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Luna’s Signature Salad Finds Fan At Pig Out In Park

Merri Lou Dobler The Spokesman-

Dear Merri Lou: Would you be able to get the salad recipe that Luna had at Pig Out in the Park this year? It was mixed greens, feta cheese, dried cranberries and caramelized walnuts. How do they fix the walnuts? I can’t get them to come out right. The salad was so good. Thank you. - Shirley, Pullman

Dear Shirley: Luna chef Regina Sampieri supplied these recipes. Save some time by preparing the caramelized walnuts the day before - if you can wait that long!

Luna’s Signature Salad

12 ounces mixed baby greens

3/4 cup House vinaigrette (see recipe below)

1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced

4 ounces Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

4 ounces dried cranberries

4 ounces caramelized walnuts (see recipe below)

Toss baby greens with 3/4 cup vinaigrette and place on salad plates. Layer red onions on top, then add cheese, dried cranberries and walnuts. Enjoy!

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving, including dressing and walnuts: 653 calories, 42 grams fat (58 percent fat calories), 11 grams protein, 62 grams carbohydrate, 25 milligrams cholesterol, 403 milligrams sodium.

Luna’s House Vinaigrette

2 tablespoons fresh ground garlic

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

In large bowl whisk together garlic, mustard, salt and pepper. Slowly add oil, whisking constantly. Add lemon juice and vinegar; mix well.

Yield: About 2 cups (10 servings).

Nutrition information per serving: 186 calories, 20.25 grams fat (98 percent fat calories), 1 gram carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 79 milligrams sodium.

Luna’s Caramelized Walnuts

1 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup water

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 pound walnuts, quartered

In large saute pan, mix sugar, water and vanilla, stirring to dissolve sugar. Cook over medium heat, without stirring, until mixture turns light golden brown (swirl pan slowly to mix ingredients and add water if too sticky). Add walnuts, coat evenly and remove to cookie sheet or cooling rack.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 362 calories, 15 grams fat (37 percent fat calories), 7 grams protein, 54 grams carbohydrate, no cholesterol, 1 milligram sodium.

Dear Merri Lou: I recently saw a recipe for no-bake cookies made with chocolate chips and peanut butter (melted in microwave), then mixed with oatmeal and some other ingredients, then dropped onto cookie sheets. Do you know the entire recipe? It sounded good and easy. Thanks, - Linda, Spokane

Dear Linda: This recipe uses cocoa instead of chocolate chips but you’ll enjoy the cookies. If you like, substitute flaked coconut for the oatmeal.

Coco Loco No-Bake Cookies

From “Big, Soft Chewy Cookies,” by Jill Van Cleave (Contemporary Books, 1991).

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1-1/2 cups quick-cooking oats

1/2 cup raisins

Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper and set aside.

In a saucepan, combine sugar, butter, cream and cocoa powder. Heat and stir until smoothly blended. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil and boil for 1 minute. Or, combine ingredients in microwave-safe bowl and cook on High 8-9 minutes, stirring after every 2 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and peanut butter until well blended. Add oats and raisins and keep stirring until mixture is thick.

To form each cookie, drop 1 heaping tablespoon onto the waxed paper. Set cookies aside to cool and harden. Store in an airtight plastic storage bag at room temperature for up to 3 days. Do not freeze.

Yield: About 12 cookies.

Nutrition information per cookie: 214 calories, 10 grams fat (42 percent fat calories), 4 grams protein, 30 grams carbohydrate, 20 milligrams cholesterol, 30 milligrams sodium.

, DataTimes MEMO: Have a food question? Looking for a recipe? Merri Lou Dobler, a registered dietitian in Spokane, would like to hear from you. Write to Cook’s Notebook, Features Department, The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210, or e-mail to merrid@spokesman.com. As many letters as possible will be answered in this column; sorry, no individual replies.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Merri Lou Dobler The Spokesman-Review

Have a food question? Looking for a recipe? Merri Lou Dobler, a registered dietitian in Spokane, would like to hear from you. Write to Cook’s Notebook, Features Department, The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210, or e-mail to merrid@spokesman.com. As many letters as possible will be answered in this column; sorry, no individual replies.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Merri Lou Dobler The Spokesman-Review