SLOConCo Recipes;

Carmen's Chicken Salad

1 stalk celery, chopped ( makes about 1/3 cup)

3 scallions, sliced finely ( about 1/3 cup)

1 cup chopped cooked chicken

1/4 cup of Carmen's Kalamata Olive & Feta Cheese Dressing

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/3 cup mayonnaise

6 kalamata olives chopped (optional)

freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

    Mix all ingredients together and chill until use. Serve on toasted whole wheat bread with baby lettuce.

Variations: Omit the kalamata olives and add 1/3 cup of frozen baby peas, thawed.

                 Use salad to stuff hollowed-out tomato halves. Use heirloom tomatoes, home-grown or farmer's market tomatos if possible.

Oven Roasted Asparagus

2 big bunches of fresh asparagus, washed with stalks snapped off at the tough end

extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons Carmen's Gorgonzola Thyme or SLO Serrano dressing

freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

    Nothing could be simpler. Dry the asparagus well. Heat oven to 450 to 500 degrees. Lightly oil a large roasting pan with the extra-virgin olive oil. Spread out the asparagus; you may need two roasting pans if the spears seem crowded. Toss with the dressing ( I have to confess, I love the SLO Serrano on the asparagus the best. There's something about the slight heat that seems to bring out the sweetness of the asparagus.) Place in the hot oven and roast until the spears are fork tender, about 10 minutes or more if the asparagus is very thick. Shake the pan during cooking a couple of times to help them cook more evenly. Enjoy warm or room temperature. Use any leftovers in an omelet or salad.

                                                                         Roasted Corn Salsa

4 ears of corn

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 green pepper, diced

1 small red onion, diced

2 tablespoons Carmen's Habitual Habanero dressing

Freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

     Carefully peel back the corn husks, leaving them still attached to the cob. Remove the silks and rinse off  the corn. Shake the ears to remove most of the water and fold the husks back over the ears. Lay them on a medium-hot  grill and cook turning as needed in order to cook the ears evenly. If the corn blackens a bit, it will just add to the flavor, just make sure that the ears don't burn. Remove and let cool when done to your liking. When the corn is cool enough to handle, peel off the husks and remove the kernels with a sharp knife by holding the end of the ear firmly perpendicular to the cutting board and slicing down close to the cob. Toss the kernels with the peppers and onion to mix thoroughly and add the Carmen's and toss again. Add salt and black pepper to taste. use as an accompamient to barbequed meats or as a side dish.

                                                                         Herb Rubs for Roasted Meats

2 or 3 tablespoons of fresh herbs; rosemary, sage, oregano, parsley, thyme, etc. or any combination thereof

2 or3 large cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon of the Carmen's dressings of your choice

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

    Have fun with this recipe. Mix and match combinations of herbs and Carmen's to the roast of your choice. Try rosemary and SLO Serrano on a roast lamb or beef. Or sage and thyme with Gorgonzola Thyme on pork. What about chicken with parsley and oregano and Kalamata Olive and Feta Cheese? Maybe even salmon with thyme, parsley and Sun Dried Tomato. You'll never have to serve the same old Sunday roast again. Get loose and explore your inner chef.

    In a food processor or blender, roughly chop the herbs, garlic, salt and pepper. With the motor running, drizzle in the Carmen's and the extra virgin olive oil until the mixture resembles pesto.You may need to add more or less of the olive oil to achieve this. Rub over the outside of the selected meat and cook accordingly. You can freeze any extra rub in a small plastic bag in the freezer for up to 3 months.

                                                                          Garden Tomato Salad

4 or 5 large homegrown or farmer's market tomatos

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

6 large fresh basil leaves, cut into achiffonade or roughly torn by hand

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons of Carmen's SLO Serrano

    Cut the tomatos into bite sized slices. Toss with the feta, SLO Serrano, salt and pepper and basil. Garnish with a sprig of basil and serve at room temperature. This is a wonderful way to deal with the glut of summer's tomatos and is very easy to double or triple for those dog day barbeques or picnics. Especially beautiful with mulit-colored heirloom tomatos.

                                                  Carmen's BAT (bacon, arugula and tomato) Sandwich

Ingredients for one sandwich, multiply as necessary

2 slices bread, a rustic whole wheat or a foccacio is good

1/2 cup arugula

2 slices of tomato

2 or 3 slices of thick-cut bacon, cooked and drained on paper towels

1 teaspoon Carmen's SLO Serrano dressing

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

    Toast the bread and toss the arugula in the SLO Serrano dressing. Salt and pepper the tomato slices to taste. Assemble the sandwich with the bacon, tomato and pile the dressed arugula on top. Top the sandwich with the last piece of bread and chow down. 

     If you have a favorite recipe using any of the Carmen's brand products and would like to share it with us, please send it to info@sloconco.com and we will consider putting it on the recipe page. Thank you and cook happy!