Cobb Salad

One of my favorite salads is the classic Cobb Salad; invented by restaurant manager, Bob Cobb, who in 1926 at The Brown Derby restaurant in Los Angeles, found a way to use up leftovers. Cobb went to the refrigerator and found an avocado, which he chopped with lettuce, celery, tomatoes, and strips of bacon. Later he embellished it with breast of chicken, chives, a hard-boiled egg, watercress, and a wedge of Roquefort cheese for dressing, and the salad was on its way to earning an international reputation. Chefs around the world have been putting their twist on this classic salad ever since.

Here is my basic recipe for a Cobb Salad that is easy and it can be a nutritious high protein lunch on these early fall days.


Eating Well Cobb Salad

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons finely minced shallot
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
10 cups mixed salad greens
½ pound sliced cooked chicken breast (1 large breast half) (see Tip)
2 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and chopped (see Tip)
2 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1 large cucumber, seeded and sliced
1 avocado, diced
½ cup crumbled blue cheese (optional)

Whisk vinegar, shallot, mustard, salt and pepper in a small bowl to combine. Whisk in oil until combined. Place salad greens in a large bowl. Add half of the dressing and toss to coat.

Divide salad greens among 4 plates. Arrange equal portions of chicken, egg, bacon, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado and blue cheese (if using) on top of the lettuce. Put some dressing a small ramekin and serve on the side of your salad.

Makes 4 servings


A few of my cooking tips –

To poach chicken breast:
Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a medium skillet or saucepan and add lightly salted water to cover; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10 to 12 minutes.

To hard-boil eggs:
Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and cook at the barest simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, pour out hot water and run a constant stream of cold water over the eggs until completely cooled