Parmesan salad cups for salad week
Hi y’all, and welcome to salad week! Enter a realm of culinary innovation with Parmesan salad cups, where crispy perfection meets fresh greens, creating a delightful harmony of textures and flavors.
For those of you that are just tuning in, eight other “two snaps around the world” bloggers and we are dedicating an entire week to salad. Oh yes, an entire lovely week covering everything from tabbouleh to tropical chicken salad, with some spicier arrangements sprinkled in between. We’re about to get salad crazy up in here, if you know what we mean.
When we were invited to board this foodie-blog train of love, we were a little nervous. Our palms began to sweat (gross). We felt light-headed. And yeah, we may have stuck our fingers under our armpits like Mary Katherine Gallagher and wished we were a superstar salad maker. What was we going to make? Thankfully, we were wearing deodorant that day. Phew.
Speaking of locomotives, our train of thought started to roll: when we heard the word “salad,” of course, images of green, leafy leaves sprang up, surrounded by the usual shreds of carrots, bits of crumbled eggs, and croutons. A dab or dousing of a typical salad dressing. And we thought “diets,” of course. Something only Kate Moss would eat. (we swear if we ever see her in real life, we're totally giving her a sandwich. And possibly a meatball. With cheese.)
We digress.
As we were brainstorming ways to make salad a more exciting eating adventure, we eventually thought back to our cooking class on Cook Street. One of our cooler assignments was to make a classic risotto, but instead of putting that luxurious carb in a regular ol’ bowl, we made Parmesan cups. Brilliant, we tell ya. It was an explosion of cheese and butter. So, we thought… What else could we put in a Parmesan cup?… Noodles? Nah, too slippery. Chocolate mousse? Wishful thinking. {cue light bulb} We know, a fresh salad! {audience applause}. We immediately did the Mary Katherine Gallagher superstar stance in our kitchen, receive a questionable look from our husband, and got to work. The Parmesan cups are quite simple to mix. All you need to do is heat a non-stick pan to medium high heat. Melt about a tablespoon of butter, and pour 2 tablespoons of ground Parmesan cheese into the pan. Spread it around to make an even layer. Once it starts to brown around the side, take the pan off the stove, flip it upside down, and start to gently scrape the sides down over a glass. As it falls, the cheese should drape in a layer around the glass. Make sense? It took us a couple tries on our first go-around, but we got the hang of it.
As your Parmesan cups cool, throw together your favorite green mixture. Our personal favorite…. arugula, spinach, grape tomatoes, and shallots all tossed with a favorite Dijon vinaigrette on the planet. Word. Just assemble and eat! By the way, these are guaranteed to get a double-take from Kate Moss, or your money back.
The fun doesn’t stop here friends! Make sure to check out the other sassy ladies of Salad Week:
– Allison @ Decadent Philistines Save the Word – The Tabbouleh That Made Me Cry – Jeanne @ Inside NanaBread’s Head – Toughie’s Apple Salad– Kat @ Tenaciously Yours
– Monica @ The Grommom
– Kirsten @ Comfortably Domestic
– Megan @ Wanna Be a Country Cleaver
– Madelyn @ La Petite Pancake– Carrie @ Bakeaholic Mama
And then, the grand finale…Salad-Link-Polooza on Saturday! Stay tuned for an epic party!
Parmesan Salad Cups Serves 4 Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 2 minutes Ingredients: for the Parmesan cups: 4 tablespoons butter 1 cup ground Parmesan cheese (more if needed) for the vinaigrette: 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar 1 teaspoon honey 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (more if you want) salt and pepper for the salad: 4 cups spinach/arugula 2 shallots, minced 1/2 8oz pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half Directions: for the Parmesan cups: Preheat a non-stick pan to medium high heat. Melt about a tablespoon of butter, and pour 2 tablespoons of ground Parmesan cheese into the pan. Spread it around to make an even layer. Once it starts to brown around the side, take the pan off the stove, flip it upside down, and start to gently scrape the sides down over a glass. As it falls, let it drop around the glass and rest for a minute. Move the cup to a plate to cool. for the vinaigrette: Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well combined. for the salad: In a bowl, toss together spinach, arugula, shallots, grape tomatoes, and vinaigrette. Take about 1/2 cup of the salad mixture and place into one of the Parmesan cups. Serve immediately. Conclusion: Elevate your salad game with Parmesan salad cups, offering a crispy, cheesy vessel for your favorite greens, ensuring each bite is a savory delight.
