Cornbread Salad

Well hello, my pretty.  Salad defies the salad-haters yet again!  This is a Southern twist on panzanella, using sweet and devilishly tasty cornbread cubes instead of ciabatta bread, and a tangy buttermilk dressing instead of a vinaigrette.  Yum and yum.

I haven't included a cornbread recipe below, because I figure you probably already have your favorite.  But in case you don't, this is the one I used, and it was fantastic.  It's probably best if you use day-old (or more) cornbread, so you don't feel too guilty about toasting it and putting it in a salad.  But do what you have to do.

The dressing for this salad is like no other dressing you've had, I promise.  It's zippy and zingy and zany and...zeal-inducing?  It's just so good.   And the salad's surprisingly filling, so feel free to make it your main course.

Cornbread Salad

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups of 1-inch cornbread cubes

1 pint ripe cherry tomatoes, halved

2 cups roughly chopped romaine lettuce

1 cup baby arugula

1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk*

juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon honey

1 tablespoon finely minced flat-leaf parsley

1 scallion, finely minced

salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat toaster oven to 250.  Scatter cornbread cubes on a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted, about 7 minutes.  Set aside to cool.

2.  Place the lettuce, arugula, and tomatoes in a large bowl.  Toss with the dressing that you make in step 3.

3.  Combine buttermilk, lime, oil, honey, parsley, scallion, salt and pepper in a salad dressing shaker or jar and shake vigorously to combine.  (Or whisk thoroughly in a small bowl).  Pour desired quantity over the salad and toss.  (You probably won't use it all).  Add cornbread cubes and toss.  Serve immediately.

* If you don't have buttermilk and don't feel like buying it, combine 2 tablespoons plain lowfat yogurt with 2 tablespoons milk.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Caramel Matzo

Something magical happened today. To me, to my kitchen, to my culinary universe. It happened, and now I want to share it with you.

I should back up and tell you that I am a regular reader of several food blogs out there. I subscribe to them and any time they update, I'm there to check it out. And lately, due to the Passover holiday, several food bloggers were posting recipes for chocolate caramel matzo, or chocolate toffee matzo. It sounded tasty, but I didn't really think twice about it.

Then today I went out to lunch with my husband, and the bakery in the restaurant we went to was giving out samples of their own chocolate caramel matzo. I ate a sample and I almost burst with happiness. The saltiness, the crunch, the rich caramel and chocolate - it was sheer perfection in a small bite-sized piece. It was, in a word, delicious.

As soon as I got off work today I had to make it. So I checked out some of those food blogs that were posting it, and set about making it. And it was magical. The house smells of caramel. My taste buds are singing. If there is any of this stuff left, I'm going to take it to the Easter/Passover festivities to share with my family on Sunday. Who knew you could turn a boring old matzo cracker into something delectable? It's magic.

You may have had chocolate covered matzo before, but just wait until you try this.

Chocolate Caramel Matzo
adapted from Smitten Kitchen

INGREDIENTS:










4+ sheets matzo
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon plus 1/4 teaspoon ground sea salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line a half sheet pan with foil, then parchment paper. Place the sheets of matzo in a single layer to cover all of the pan. You will need to break up 2 of them to fill up the spaces and so that they all fit.

2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and brown sugar, stirring frequently. When it comes to a boil, let it bubble for three minutes, stirring well. Remove from heat and add 1/2 teaspoon salt and the vanilla.

3. Pour the caramel sauce evenly over the matzo on the sheet pan. Spread with a silicon spatula right away, as it will start to solidify. Try to create a thin, even layer over all the matzo. It doesn't have to be perfect.

4. Bake for 15 minutes. Keep an eye on it, and if it starts to burn then reduce heat to 325.

5. Remove from oven and distribute the chocolate chips fairly evenly over the hot caramel matzo. Let sit for 5 minutes, then use an offset spatula to spread out the melted chocolate to create an even layer.

6. Sprinkle with remaining salt (or slightly less, whatever floats your boat). Let cool completely, then break up into more manageable pieces. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Yes, these are gluttonous. And yes, these are fabulous. Enjoy!