Sunday, March 1, 2009

Plum and Pecan Arugula Salad with Blood Orange Toss

I thought that I would do something special with these Chilean red plums that were speaking in tongues: "Eat me, Nicole..."


2 Red Plums

2 c. of Baby Arugula

Peppered Goat Cheese

Red Onion (less than half)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Blood Orange

Spiced, Sweet Pecans [½ c. raw halved pecans, tandoori spice, sugar, and salt]

Salt & Pepper


Spiced, Sweet Pecans:

Dry roast the pecans in a sauce pan swirling it around until you can smell the nut. Sprinkle a bit of sugar and a dash of salt, swirl it around and avoid burning it outright. Dust it with tandoori spice. It should be a balance of sweet, salty and spicy that is light and not candied like caramel corn. Keep it simple.

Plum and Pecan Arugula Salad:

Begin with 2 c. baby arugula. I recommend organic baby arugula because it is peppery and not as green tasting as other arugula. Dice the red plums and add them to the arugula. Crush the spiced, sweet pecans in. Then, cut the blood orange in half and reserve the other half for the toss. With the other half, cut come slices that look like blood moons. Take apart the orange sections and add them to the salad. Cut some red onion and let them soak in water to mellow the taste. Add them to the salad. Then comes the toss:

Blood Orange Toss:

Squeeze the blood orange juice on top of the salad, add about a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and crumble peppered goat cheese. Toss it with your hands (or a spoon) and add salt and pepper to your taste.

Adjust anything as you see fit. These are approximate measures for an approximate world.