Summer Fresh Recipe Series: Chicken and Mango Salad with Mint and Bacon Vinaigrette

Juicy chicken and mango bites atop a bed of baby arugula offer a light meal, finished with a bacon warm vinaigrette.  

Chicken and Mango Salad with Mint and Bacon Vinaigrette

Keeping with out summer fresh produce theme today we are spotlighting arugula and mangos.  Arugula is available all year round, but is especially fresh and tasty in the early summer from a spring/early summer harvest.  You may have seen it called 'rocket' and this vegetable is known for it's fresh, bitter and peppery flavor.  Mangos are a wonderful tropical stone fruit that is considered a superfood due to the many nutrients it contains.  

Today we are going to use arugula as a base for our light summer salad which is topped with chicken and mango bites and bacon.  This dish is great for lunch or a light dinner served with some crusty bread.  During the summer we like to eat lighter foods but still want a little substance so chicken is great as a protein.  This salad is all about the dressing and the bacon, so don't skip those!  It's best when served warm.  Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

What Ingredients do I need?

• bacon
• olive oil
• sherry vinegar
• mint
• Dijon mustard
• peach preserves
• garlic
• arugula
• butter
• boneless skinless chicken breasts
• mangos

Substitutions and Variations

• Scallops or shrimp would be a great substitution for the chicken
• Use apricot or pineapple preserves for the peach
• Use spinach or spring green mix for the arugula
• Chicken tenders for the breasts
• Red wine vinegar for the sherry vinegar
• Leave out the fresh mint or use basil or oregano
• Whole grain mustard instead of Dijon will work perfectly
• Peaches or nectarines would be a great substitute for the mango

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• Cook the bacon first so you make dripping for the vinaigrette.
• Don't wipe your skillet clean after cooking the bacon.  Cook the chicken in any leftover drippings still in the pan.

• A mason jar is handy for making vinaigrettes.
• To store arugula, wrap leaves in a cloth or paper towel and place them in an open plastic bag in the vegetable crisper

• Fresh mango is best.  Cutting a mango is a little different as the pit runs vertically along the middle of the fruit.  Cut off either side to avoid the pit and then slice in to cubes. 

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• Mediterranean Style Lentil Salad

• Spinach and Watermelon Salad with Feta and Walnuts

• Thai Chicken Skewers with Grilled Pineapple

Chicken and Mango Salad with Mint and Bacon Vinaigrette

serves 3

3 strips of thick-cut bacon
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh mint
2 Tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 Tablespoon whole grain Dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon peach preserves
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

olive oil to make 1/4 cup
4 cups baby arugula
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, divided

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until brown and crispy.  Remove bacon and drain on a paper towel.  Pour any bacon drippings into a measuring cup and reserve.  Crumble bacon when cooled.

In a small bowl or mason jar add the chopped mint, sherry vinegar, mustard, peach preserves, garlic, salt, and pepper.  To the reserved bacon dripping add enough olive oil to create 1/4 cup of oil, and mix together.  Slowly add the oil mixture to the dressing ingredients and whisk until combined.

To the skillet that the bacon was fried in, add the chicken bites and 1 tablespoon of butter.  Cook over medium-high heat stirring the chicken (stir fry style) often until browned and no longer pink inside.  About 5-6 minutes.  

Arrange arugula among 3 plates.  Place chicken bites over the arugula.  Top with crumbled bacon and drizzle with the warm vinaigrette.  Serve immediately.

Summer Fresh Recipe Series: Mediterranean Style Lentil Salad

This Mediterranean Style Lentil Salad is filled with protein, bursting with summer flavors from the tomatoes and cucumbers, and the tangy bite of feta cheese.  All doused in a wonderfully light Mediterranean vinaigrette.  Perfect along side all your summer dishes.  

Mediterranean Style Lentil Salad

Another great salad to add to our Summer Fresh Recipe Series.  This highlights summers fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.  Tossed with fresh spring greens, feta cheese, lentils, and a light and bright homemade dressing and you have a great side salad.

Perfect for all the summer grilling dishes, this salad goes with fish, chicken, pork or steak.  It's filled with healthy items but it is hardy on it's own.  This is one tasty salad!  Enjoy!

What Ingredients do I need?

• olive oil
• red wine vinegar
• dried oregano
• spring greens
• cherry tomatoes
• cucumber
• parsley
• feta cheese
• brown or green lentils

Substitutions and Variations

• Add chicken for a main dish salad
• Omit the greens
• Try Persian cucumbers
• Add fresh herbs such as basil or mint
• Try this with ricotta salata or goat cheese
• Substitute spinach, kale, or swiss chard for the greens

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• Make a batch of lentils ahead of time and serve them as a side dish, stir in rice, toss in salads.

• Mason jars are great for making and storing salad dressing.

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Mediterranean Style Lentil Salad

serves 4

Dressing
1/4 cup olive oil
1/8 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp dried oregano
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Salad

4 cups spring greens
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1/2 large English cucumber, diced
1/3 cup parsley
1/3 cup Feta crumbled
1/2 cup brown lentils cooked and cooled according to package directions

In a small bowl or mason jar add the ingredients for the dressing whisking or shaking until combined.

In a large bowl add the salad ingredients.  Drizzle with dressing and toss to coat.  Serve.

4th of July Bash on the Grill: Mushroom Stuffed Cheeseburgers

Juicy cheeseburgers stuffed with jazzed up mushrooms are on the grill for the 4th of July celebration!  Made with your choice of meat and topped just the way you like it!

Mushroom Stuffed Cheeseburgers

Time to warm up that grill and get to cooking some burgers for the 4th of July!  After a year in lock-down we are so ready to celebrate!  We go for the "All American" menu for our 4th of July bash.  First up is a juicy hamburger.  This one is special because it's has the addition of cheese and mushroom.  But the best part is they are not on it....they are inside it!  Yes, that's right a burger stuffed with jazzed up mushrooms and cheese.  Doesn't get much better than this.

With a little pre-prep of the mushrooms these burgers will be on your table in no time.  Another plus is that you can pick your meat of choice.  We made both beef and turkey burgers.  Toppings can be anything you choose.  We had a standard burger topping bar or lettuce, onion, tomatoes, mayo and mustard.  One bite and the stuffing flavors explode in your mouth!  This is one great burger.

What Ingredients do I need?

• ground beef sirloin (10%) or ground chicken or turkey
• Worcestershire sauce
• ground black pepper
• provolone cheese
• baby bella mushrooms
• garlic
• white wine
• butter
• olive oil
• Hamburger buns
• Toppings: lettuce, onion, tomato

Substitutions and Variation

• Choose a different ground meat, turkey and chicken are great options

• Choose a different cheese, cheddar, Gouda, or Swiss
• Don't like mushrooms, leave them out!
• Don't want wine in the mushrooms? leave it out
• Kaiser rolls make great buns
• Brioche buns are a treat
• Flavor the meat with steak sauce instead of Worcestershire sauce
• Make this Asian by adding soy sauce and Hosin

Kitchen Tips and Notes

• Great for making ahead.  Stuff the burgers early in the day and refrigerate until time to grill

• Kids will love a stuffed cheeseburger!
• I always form the bottom patty a little larger and then pinch the top to the sides to cover all the stuffing 

• I always use 10% fat ground sirloin for the flavor.  If you like a juicier burger go for 15 - 20% ground chuck

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More burgers to choose from:

Grilled Ranch Chicken Burgers

Grilled Santa Fe Burgers

Blue Cheese Stuffed Burgers

The Best Stuffed Grilled Cheeseburgers

Butter Burgers

Mushroom Stuffed Cheeseburgers

serves 4

1 lb. ground beef sirloin (10%) or ground chicken or turkey
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 slices provolone cheese, halved

1 cup baby bella mushrooms, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons white wine

1 Tablespoon butter

1 Tablespoon olive oil

4 Hamburger buns
Toppings:  lettuce, onion, tomato

In a large skillet, medium high heat, add butter and olive oil.  When hot add the mushrooms.  Cook about 1 minutes until starting to brown and wilt.  Add in minced garlic and the wine.  Continue to cook until mushrooms are brown and tender.  Remove from the pan.  

In a large bowl, combine beef, Worcestershire sauce and pepper, very lightly mixing to combine.  Divide the mixture in half and take one half, forming 4 thin patties.  Top 2 of the patties with 1/2 slice of cheese and 1/2 of the cooked mushrooms.  Top with the other two remaining patties and press edges to seal and make sure that the stuffing is all inside.  Repeat with the remaining half of the ground beef to make two more burgers.  

Grill burgers, uncovered, over medium-high heat 5-6 minutes on each side or until a thermometer inserted in meat portion reads 160 degrees.  Toast your hamburgers buns on the grill and serve.