, marinate your skinless, boneless

chicken breasts in olive oil, salt & pepper,

lemon juice & zest and a good amount

of rough chopped fresh rosemary.

Grill & cut into pieces.

Dressing ~

Start with the 3 to 1 ratio of

olive oil to lemon juice, ( I like Meyer Lemon)

depending on how much you are making.

Add a tablespoon or so of Dijon

a sliver of a piece of finely chopped garlic,

a scant amount of anchovy paste &

chopped rosemary

the zest of one lemon,

a tablespoon of salted capers, rinsed and

chopped, salt & Pepper.

Add the Olive oil last,

whisking it all together.

Just before you drizzle on the dressing,

add a few tablespoons of freshly

grated parm with more  reserved

for dusting the salad.

I give the platter a last squeeze of

lemon juice just before serving.

Enjoy!