Grilled Ciabatta Bread Salad

Our friend Jeff came to visit for the weekend. He loves to cook, so we planned on cooking all day Saturday.

First, we made a big bowl of my pico de gallo - what a treat in January!!

My corn chowder with jalapeno cream was for lunch - a quick and easy soup.

For dinner we had grilled filet mignon with caramelized onion and spinach risotto.

Jeff made a great salad that we enjoyed with dinner - Grilled Ciabatta Bread Salad. He found the original recipe, a Bobby Flay recipe, on the Food Network web site. It's no longer listed on this site, but this recipe is an adaptation of the original.

Ingredients

• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
• 1 loaf ciabatta bread
• 3 c fresh spinach
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 c blue cheese, crumbled (original recipe calls for feta)
• 1 c good olive oil
• 1/2 c balsamic vinegar
• Salt, Pepper, and Oregano to taste

Directions

• Slice onions, chop cilantro, and let bathe in 1/2 c olive oil in the fridge while grilling the bread
• Slice bread into two long halves; spray with cooking spray and grill until charred. Jeff says to grill it as dark as you can take it!
• Chop the bread into 1 inch pieces and add to onions and cilantro with another 1/2 c olive oil. Chill at least one-half hour.
• Add tomatoes, spinach, cheese. Toss with balsamic (start slowly, add to taste) and salt/pepper/oregano to taste.
• Serve immediately

This salad was so delicious and refreshing. I loved how all of the flavors worked together, and there is nothing like grilled bread in a cold salad. We all loved the flavor that the blue cheese added, and think it was a perfect substitution for feta.
Thanks Jeff!! Hope to see you again soon :)