experiments in the kitchen (aka I cooked!)

experiments in the kitchen (aka I made a salad)

Disclaimer: I know the picture is terrible, I took it with my computer. My husband took the camera to San Francisco, so I’m flying there to get it back.

Something possessed me to buy wild arugula at Trader Joe’s the other evening. I think the package screamed something about vitamins, and calcium.

I made an amazing salad yesterday mixing the arugula and some romaine lettuce and topping it with feta cheese (really inexpensive at Trader Joe’s), sun dried tomatoes in oil (also from Trader Joe’s), and walnuts (also from Trader Joe’s). Are you sensing a theme? I love Trader Joe’s for all the little goodies they have that are inexpensive, flavorful, and really make cooking fun!

Anyway, I digress. My girls had a playdate yesterday afternoon, it was so oddly quiet, that I decided to cook. I baked some split chicken breasts* with some simple spices (ground rosemary-try it you’ll love it I swear!, salt, pepper) and some butter.

I also had a GINORMOUS bag of rice I got at Costco, so I decided to pull out my trusty stock pot (favorite kitchen item), and make a HUGE amount of rice. I ended up freezing some, and the rest will be here while I’m gone to help even out meals my mom will be cooking like nachos. Plus my 7 year old LOVES rice. Seriously she could eat it all day, especially when it’s been cooked in broth and has Parmesan cheese on it. Yum.

I made the kids plates and then had to do 6 chores while they were eating, plus I spun plates. Really I just needed to take care of the dog which is the same thing. While I was standing in the kitchen watching the dog eat I started thinking. I fondly remembered a dish my sister made with rice, spinach, feta and tomatoes. (maybe there were olives or capers too?)

Inspiration struck (believe me this is rare in my kitchen!), and I made this delicious summery salad. It’s absolutely perfect for a picnic, or warm afternoon. Serve it cold.

arugula, sun dried tomato, chicken & rice salad
All measurements are estimates. You can use more or less as you prefer.

leftover cooked rice (I used 4 cups)
arugula (2 cups), torn into small pieces
feta cheese (about 4 ounces crumbled)
sun dried tomatoes in oil, make sure to pour some of the oil from the jar on, this acts as a dressing (I used half a jar, about 4.5 ounces)
1/2 large chicken breast, cut into chunks or shredded
walnuts for crunch (pine nuts that are toasted would be good too)
a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese (just because)

If you find it’s too dry add more oil from the tomatoes, or olive oil.

I think you could make endless with this kind of recipe as a template.

Cooked grain: Rice, quinoa, or even noodles.
Greens: Any green will do!
Something with a burst flavor (sundried tomatoes, olives, capers, even fruit!)
Cheese (if you eat it): You want something that blends with your other things like cheddar with ground beef, or capers and salmon.
Poultry or fish or meat (if you eat it): I could use up leftover salmon, or use beef or even diced leftover steak.

* I recommend split breasts since they hold more juice in and the bones can be reused to make stock. Also Martha recommends it, I think. I also buy organic (when possible, hormone and antibiotic free when not) chicken since I’m a big believer in spending your grocery dollars where it counts. Meat, certain produce, greens and milk (rGBT-free if you can find it, Costco carries it).

I’m eating some of this salad now. Yum. Don’t tell anyone, it’s my 3rd bowl!

Kelly

About Kelly

Kelly Whalen is the founder of The Centsible Life, a blog where motherhood and money meet. Her goal is to help readers live well on less. Kelly is a mom to 4, and loves that she can stay at home with her kids, and still pursue her passions for writing, personal finance, and social media. You can often find her on twitter and Facebook talking money and motherhood.