Tags
Buttermilk bleu cheese dressing, Canadian shrimp meat, fiesta Friday, Food & Lifestyle, Shrimp salad
I set out to make a small salad to supplement our dinner of leftover fried chicken (yum, yummy, yum). I began with various lettuces, growing in my “garden” (read pot, sitting on my patio table), then, because they looked lovely, I picked a few snips of fresh herbs as well as fragrant chives to layer over and toss within. I found myself boiling an egg, which sounded, yum; perhaps because I had just purchased sweet Canadian shrimp meat that I was toying with setting on top (of the salad). A small handful of baby tomatoes, sliced, slowly began building it up, mushrooms (thinly cut) and corn, (shaven from it’s cob). A large crumble of blue cheese (Pt. Reyes, Oregon) mashed into a bowl of freshly squeezed lemon juice, ground pepper and green onions dissolved lovingly into a puddle of buttermilk. When we sat down with wine poured and ready to dig in, the ensemble looked rather large and I said, “Looks like the big salad”. Tom, being who he is, pulled up this clip on his phone (or click here for a short version). Enjoy!
Buttermilk Bleu Dressing
Freshly made bleu cheese dressing is a bleautiful thing, it is not only great for dipping, with carrots, cauliflower and fried chicken (or fried gizzards for that matter) but is also a nice way to enjoy a salad of crispy greens on a warm summer evening. No hydrogenated, overly processed ingredients required.
Full disclosure: I have made this for years and have, at a few points in time, written the quantities down as I make it but…this is not one of those times and I am just guessing here…. As with most dressings, it does (loosely) conform to the typical rules:
1. Use a 1:3 ratio of acidity to fat.
2. Garlic and onions are well served soaked first in the acidity, even if just for a few moments prior to adding in the rest.
3. Taste, adjust, taste, adjust….instinct.
3. Salt, pepper & sugar are to taste. If too salty, add more acidity, if too tart, add more sugar.
4. Whisk the fat with the acidity to emulsify. Adjust consistency as desired.
Specific to this dressing rules:
1. The buttermilk, bleu cheese and sour cream will knock out the typical 1:3 ratio rule but as a rule of thumb, I would use 1 TB sour cream and 1 TB lemon juice for every 2-3 oz cheese. The buttermilk is used to thin the dressing and quantities can be altered depending on your desired thickness (perhaps 3-5 TB for 2-3 oz cheese). Also, I always use low-fat buttermilk since that is more readily available to me.
2. If using shallots, soak them in the acidity (lemon juice), if using green onions, add them in at the end. Use more green onions than you would shallots (perhaps 1 TB chopped shallots for 2-3 oz cheese)
3. Soft herbs are good in very large quantities (and multiple varieties). This go ’round I did not put them in the dressing, as I usually do, but rather tossed them in with the lettuces (the dressing keeps longer this way + I was lazy).
INGREDIENTS
Lemon juice
Diced shallots or chopped green onions
Fresh ground pepper
Raw sugar to taste
Good quality bleu cheese
Buttermilk
Sour cream
Mix of fresh soft herbs, chopped
PREPARE
Combine the lemon juice with the shallots, fresh pepper and sugar (just a pinch to start).
Crumble in the bleu cheese and mash with a fork. Add the sour cream and mix well. Drizzle in the buttermilk to thin and bring the dressing to the desired consistency. Mix in the herbs.
“Big” Bleu Shrimp Salad
This can be as little or “big” as you like (and no, Dad and Linda, I’m not referring to “big blue” the suburban).
INGREDIENTS
Mixed lettuces (from your garden if you have), cleaned and patted dry
Hard boiled egg, peeled and cut in half (1/2 per person)
Cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters (2-3 tomatoes per person)
Crimini mushrooms, thinly sliced (1-2 mushrooms per person)
Freshly grilled corn, removed from the cobb (1-2 TB per person)
Green onion and mixed soft herbs, chopped (even if you added to the dressing)
Fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste
Buttermilk Bleu Dressing to taste (see above for “recipe”)
ASSEMBLE
Squeeze a little lemon juice over the lettuces then lightly sprinkle some sea salt and grind fresh pepper over. Carefully toss with your fingers (you may toss some dressing in too, if you like, but be gentle and stingy so as not to make soggy).
Divide the lettuces among individual plates. Spoon over a few bits of dressing then layer on the vegetables and pile the shrimp meat in the center, slightly scattered; place the egg half on one side. Sprinkle with green onions and herbs and grind over more pepper, if desired.
I used to swear by our (local) Oregon shrimp meat that can be had fresh, for a short bit of the year. I have been having a harder and harder time finding it to be as fresh as I would like (it is delicate, for sure) so one day, on the recommendation of my trusty fishmonger’s at Gemini Seafood, I purchased the Canadian shrimp meat. It is as delicious and sweet as they said!…some day, I’ll have to tell you the story of how Ginger became our head “shrimp-tester”. Until then, just know that she endorses this statement (and will be telling everyone over at the Novice Gardener’s shin dig. For sure she will let Selma, Hilda and Indu (the co-hosts) know about these yummy shrimp (and for now, we will offer this to Angie as the elusive “blue fish”).
I like salads on a hot day like today. Thanks for the recipe!
Me too and this is definitely a hot one! Good to hear from you; I tried commenting on some of your great “lighten up Monday” posts but it is making me comment through google and not taking my password. I thought you were on WordPress too?
I am on WordPress. I don’t know why that’s happening. I never have a problem commenting on other WP blogs. Were you logged into WP at the time? Don’t know if that makes a difference. I’m glad you like my Monday funnies.
I wasn’t on my WordPress at the time. I will give it another try.
Looks delish!!!!!!! =)
Yum, Yummy, Yum!
Wow. That is a beautiful salad. I think it is a perfect recipe for a summer party. Do you buy any particular kind of Canadian shrimp? I am never sure how to identify the good quality and sustainable varieties of sea food. Any tips would be helpful.
Thanks Hilda. I have the best fishmonger around and I trust everything they bring into the shop. I will ask Jim, the owner and get back to you. The Oregon shrimp meat that we get here locally is really wonderful too and when gotten fresh, fresh, it is a treat but it goes bad so quickly and I notice that other fish retailers still offer it when it is not at the freshest. The Canadian shrimp meat comes to Gemini frozen and they thaw it out to put it in their case so I was skeptical at first. One bite and I was sold (plus, as I said, I trust what they tell me).
And also, I am sure I am not the only one who is curious how Ginger became your shrimp tester.
Beautiful salad – just along the lines of what I eat for dinner about three times a week all summer. And now I’ll be on the hunt for some Canadian shrimp.
Thanks. I might need to get more in the habit of making the salad our dinner rather than continuing on to more dinner after salad.
Pingback: Fiesta Friday #24 | The Novice Gardener
Always on the lookout for a different salad recipe. You’ve also put the idea of fried chicken into my head. Not something I have very often but the idea may take some shifting.
Fried chicken is my weakness. I made some recently (as I mentioned) and will get around to posting that soon. I do think the idea should take some shifting and let fried chicken take a spot at your table soon.
This is useful as we have about 100 salads in the garden at the moment that I’m going to have to address at some point before they turn into triffids and start to attack us. I also love the sound of your dressing.
Ha. I love the sound of triffids and certainly try not to let them attack you. You obviously have a much heartier garden than I. Next year I must plant arugula, my favorite green.
What else do we need in a little big salad? Yummy!
Just a good appetite and a warm night. Good to hear from you Fae.
yum.. thanks for sharing another great recipe.. love the idea of a buttermilk bleu sauce. definitely something i will be trying. thanks!
You are very welcome; I hope you do try it. An added bonus is that it is not as fattening as many commercially bought bleu cheese dressings.
Stacey – another beautifully written post and some fabulous food from you! Love all the tips that you call disclaimer – salad dressings are so individual and go through so much tweaking as it is coming together that it is really hard to give quantities accurately. How does Peter Newman do it, I wonder?? I am bookmarking the dressing for later on this week as I have some blue that I need to use up. Thanks for sharing this the rowdy bunch that makes up FF – Happy Fiesta Friday to you!
Thanks Selma, that means a lot to me. Salad dressings are quite individual, true. Hmmm…that Newman, how does he do it?
Hi Stacey This salad looks simply fabulous! I especially love your recipe for the buttermilk bleu dressing.! Adding herbs is also a great idea! I am sure it will go great with the shrimp. thanks for bringing this to Fiesta Friday!
Thank you. The herbs do add a nice dimension to the dressing (which this time I didn’t do since I added them to the greens instead).
I like such salads, shrimps, eggs and fresh greens, it sounds and looks amazing! I do like your dressing too! 🙂
Thanks. I have been on a bit of a salad roll lately. Since that salad, three more. There is something about hard boiled eggs on salads that I just adore.
Ahh everything sounds so good. And leftover fried chicken? I’m in!
Thanks. Left over fried chicken is the best.