Warmer sunnier days means that it is salad season! I love salad season. I love comfort food season as well, but I do like eating lighter meals in the warmer months. I especially love pasta salads. They combine the pleasures of summer eating with light and fresh flavors along with a touch of the heartier comfort eating of pasta.
Pasta light, without heavy sauces, etc. Just right for pairing with grilled meats, poultry and fish, or cold cuts. Perfect for taking on picnics, or to potlucks and buffet suppers.
This recipe I am sharing with you today for a Dirty Martini Pasta Salad is one which I have adapted from a site called Grilled Cheese Social.
It looked and sounded delicious. I really like pasta. I love green olives. I positively adore blue cheese. When I saw those three ingredients, I was all in!
Now I have never ever had a Martini, let alone a Dirty Martini. I think the recipe for this pasta salad is a take on the viral recipe for Dirty Martini Pasta, a hot pasta dish, that I never even knew existed until I looked it up just now. Viral? Hmm. If they say so! I must have been living under a rock because I have never heard of it. Maybe it's a generational thing!
I think a dirty martini is a martini that has olive brine added to it. This pasta salad has olive brine added to it. But in addition to that there is lemon zest and juice, chopped parsley, quality green olives, blue cheese crumbles and a zesty garlic dressing. I created a homemade one to enjoy here.
I didn't have the pinenuts called for in the recipe. They are not something I tend to keep on hand. They are expensive and they don't keep for long. I used toasted flaked almonds, and they worked perfectly. I am a great believer in adapting recipes to what you have on hand and not going out to buy special ingredients if you don't really need to!
Altogether this makes for one very delicious salad that I think you will enjoy. At least I hope that you will! It is also a small batch recipe, designed to make two delicious servings. Very easily doubled or tripled to feed more. Just ask.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE DIRTY MARTINI PASTA SALAD
Just a few simple ingredients. Make sure you use the best quality of everything, and you will be sure to have a very delicious salad! Quantities are for two servings but can easily be doubled or tripled to serve more.
- 1/4 pound (4 ounces/115g) uncooked pasta (I used mafalda)
- 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped (a small handful)
- 1/2 cup (90g) good quality pitted green olives (I used castelvatrano)
- 2 TBS olive brine from the bottle
- 1/4 cup (28g) crumbled blue cheese
- 1 TBS toasted pinenuts (I used flaked almonds)
- the zest of 1/2 medium lemon
- 2 TBS fresh lemon juice
- 3 TBS creamy garlic salad dressing (see recipe notes)
- flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
You can use any pasta shape to make this salad. I would avoid long flat ones. You want to use a pasta that will hug the dressing and other bits.
If you don't have any flat leaf parsley, you can use curly parsley and failing that you could also use baby arugula, or rocket as it is called in the U.K. This will add a lovely punchiness. I love the peppery almost meaty flavor of rocket.
I buy my Castelvatrano olives online. You cannot find them in the shops here where I live. I usually buy two jars at a time. I use them a lot. They are great on pizzas, in salads and I make a really wonderful Lemon & Green Olive Pasta dish that uses them.
The garlic salad dressing that was mentioned in the original recipe was not available here for you to buy, but I like to make my own salad dressings from scratch anyways and so have included a delicious recipe for a garlic salad dressing in the notes section of the recipe.
I used toasted almonds instead of the pinenuts called for in the original recipe. They worked beautifully. I just toasted them briefly in a 350*F/180*C oven on a sheet pan for about 5 to 8 minutes. Keep an eye on them as they can burn in a nano-second!
HOW TO MAKE DIRTY MARTINI PASTA SALAD
This is really very simple and quick to make. It makes a great lunch on its own or a fabulous side dish! It also goes wonderfully with burgers! Be sure to check out the recipe notes to learn how to make your own fabulously delicious garlic dressing! The dressing will keep for up to two weeks in a covered jar in the refrigerator.
Cook your pasta according to the package directions. (Mine said 9 minutes.) Drain well, rinse in cold water and drain again. Put into a bowl.
Make your garlic dressing while the pasta is cooking.
Add the chopped parsley, olives, olive brine, blue cheese, toasted nuts, lemon zest and lemon juice. Toss well together.
Add the garlic dressing. Toss together again. Season to taste with salt and pepper and enjoy!
TO MAKE THE CREAMY GARLIC DRESSING:
1/2 cup (120ml) light olive oil
1/4 cup (60ml) white wine vinegar
2 cloves of garlic peeled and minced
1 TBS honey
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/2 TBS chopped fresh parsley (optional)
Put all of the ingredients into a small blender and blitz together until well combined and creamy. Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Keep refrigerated in a covered jar.
This salad did not disappoint. It had a lovely fresh vibrant flavor. I loved the punchy saltiness of the olives and the tang of the blue cheese. Flaked almonds were a good choice to use instead of the pinenuts. Not everyone has pinenuts in the house and they are quite expensive for what you get anyways.
I did really enjoy this. If you are a fan of olives and blue cheese, this is the salad for you! It would be great served alongside of any kind of grilled meat, poultry or fish.
I do love pasta salads in the warmer months. They are great to take to BBQ's or Buffet suppers. On hot days they make a great side to cold cuts or grilled meats, fish or poultry. Here are a few other favorites of mine that I think you might also enjoy!
CINDY'S TUNA PASTA SALAD - My sister makes the best tuna pasta salad, with plenty of macaroni pasta, sweet English peas, good tuna, celery and spring onions. A simple mayo dressing. Its a real family favorite at all of our cookouts and cold buffet suppers!
GREEK PASTA SALAD - All the flavors of your favorite Greek Salad in a delicious Pasta salad, with fresh crisp cucumbers, ripe tomatoes, red onions, kalamata olives, plenty of parsley and a delicious red wine herbed dressing. Oh, and pasta twists, which while not exactly traditional, make this a fabulously tasty and hearty salad! Simple and delicious.
Yield: Serves 2
Dirty Martini Pasta Salad
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 25 Min
A delicious quick to make and simple pasta salad that is loaded with flavors and textures. This is quite simply delicious!
Ingredients
- 1/4 pound (4 ounces/115g) uncooked pasta (I used mafalda)
- 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped (a small handful)
- 1/2 cup (90g) good quality pitted green olives (I used castelvatrano)
- 2 TBS olive brine from the bottle
- 1/4 cup (28g) crumbled blue cheese
- 1 TBS toasted pinenuts (I used flaked almonds)
- the zest of 1/2 medium lemon
- 2 TBS fresh lemon juice
- 3 TBS creamy garlic salad dressing (see recipe notes)
- flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook your pasta according to the package directions. (Mine said 9 minutes.) Drain well, rinse in cold water and drain again. Put into a bowl.
- Make your garlic dressing while the pasta is cooking.
- Add the chopped parsley, olives, olive brine, blue cheese, toasted nuts, lemon zest and lemon juice. Toss well together.
- Add the garlic dressing. Toss together again.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and enjoy!
Notes
TO MAKE THE CREAMY GARLIC DRESSING:
1/2 cup (120ml) light olive oil
1/4 cup (60ml) white wine vinegar
2 cloves of garlic peeled and minced
1 TBS honey
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/2 TBS chopped fresh parsley (optional)
Put all of the ingredients into a small blender and blitz together until well combined and creamy. Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Keep refrigerated in a covered jar.
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Oven Roasted Pierogies with Caramelized Onions. This was a recipe that I had pinned on Pinterest from a page called Hungry Wanderlust. They looked fabulously delicious and like such a simple make. (I did cut the recipe in half. See below for my version.)
I adore pierogies. They are not something which I grew up with at all. They were not a part of the Nova Scotia food profile back then. They are quite common now, but we are a much more travelled people these days!
The first time I encountered Pierogies I had moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba with my second husband. They used to sell them there in the restaurants, deep-fried. They looked interesting, but I did not try them. I was very young and still a bit hesitant to try something I wasn't used to.
The next time I encountered them was in Calgary, Alberta. I had made a good friend there named Esther, who was a member of the church I now belong to. She was of Hungarian Descent. Her family always had a tradition of making Pierogi for Christmas.
That first Christmas I spend in Calgary, far away from my family, Esther took me under her wing and showed me how to make Pierogi from scratch. I fell in love with Pierogies then and have never looked back.
I much prefer to make my own from scratch, but will occasionally buy a frozen brand. In the U.K. you could get fresh ones in the Polish section of the chiller at the grocery store. They had ones with sauerkraut in them. I would buy them occasionally. They were excellent.
The ones Esther taught me how to make were filled with potato and cheese, and they are gorgeous. I have never shared that recipe on here, but I think it is about time that I did.
I need to have a pierogi making day. Especially after having been consistently disappointed by the frozen ones on offer here in Nova Scotia.
There is nothing like a freshly made pierogi stuffed with a flavor filled potato and cheddar cheese filling. You can add a bit of grated onion if you want to, but I always just use the mashed potato and the grated cheddar cheese. So delicious.
You are going to serve them with fried onions anyways, so there is no real need for onions in the filling. Watch this space.
I never make pierogies without thinking of my dear friend Esther. She had had polio when she was a child and walked with walking canes. She had been told by her mother that she would never have a career or get married or anything. She proved them all wrong. There was nothing that Esther couldn't do once she put her mind to it. She was such an inspiration to me. Sadly, she passed away a few years ago now.
I will always be grateful for the sweet women that were placed in my life to teach me how to be a better wife, mother and cook and one of those was Esther.
Do try this recipe however, with the best frozen or homemade pierogi you can buy or make. You won't regret it. It is delicious!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE OVEN ROASTED PIEROGIES WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS
Just a few simple ingredients. Choose the best frozen pierogies you can find.
For the onions:
- 1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced into half moons
- 1 TBS butter
- 1/2 TBS light olive oil
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1/2 TBS good balsamic vinegar (optional)
You will also need:
- 8 ounces (227g) frozen cheese pierogies
- light olive oil to coat
The onions are the star here. I would even go so far as to double the amount. Can you ever have enough caramelized onions??? I think not! I just used a plain brown skinned cooking onion.
I did use the Balsamic and I used a good quality Modena Balsamic. Not the most expensive one, but not the cheapest one either.
I used a frozen pierogi that I had not seen before. They were very small. The brand was Grandma's Pierogies. I used the potato and cheddar cheese variety and I will be honest here. They did not have much flavor at all. I would not buy them again.
So make sure you buy a pierogi that has a good flavor and that you enjoy! This brand was very disappointing, and I do NOT recommend them. They were really expensive as well. Just goes to show that price does not always equate flavor.
HOW TO MAKE OVEN ROASTED PIEROGIES WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS
Not at all difficult to do. Do use a well flavored pierogi that you and your family enjoy, or better yet, make them from scratch!
Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Line a lipped baking tray large enough to hold your pierogi in one layer with some baking paper. Spritz with cooking spray.
Place the pierogi into a bowl. Add enough oil to coat them all completely, tossing the frozen pierogi with the oil. Make sure they are covered on both sides completely.
Spread your pierogi out on the baking tray in a single layer.
Pop the tray into the preheated oven and roast the pierogi for 20 minutes, flipping them over halfway through the cook time.
While the pierogi are roasting do your onions. Add the oil and butter to a medium skillet over medium heat.
Once the butter begins to foam add the onions. Toss with the butter/oil mixture to coat. Season with salt and pepper.
Cook, stirring frequently for 8 to 10 minutes until they begin to caramelize.
If using the vinegar, add it now, combining it thoroughly. Turn off the heat.
Serve the caramelized onions on top of the roasted pierogies. Pass the sour cream
This was delicious. I would rather have had homemade pierogi but made do with the frozen ones from the shops. It was a very convenient way of cooking them without having to drag out my huge pot, etc.
Very simple to make and the caramelized onions were fabulous. I did add the balsamic vinegar. Next time I made this I will use another brand of frozen pierogi, or homemade pierogi.
I enjoyed mine with some dairy sour cream!
PIEROGI STUFFED SHELLS - A great way to use up leftover mashed potatoes. These taste just like the real deal but are a whole lot easier and quicker to make than pierogi from scratch. A four-ingredient knock-off those tastes delicious!
PIEROGI LASAGNA - This is a tried and true family favorite! It tastes just like pierogi without all of the faffing about. No rolling out of dough, or filling, boiling, etc. You simply fry some onions, cook some lasagna noodles and make some mashed potatoes. The potatoes are mixed with cheese and some of the fried onions and then layered with the noodles in a baking dish, and baked. It's really easy and incredibly delicious!
Yield: two servings
Oven Roasted Pierogies with Caramelized Onions
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 Min
A simple supper of frozen cheese pierogies roasted in the oven and served with caramelized onions. I also like to serve some sour cream on the side.
Ingredients
For the onions:
- 1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced into half moons
- 1 TBS butter
- 1/2 TBS light olive oil
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1/2 TBS good balsamic vinegar (optional)
You will also need:
- 8 ounces (227g) frozen cheese pierogies
- light olive oil to coat
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Line a lipped baking tray large enough to hold your pierogi in one layer with some baking paper. Spritz with cooking spray.
- Place the pierogi into a bowl. Add enough oil to coat them all completely, tossing the frozen pierogi with the oil. Make sure they are covered on both sides completely.
- Spread your pierogi out on the baking tray in a single layer.
- Pop the tray into the preheated oven and roast the pierogi for 20 minutes, flipping them over halfway through the cook time.
- While the pierogi are roasting do your onions. Add the oil and butter to a medium skillet over medium heat.
- Once the butter begins to foam add the onions. Toss with the butter/oil mixture to coat. Season with salt and pepper.
- Cook, stirring frequently for 8 to 10 minutes until they begin to caramelize.
- If using the vinegar, add it now, combining it thoroughly. Turn off the heat.
- Serve the caramelized onions on top of the roasted pierogies. Pass the sour cream.
All rights reserved The English Kitchen
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
If you are like me you eat a lot of chicken, and who doesn't these days. The cost of meat is outrageous, and almost unaffordable. Chicken is on the menu in my house more often than not!
I am always looking for new and different ways to cook it. I am also always keen to find quick and easy ways to cook it. Especially chicken breasts. They are the most versatile cut of chicken and take on many different flavors beautifully!
When I saw this Creamy Boursin Chicken recipe on Salt & Lavender, I immediately printed it out! There are of course many different versions of this recipe available online, but this is the one I used.
Not only did it look quick and easy to make, but it looked delicious, and I had everything in my house to make it. No trip to the shops needed! Many other recipes required fresh spinach or a variety of cheeses. This did not. Pure and simple, just how I like to cook.
At the end you have tender and juicy chicken with an insanely delicious creamy, rich and velvety sauce. So tasty you might even be tempted to lick your plate clean.
Quick and easy to make. Simple ingredients put together in the most delicious way. Easy enough for every day, but also special enough to serve to company. I highly recommend!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE THIS CREAMY BOURSIN CHICKEN RECIPE
A few simple ingredients. I love recipes that don't use a lot of ingredients and that don't take a lot of time to throw together. This is perfect on both counts!
- 2 largish boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 TBS light olive oil
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1/2 cup (120ml) chicken stock
- 1 (5.2oz/147g) package of garlic and herb Boursin cheese
- Parsley to garnish (optional)
My chicken breasts were each one about the size of one of my hands stretched out, so about six-inches long and 2-inches thick at the thickest end. If you like you can pound the cutlets, once you slice the chicken in half, in between two sheets of cling film to make an even thickness.
I find that cutting chicken through the middle like this helps to tenderize them!
I used Better than Boullion chicken stock concentrate, reconstituted. I did not need to add much in the way of salt to the dish.
You can use any flavor of Boursin Cheese that you like, but the garlic and herb is especially nice. Black peppercorn would also be excellent! I love Boursin cheese.
HOW TO COOK CREAMY BOURSIN CHICKEN
This is really simple and quick to make, especially if you have everything ready to go before you begin!
Take your chicken breasts and cut them into four cutlets, slicing them in half horizontally through the middle from one side to the other.
Season the chicken cutlets on both sides with the garlic powder and salt and black pepper to taste.
Heat the oil and butter in the skillet over medium high heat. Once the butter begins to foam, add the chicken pieces.
Cook the chicken cutlets until golden brown on both sides, about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate and set aside.
Add the chopped onion to the skillet. Cook, stirring, without browning for 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Stir in the chicken stock.
Crumble in the Boursin cheese, whisking it in constantly, until it becomes creamy and smooth. Leave to simmer over medium low heat for 2 to 3 minutes.
Return the chicken cutlets to the pan, turning them to coat them on both sides with the sauce. Heat through for about two minutes. Garnish with parsley (if using) and serve.
MY HINTS AND TIPS FOR CHICKEN BREAST PERFECTION
One of the most common complaints about chicken breasts is that they are too dry and flavorless. It is true they don't really have a lot of flavor, but that makes them perfect for taking on other flavors and if you don't overcook them, they come out beautifully. Here are some of my hints and tips to cook them perfectly!
1. If you are cooking your chicken plain, it is always better to cook your chicken breasts with the skin on rather than it off. The skin helps to protect the meat and keep it from drying out. You can always peel it off and discard after cooking if you don't want the extra calories.
2. Chicken breasts can be a bit dry. This is because they are much leaner than other parts of the bird. A marinade, brine or rub goes a long way in adding flavor to the meat and keeping it moist. A basic salt and pepper rub is just fine if you want to keep things simple.
3. Pounding chicken breasts with the flat side of a meat pounder always tenderizes them a bit. Even if you are not going for larger flatter pieces of chicken, a bit of pounding helps to even out the pieces and breaks down the tissues a bit rendering that tiny bit more succulent.
4. Keeping them all as much the same size as you can. You can do this by pounding, or by slicing them into smaller thinner pieces. They will also cook faster this way.
5. Overcooking. This is the main culprit when it comes to producing chicken breasts which are dry and unpalatable. You need only cook them until the juices run clear. Bear in mind, that they will continue to cook when you remove them from the pan. Let them rest, lightly covered for a few minutes and you will achieve perfection.
This chicken and sauce were incredibly delicious! The chicken was tender and juicy and the sauce was loaded with flavor. I am not sure that the chopped onion added much to be honest. If I make this again, (and I will) I will leave it out as I felt it detracted from the appearance of the dish, and you couldn't really notice the flavor anyways.
I enjoyed this with some mushroom rice and garden peas. I had run out of potatoes, or I would have had mashed potatoes with it. I think that a pile of fluffy mash with some of that delicious sauce spooned over top would be fabulously tasty!
I confess I do eat a lot of chicken, especially chicken breasts. They are so versatile and adapt themselves to many flavors. Here are a few other ways that I like to enjoy them! If chicken breasts are cooked properly, they are never dry.
.webp "Herb & Lemon Roasted Chicken Breasts")
HERB & LEMON ROASTED CHICKEN BREASTS -This is a delicious way of preparing chicken breasts which keeps them moist and very flavourful. I like to buy whole chickens and cut them up myself. Plan ahead as the chicken needs to marinate for about an hour before cooking.
GRILLED CHICKEN BREASTS WITH CHIMICHURRI SAUCE - This rich garlicky herb sauce is the star here. Skin on chicken breasts are marinated it in first and then grilled to succulent perfection. They are served with additional sauce for a chicken entree that will have everyone smacking their lips and licking their fingers!
Yield: 4 servings
Boursin Chicken
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 30 Min
Juicy tender pieces of chicken breast in a fabulously rich and velvety creamy sauce. This dish is packed with flavor! This goes together very quickly
Ingredients
- 2 largish boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 TBS light olive oil
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1/2 cup (120ml) chicken stock
- 1 (5.2oz/147g) package of garlic and herb Boursin cheese
- Parsley to garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Take your chicken breasts and cut them into four cutlets, slicing them in half horizontally through the middle from one side to the other.
- Season the chicken cutlets on both sides with the garlic powder and salt and black pepper to taste.
- Heat the oil and butter in the skillet over medium high heat. Once the butter begins to foam, add the chicken pieces.
- Cook the chicken cutlets until golden brown on both sides, about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate and set aside.
- Add the chopped onion to the skillet. Cook, stirring, without browning for 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Stir in the chicken stock.
- Crumble in the Boursin cheese, whisking it in constantly, until it becomes creamy and smooth. Leave to simmer over medium low heat for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Return the chicken cutlets to the pan, turning them to coat them on both sides with the sauce. Heat through for about two minutes.
- Garnish with parsley (if using) and serve.
Notes
- Make sure you use a low sodium chicken broth or your sauce may be too salty.
- If you think your sauce is too thick, you can whisk in a bit more chicken broth to thin.
- You can experiment with other flavors of Boursin Cheese as desired.
- Serve with rice or mashed potatoes.
All rights reserved The English Kitchen
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right-hand side of the screen.
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