Your Guide to Light Dinners

You’re getting our newsletter because you opted in on our site or Facebook page. Don’t want it? Please go to the bottom and click "manage your subscription."

May 2011

Castello Rings in the Spring

After months of warming up on stews, soups, and roasts, it is time to shed some layers and make room for entertaining with lighter fare. Indulge in the abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables arriving at the markets. Our update on a familiar favorite - Cobb salad, turns this standby into a centerpiece presentation. Replace the classic lines of chopped ingredients with a fanned display of layered roast chicken, ripe avocados, bacon, tomatoes, and small bouquets of green. Just before serving, blend the robust bite of Castello-Rosenborg® Extra Creamy Blue Cheese into the vinaigrette to bring the flavors together. Blue cheese combines rich creamy texture with a pungent bite, for a contrast that awakens other flavors.

Look for our new packaging and "Toast our Crowning Achievement" sweepstakes now in stores - you could win an iPad 2 or set of Orrefors crystal glasses! Click here to enter the sweepstakes today.

Cobb Salad

Makes 4 servings

The bold flavor of Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese wakes this salad up!

What you need:

Dressing:

1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese

Salad:

2 cooked boneless and skinless chicken breasts, sliced
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
4 thick slices cooked bacon, chopped
2 medium ripe tomatoes, diced
2 green onions, thinly sliced
Mache or spring greens
2 hard cooked eggs, peeled and quartered

What you do:

Prepare the dressing by whisking together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, mustard, and sugar. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in the Blue cheese and set dressing aside.

Arrange the chicken slices in the shape of a fan on the bottom of the serving plates. Place the avocado slices on top and sprinkle with crumbled bacon, tomatoes, and green onions. Top with a bouquet of mache or salad greens. Spoon with dressing just before serving.

(Healthy Eating: - CONT.)

Other Spring Favorites

Artichokes: poach an artichoke until soft and serve it with a dressing made with Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese, lemon, capers, parsley, and olive oil.

Spring Radishes: make a tea sandwich of thinly sliced radishes with Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese. You can soften the Blue cheese with a touch of cream cheese.

Asparagus: serve warm or cold with a crumble of Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese and lemon zest.

Fennel: Cut the fennel bulb into thin slices. Toss in olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes and serve warm with a crumble of Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese on top.

Perfect Pairing:

Pimm's Cup

Makes 2 drinks

What you need:
4 ounces Pimm’s No.1
2 ounces lemonade
Lime soda or ginger ale
1 cucumber, cut lengthwise into spears
Fresh mint

What you do: Fill two tall glasses with ice. Pour in the Pimm’s, until glass is 1/3 full. Top off with a splash of lemonade and soda. Garnish with cucumber spear and mint.

Perfect Pairing:
Pimm's Cup

Pimm’s Cup is a classic English drink, and a light, refreshing way to welcome spring.

See recipe...

Hearts of Palm and Fresh Orange Salad

Makes 4 servings

Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese adds a refreshing balance to the flavor combination of the oranges and fennel. This salad pops with taste and makes a perfect first course.

What you need:

Dressing:

1/8 cup fresh orange juice
1/8 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Salad:

2 oranges
9 hearts of palm, cut in half lengthwise
1 fennel bulb, shaved
2 ounces Castello-Rosenborg® Blue Cheese
2 cups salad greens

Tools: Mandolin

What you do:

In a small mixing bowl whisk together the orange juice, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. Season with salt and pepper; set aside.

Peel and segment the oranges. Arrange them on the serving plates and along with the hearts of palm and fennel slices. Add a bouquet of greens and top with shaved Blue cheese. Drizzle on the dressing and serve right away.