Roasted Beet and Burrata Salad with Basil (Triple B Salad)

This Triple B (Basil, Burrata, Beets) salad must be one of my favorite Gour-Maybe salads of all time. The combination of earthy beets, with the fresh creamy Burrata and sweet basil is truly hard to beat. Seriously. That's right, I went right to the "beet" pun and didn't even think twice. The only thing time consuming with this recipe is roasting the beets. I make enough for two salads, because once I have the first one, I am already craving another. And it looks beautiful too! If you've never cooked with Burrata, it's like mozzarella and cream had a baby. A delicious, rich, creamy baby that you can buy at the store. "Burrata" means buttered in Italian - fun fact. You buy it packaged, and I use half for each salad. I used red beets, but you could use golden or a combination. The vibrant colors make this as tasty to your eyes as it is to your mouth. Don't beat around the bush. (I did it again). Go make this salad - recipe after the jump!

Hanger Steak. Corn and Avocado Salad. Chimichurri. You're Welcome

If hanger steak was a guy, it would be the dorky guy in high school that gets ignored, but then turns out to be Bill Gates: majorly underestimated. If it was a girl, it would be a good, cheap date. In addition to being cheap (I bought mine for $6.99/lb) the flavor is amazing with just salt and pepper and a nice grill. Lots more scoop on Hanger Steak can be found on Chowhound's blog here if you want to learn all about it. We grilled a 1 lb piece of meat for about 4 minutes a side - it was rare (which I like) but would recommend 5 minutes a side for most medium rare folks. On the side I did a chilled corn, avocado, cilantro, basil and onion salad and a "chimichurri" sauce. This is another really easy summer supper, and because of the low cost of ingredients would be great for a crowd as well. PS - chimichurri purists beware,  my definition of chimichurri is: "throw multiple herbs, vinegar, garlic, oil and salt in a blender" and then taste it until you like it. But dang, it tastes really good and I don't know what else to call it.

Read the full recipe after the jump.

Fennel Chicken Salad

If you want something healthy, fresh and super simple, this is an easy summer salad using fennel for a twist and texture and fresh herbs for flavor. Gour-maybe? caveat: this is not really a "man" salad - most men aren't just dying for some chicken salad and herbed greens. But your girlfriends will love it, so enjoy it with them. It's great on mixed greens (pictured - I buy the mixed greens with herbs blend) or in a sandwich - a toasted cranberry bread would be amazing). Fennel is a one of my favorite vegetables because it tastes amazing raw or cooked. Raw it's crunchy, sweet with a hint of licorice. Cooked it's mellow, and complex. It may look a little "alien like" with it's green frizzy stalks (fronds) and white bulb; but it adds an unexpected gourmet flavor and makes plain old chicken salad a little more exciting, so there. Don't be afraid to try it, you'll be glad you did.

Fennel Chicken Salad (serves 2)
You will need:

• 1 1/2 lbs broiled chicken, chilled and cubed (about 1/2 dice)
• 1 small fennel bulb, cored and diced into 1/4 inch dice (about 1/2 C)
• 1 small yellow onion, diced into about 1/4 inch dice (about 1/2 C)
• 1 shallot, minced (about 2T)
• 4 T mayonnaise (or your favorite mayo sub - although you're on your own at that point!)
• 2 T minced chives
• 1 T minced dill
• 2 T minced tarragon leaves
• 1 T lemon juice
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper

Get ready for easy! Once you have chopped and prepped all the components combine them in a medium bowl. Stir. Marvel at the fact that you've just made a delicious meal in about 5 minutes. Let sit for about 2-4 hours for flavors to meld, but you can eat it immediately if you are very hungry. Who am I to judge?!

Lone Star Lobster Rolls

At the request of the lovely Gour-Maybe readers, I have slaved over a hot stove all day (aka ran errands, sat by pool, cooked for an hour), so I could give you the one, the only, the Lobster Roll. Tarragon Dijon Mustard and basil - not usually found in lobster rolls - plus super toasted/garlic butter buns and fresh herbs along with classic ingredients and freshly-cooked Lobster make this a Gour-Maybe classic. Thanks to Mr. Thomas Keller for the inspiration, but I like mine:) I really do! Shockingly simple as well once you get the hang of it. Thanks to my friends for being taste testers and having a real (ridiculously cool) house with amazing light for these pics. Get the scoop on the roll after the jump.

Gour-Maybe Guest Kitchen #2 - Ranch Edition - Coming This Week!

Hi Gour-Maybe world, I am just back from a fun and food-filled weekend in the country with lots to share. From fresh herbs and a fantastic sous-chef (well, actually, just chef - I was more the sous chef and photographer haha) to a meal that included skirt steak, a corn salad, to an all-goat cheese plate, we have lots to cover. So I will start with a few pics to get your mouths watering!