Arugula Archives - Cooking In Stilettos™

Chicken BLT Pasta

August 23, 2017 By Aly Leave a Comment

For a delicious and easy weeknight dinner, make this Chicken BLT Pasta packed with flavors reminiscent of the classic sandwich.

I’m bringing an easy weeknight dinner recipe to the final day of the #BaconMonth party – Chicken BLT Pasta.

If you saw my brainstorming notebook for recipes for #BaconMonth, you’d probably think that it was #BaconYear because you can pretty much bacon-fy so many recipes but time and time again, I kept coming back to this recipe. It’s easy to whip up – perfect for weeknights, has the flavors of the favorite sandwich and, if there are any leftovers, is fabulous for lunch the next day….

Easy Tuna and White Bean Salad

October 21, 2016 By Aly 1 Comment

This easy Tuna and White Bean Salad, packed with protein and crisp veggies, is a delicious idea for dinner or lunch and ready in about 15 minutes!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links of products I adore and trust in my kitchen. Thank you for supporting Cooking In Stilettos!

I have a recipe that has become a new favorite in my house – this easy Tuna and White Bean Salad that comes together in a matter of minutes with just a few ingredients from the pantry and veggie crisper.

I have been on the go for the past few months. Between various obligations and traveling between Philly and Connecticut, sometimes I feel like I get burnt out making the same dinners or something that has a ton of steps. For dinner, I wanted something light, fresh and wouldn’t take forever to make. I had seen this Tuna and White Bean Salad in Joanne Weir’s cookbook, Cooking Confidence, and had it bookmarked to play with. This salad, much like my Middle Eastern Chickpea Salad, was just what I was looking for and was ready in about 15 minutes….

Watermelon Salad with Ricotta Salata

July 27, 2015 By Aly 11 Comments

Watermelon Salad with Ricotta Salata melds savory and sweet with crisp sweet watermelon, peppery arugula and shaved ricotta salata. This cool and refreshing dish will be your go-to summer salad.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products I adore and trust in my kitchen. This recipe originally appeared on Cooking in Stilettos in July 2009; it has been updated to reflect the changes I have incorporated over the years as well as new photos. It’s still one of my absolute favorite summer salads and often requested by friends and family.

This Watermelon Salad with Ricotta Salata is one of my absolute favorite summer salads and is often requested by friends and family. How it came about is all due to a bit of inspiration courtesy of Food Network.

There’s a reason why I cannot watch Giada de Laurentiis’ travel show on the Food Network – namely because it puts ideas in my head of different flavor combinations and then I turn into the kitchen chemist with a theory of “little bit of this” and “let’s put in some more of that” and I don’t measure. Ugh!

Anywhoo – Giada happened to be visiting the Hamptons on this particular episode and she had a watermelon salad with some ricotta salata, red onion and arugula. Wait – did she say my favorite green – arugula? My ears perked up, I rewound the DVR and paid attention, notebook in hand. What a great idea! I am not too fond of feta and, since ricotta salata was mentioned as being similar, I figured, why the heck not. I keep most of the ingredients in my fridge anyway – all I needed to pick up was the cheese and the mint for the 4th of July soiree….

Grilled Chicken and Pear Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette #PledgeforEVOO

August 7, 2014 By Aly 27 Comments

This Grilled Chicken & Pear Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette will be a favorite for grilling all year long – grilled chicken and pears are tossed with fresh veggies and peppery arugula in a delicious and easy lemon basil vinaigrette that’s made from scratch!

Disclosure: This post has been sponsored by Pompeian. My love for the brand and opinions are all my own.

When Pompeian reached out to see what recipe magic I could whip up with their Extra Virgin Olive Oil, I wanted a recipe that would carry the buttery flavor throughout while not being too heavy for summer. It’s National Olive Oil month and Pompeian is encouraging everyone to lose the butter. No problem – I love using olive oil, in fresh and cooked preparations and especially with my summer salads. There’s nothing that beats a homemade vinaigrette, in my opinion. The main component of a great vinaigrette – a fabulous olive oil.

Do you ever have a dish that has you thinking “I so need to recreate that at home“? That was my dilemma a few weeks ago. We have this local restaurant near the 9to9 that has some killer salads and, recently, I had one of their salads which had pears, chicken and a lemon basil vinaigrette. It was soooo good but I was thinking “I know I can make that with a bit of a spin” and it hit me – I’d use freshly grilled pears along some peppery arugula. I’d also carry the lemon flavors throughout with a lemony marinade for the chicken and that would also be grilled. I’d drizzle the salad with a fresh lemon basil vinaigrette and top it with my favorite cheese – a salty, crumbly ricotta salata. Southern Living had a fabulous vinaigrette recipe that I jazzed up and it’s full of fresh summer flavors.

This Grilled Chicken and Pear Salad with Lemon Basil Vinaigrette is the ultimate summer salad my friends!…