WHAT'S IN A NAME: A SALAD BY ANY OTHER NAME WOULD TASTE AS DELICIOUS
Celebrity chef, cookbook author, restaurateur and media personality Jan D’Atri has loved cooking her entire life. Born into a food-loving family with a fondness for Italian cuisine, Jan had an undeniable connection to gourmet fare, which laid the foundation for her to explore her entrepreneurial spirit and open two restaurants and a gourmet foods shop. It is here where she perfected her favorite recipes from her mother and developed a few of her own.
Jan’s Garbage Salad was often the topic of conversation at both of her restaurants because the salad’s unusual name would often leave guests in wonder. Here’s a taste of the ingredients from the most popular salad on her menus with the most peculiar name. Atop fresh crisp romaine lettuce, Jan piles on the works: marinated chicken, grilled homemade sausages, bruschetta, three different cheeses, pasta and vegetables cooked on a Panini grill. Complete with her mother’s signature salad dressing, the salad leaves everyone wanting more.
This month at the International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas, Jan will demonstrate exactly what keeps her guests coming back to her restaurants during a series of cooking demonstrations throughout the day. The menu features Momma’s Chicken Scaloppina ala Marsala, Brie, Boursin, Poblano and Papaya Quesadilla and, of course, the Garbage Salad with Jan and Momma’s Home Dressing.
Jan and Momma’s Home Dressing
Yield: About 2 cups
Book: Momma & Me & You
• 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup Marsala wine
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped onions
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 teaspoons pepper
• 2 tablespoons sugar
Place ingredients in blender and blend for about 3-5 minutes. Dressing will thicken as it is chilled. Refrigerate. Can be used as marinade. Discard any leftover dressing if used for marinade. (The dressing will keep in the refrigerator for weeks!)
The Garbage Salad
Book: Momma & Me & You
• 1 Italian hot sausage
• 1 chicken breast
• 6-8 mushrooms, sliced (or 1 portabella)
• 1 eggplant, sliced
• 1 zucchini
• 1 sweet onion, sliced
• 2 thin slices of provolone cheese
• 1 cup bowtie pasta, cooked
• 1 cup diced Roma tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon onion, chopped fine
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped fine
• 1 large head of Romaine lettuce
• Momma and Jan’s Home Dressing (Important!)
• Salt and pepper to taste
Take some dressing and marinate the chicken breast for several hours. Best if marinated overnight. Discard the marinade when you grill the chicken.
Cook bowtie pasta. Grill all vegetables on cooktop grill, basting with Home Dressing, and set aside. Grill sausage slices and chicken and set aside. Roll up provolone and slice into pinwheels. In a small bowl, mix together chopped tomatoes, onion, basil, garlic and olive oil.
To assemble:
In a large bowl or two individual salad plates, pile Romaine in the center. Arrange warm meats and vegetables over top. Garnish with sliced cheese and tomatoes mixture. Drizzle Home Dressing over top. Add salt and pepper to taste.
For more of Jan’s easy-to-follow recipes, visit EverythingDacor.com to purchase Momma & Me & You, a cookbook filled with original mouthwatering Italian recipes, beautiful photographs and fun stories of how they came to be.
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