Heritage Blend Lettuce Salad with Warm Chevre and Veggies

10-18-11 Seasonal Harvest Bundle Recipe Suggestion #4

You know those days when you think you are out of ideas for dinner? Well today was one of those days for me. I kept looking in my fridge wondering what on earth I felt like cooking, but nothing would come to mind. It is not like my fridge was empty by any means either. I still have tons of fresh produce from my last Seasonal Harvest Bundle. Sometimes when you are pregnant nothing sounds good, thats all... After about a half an hour of mulling it over with no success, I picked up one of my favorite new cookbooks: For The Love Of Salad, by Jeanelle Mitchell. 

It is filled with amazing salads and dressings and it did the trick! I found a recipe that inspired this dinner. It was so mouth watering, my honey and I were sad when we looked down at our plates to see that it was gone! :)

I used my broccoli, roma tomatoes, chevre cheese, heritage blend lettuce, carrots and garlic from my Muir Fresh Harvest Bundle, along with a few of my pantry favorites to create this goodness. Here's how it went:

Heritage Blend Lettuce Salad with Warm Chevre and Vegetables

Serves 2

*I was inspired by her recipe Belgian Endive Salad with Warm Chevre, but I made a totally different salad other than the Warm Chevre. FYI.

Ingredients:

For Salad:

4 healthy handfulls of Heritage Blend Lettuce mix (2 per person)

5 ounces chevre cheese cut into 6 rounds

1 cup broccoli, cut into flourettes

2 large carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

2 roma tomatoes, slivered

1/2 cup seasoned pumpkin seeds

For Warm Chevre Rounds:

1 egg

1/2 cup crushed ritz crackers

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (for cooking chevre)

For Simple Vinaigrette Dressing:

2 1/2 tablespoons Honey Wine vinegar

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tablespoon Honey Dijon mustard

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Prepare vegetables as suggested. Set aside to top lettuce.

2. In a medium sized skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat.

3. In a small bowl, beat egg.

4. In a separate bowl, mix crushed ritz crackers, parsley, salt and pepper.

5. Take chevre rounds and dip them in the egg. Then coat them with ritz crumble mixture on all sides. press slightly into cheese. *Be careful not to break cheese. 

6. When all rounds are coated and ready, place them in the heated oil and cook on both sides. 1 minute on each side should be sufficient.

7. Arrange lettuce, veggies, pumpkin seeds and warm chevre rounds on a plate.

8. Mix dressing and pour over top of your two arranged salads.

Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Here is the finished product! Oh baby, this was a delight to consume. I want another one right now just thinking about it!!! There really isn't anything better than warm crusted chevre. Seriously. If you haven't had this before.... Go make it now. It will change your life. :) Don't be intimidated by the beauty of these cheese rounds either... They are so easy to make it is silly.

Chevre, coated but not cooked yet...

Chevre rounds all crispy, and ready to be placed on the top of your fresh salad! 

Happy cooking to you all! I hope you try this out! It is so worth the few moments it takes to put it together.