Let me start by saying I am sure glad that I am not a cab driver. At face value I actually thought I would be a pretty fun cab driver...ya know I love people, love to talk, can follow a GPS and I remember random facts that I can share with anyone who is lucky enough to get in my cab. Plus I look pretty good in yellow! After I saw that show "Cash Cab," I truly thought I had missed my calling...well until this week. I was listening to the radio and they were talking about the most deadly professions and did you know that being a cab driver was #1? Yup, I was shocked as well and my dreams of telling people where to find a good restaurant or the best wine tasting room in the area we're also quickly shattered.



So in order to get over my disappointment I decided to make Pecan-Crusted Mozzarella Salad. This is a Pampered Chef recipe and seriously how could something with fried cheese in it be bad. I did find that its not so great leftover...I didn't take into account the fact that cheese is gooey, melty and yummy when hot but when it cools after being fried its kind like a goo ball in your mouth...hmmm less good.

This is a very simple recipe and when I actually read about the salad dressing...Dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar...I started making a plan in the back of my head as to how I could spice it up because I was convinced it was going to be blah. However, as you know I always admit when I am wrong and I was wrong. The balsamic and Dijon truly was fabulous on this salad.



The hardest part of this recipe was definitely frying the cheese. Although my cheese circles aren't as pretty as they were supposed to be they still tasted damn good. So you take fresh mozzarella and you slice it. Then you coat it in flour, dip it in egg and roll it in a mixture of chopped pecans, panko bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. I actually bought walnuts accidentally instead of pecans and so I just toasted them and used them instead and those worked great as well. The cheese is fried in 2tsp of olive oil and it was going pretty well until I had to flip my cheese rounds over and that's when I realized they had started to make friends and they were kind of attached to each other. I used my spatula to quickly end this cheese relationship so I could flip them and although they weren't the prettiest little cheese circles I have ever seen they did have a nice brown crust on them and a gooey center...so they were pretty yum.



The cheese is served on a bed of mixed greens and halved cherry tomatoes. Very simple but perfect paired with the cheese and the balsamic. Due to the balsamic I paired the salad with a glass of red table wine and it was perfect.

1. Finely chop pecans using Food Chopper. Grate Parmesan cheese with Microplane® Adjustable Grater. Slice mozzarella cheese into eight rounds about 1/2 in. (1 cm) thick using Santoku Knife. Place flour in first Coating Tray. Lightly beat egg in second tray. Combine pecans, Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs in third tray. Lightly dredge each mozzarella round in flour, shaking off excess; dip into egg and then into pecan mixture, coating evenly.
2. Add oil to Executive (10-in./24-cm) Skillet (do not use stainless cookware); heat over medium heat 1-3 minutes or until shimmering. Cook mozzarella rounds 1-2 minutes on each side or until coating is golden brown and cheese begins to soften around edges.
3. Add vinaigrette and mustard to Small Batter Bowl; whisk until well blended. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise. Divide mixed greens and tomatoes among serving plates; drizzle with vinaigrette and top with mozzarella rounds.