Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens…
Okay first of all, nobody loves whiskers on kittens, that’s insane.
Are kittens cute? Yes.
Is it because of the coarse wires jutting out of their cheek fat? Um, no.
If I rewrote the song, My Favorite Things, today, it’d be about goat cheese and taking my jeans off.
Which is why I am here to tell you about my favorite summer salad, aka, how to win friends and influence people for under $15 and a tube of goat cheese.
I first tried this salad two years ago at Barr’s Public House in Maumee, and I’ve been whipping it together at home ever since. It’s simple, affordable, is perfect stand-alone or beside any meat, and I bring it (by request) to almost every summer barbecue I attend.
And for real, being the go-to goat cheese salad girl is way easier than being go-to chocolate cake or go-to cheesy potato girl. I don’t even have to measure anything or turn on my oven.
Cucumber, tomatoes, goat cheese, bacon, and balsamic vinegar glaze.
Could you reduce your own balsamic vinegar for this salad, sure, overachiever, have at it.
I’m just gonna use this squirt bottle, tho, and get back to binging iZombie thankyouverymuch.
I am really digging the colorful bite sized cultivar tomatoes, but honestly, grape tomatoes are just fine.
I don’t normally gut the seeds out of my cucumbers, it’s just not who I am as a person. But this big boy was being super aggressive with his seed situation, and the only seedy drama queen in my kitchen, is me.
Does cooking bacon even not suck? I mean, really? My hair is going to smell like this for days.
Cucumber down, then tomato, crumple on that goat cheese, drizzle the hell out of the balsamic glaze, and then guess what?
You cover it with bacon and you just won the god damned, party. What? You didn’t know it was a competition?
Oh honey, it’s always a competition.
Cucumber Tomato Bacon Goat Cheese Salad
This is the salad of the summer: easy, delicious, and affordable!
Ingredients
- 1 Package of Bacon
- 1 Large Cucumber
- 1 Small Package of Grape Tomatoes
- 4oz Plain Goat Cheese
- Balsamic Vinegar Glaze
Instructions
- Clean and halve tomatoes into bite-sized pieces, set aside.
- Clean and slice cucumber into bite-sized pieces (de-seed if necessary), set aside.
- Dice bacon into small pieces, fry and drain, set aside.
- Layer cucumber and tomato on a serving plate, top with crumbled goat cheese.
- Drizzle heavily with balsamic glaze.
- Top with bacon, and serve immediately.
Here’s an amazing, life-changing tip for cooking bacon. Do it in the oven! Take out a cookie sheet, cover it with tin foil, place cold bacon slices on it, then pop-it in a COLD oven. Turn on oven to 400°. By the time the oven gets to temperature (or a little over) the bacon is done! Pull out cookie sheet, place cooked bacon on a paper towel to drain. Viola!
No muss, no fuss! House smells great and you didn’t get grease all over everything. Plus, you get to cook an entire, friggin’ pack of bacon at one time. After the grease cools on the cookie sheet, just crumple up the tin foil and throw away.
You’re welcome!