Delicious Salad

From Mom Larsen.

Serves 10.

10 servings salad mixture of romaine, spinach, or whatever greens you want
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
2 Tbs. sliced green onions
3/4 cup slivered almonds
Several teaspoons sugar

Dressing:
1/4 cup salad oil
1 Tbs. sugar
2 tsp. vinegar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. almond extract

Heat almonds and sugar in a skillet over medium heat, stirring and tossing almonds.  Sugar will melt and coat almonds.  You'll know they're done when the almonds & sugar are a golden brown color and you can smell toasted almonds.  Cool on wax paper.

Mix dressing ingredients together until sugar dissolves.  Just before serving, pour dressing on salad and mix well.

Notes
- I used 1 bag hearts of romaine and 1 bag baby spinach
- I didn't measure my green onions; I just sliced up two of them.
- Since the package of almonds I bought was 1 cup, I used the whole thing.
- I've been experimenting with the vinegars I use.  The first time, I used rice vinegar.  The second time, I used half white wine vinegar, half rice vinegar.
- I also really like slicing up a bunch of mushrooms and adding them to the salad--I think it's great.

Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake

From Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries, and Shakes, page 149

Makes 16 ounces.

Nonstick cooking spray
9 large marshmallows
1/4 cup whole milk
11 ounces premium vanilla ice cream (about 1 3/4 packed cups)
Toasted marshmallows, for garnish (optional)

Preheat the broiler.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Arrange the marshmallows flat on the baking sheet and place under the broiler until the tops are a deep golden brown color, about 40 seconds.  Remove from the oven, carefully turn the marshmallows over, and broil until they are a deep golden brown.  Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.

Combine the marshmallows and milk in a blender and blend for 5 seconds.  Add the ice cream and blend until smooth, about 10 seconds.  Serve immediately.

Notes
- This is a very sweet, rich shake.  We divided it between four people, and that was plenty!
- It took longer than 40 seconds on each side for our marshmallows to get even slightly golden.  And by then we were impatient and called it good.  Just keep an eye on yours.
- Bobby must have a super blender--ours takes a little longer to get the shakes smooth.

Bolo Burger

From Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries, and Shakes, page 28

Serves 4.

Piquillo Pepper-Smoked Paprika Aioli
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 jarred piquillo peppers, drained
2 tsp. smoked sweet Spanish paprika
1/2 tsp. kosher salt

Burgers
1 1/2 lbs. ground chuck (80/10) or ground turkey (90/10)
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbs. canola oil
4 sesame seed hamburger buns, split; toasted, if desired
8 slices Manchego cheese
8 paper-thin slices Serrano ham

To make the aioli, combine the mayonnaise, garlic, peppers, paprika, and salt in a food processor and process until smooth.  Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving.  The aioli can be prepared 1 day in advance, tightly covered, and refrigerated.

Divide the meat into 4 equal portions (about 6 ounces each).  Form each portion loosely into a 3/4-inch-thick burger and make a deep depression in the center with your thumb.  Season both sides of each burger with salt and pepper.  Cook the burgers, using 1 1/2 Tbs. of the oil (click HERE for Bobby's burger cooking times).

Place the bun bottoms on a flat surface and spread half of the aioli over them.  Top each one with a slice of cheese, then a slice of the ham, then a burger, another slice of ham, and finally another slice of cheese, in that order.  Spread the rest of the aioli on the bun tops and cover each burger with a top.

Brush the tops of the buns with the remaining 1 1/2 Tbs. oil and place on the grill, griddle, or saute pan, top side down.  Using a heavy-duty metal spatula, press down on the bottom of the buns and grill until the tops are a light golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes.  Turn the burgers over and continue cooking, pressing down on the tops, until the bottoms are light golden brown and the cheese has melted, about 1 minute longer.  Serve immediately.

Notes
- We couldn't find piquillo peppers, so we used jarred, fire-roasted red peppers.
- We also couldn't find Manchego cheese (I was in a hurry and only checked one store for these things--later I found the cheese), so we used Monterey Jack.
- We don't have smoked sweet Spanish paprika, so I used plain old smoked paprika (still not the same as regular paprika).
- Like I've mentioned with all his other burgers so far, we make our patties thinner than he does because we buy big buns and want the burger to be in every bite.
- As with all the other burgers, I follow the beef requirement somewhat loosely.  Sometimes I get 80/20, other times I get 85/15 or even 90/10.  I don't always buy 1 1/2 lbs, either.  It just depends on how fattening I feel like we can make our burgers that particular day.
- The aioli reminded me a lot of the red pepper sauce a Quiznos.  So if you ever want their red pepper sauce on your homemade sandwich, make Bobby's aioli here!