Martha Let Me Down

Since James enjoyed last night's salad and crostini combo so much I thought I'd try again and find a really interesting salad. After a little internet search I settled on a Martha Stewart recipe for a broccoli rabe salad with carrots and radicchio. James loves broccoli rabe. We have a load of carrots from a juicing binge not too long ago. That salad seemed perfect for us. It was beautiful in the bowl but the dressing was just kind of ordinary and in fact didn't add much to the combination. It was just okay. Not good enough.

Mercifully I paired this lackluster salad with super delicious crostini. I sautéed mushroom slices in butter and olive oil until they were golden brown. I added in a minced clove of garlic, chopped fresh thyme, and a finely diced shallot and cooked for about 5 minutes more -- until the shallot was tender. I deglazed the pan with a splash of water and topped slices of toasted (drizzled with olive oil) ciabatta with the mushroom mixture. A delicate goat's milk gouda topped the mushrooms. After two minutes under the broiler and a shower of chopped parsley the best part of dinner was ready to serve. Sorry Martha, tonight was not your night.