Recipe: Portobello and blue cheese salad

Dietitian's tip: Blue cheese and balsamic vinegar both have distinct, strong flavors, so only small amounts of each are needed for this mushroom and blue cheese salad. This salad is a very good source of selenium, potassium, folate and vitamin C.

High fiber = at least 5 g of fiber per serving

SERVES 2

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil
2 large portobello mushrooms, stemmed, wiped clean and cut into bite-size pieces
4 slices red onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon of merlot wine
6 asparagus stalks, cut into 1-inch sections
2 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon water
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
6 cups chopped red bibb lettuce
2 roasted red peppers (canned), sliced
1/2 cup croutons

Directions

In a small pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, onions and garlic. Saute until the vegetables are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the wine and cook until it evaporates completely, about 1 minute.

In a pot fitted with a steamer basket, bring 1 inch of water to a boil. Add the asparagus. Cover and steam until tender-crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside.

In a small bowl, add the blue cheese, balsamic vinegar, water and black pepper. Whisk to mix thoroughly. (Just before drizzling the dressing over the salad, whisk again.)

Add 3 cups of lettuce to each plate. Top each with 1/2 of the mushroom mixture, 1/2 of the asparagus, 1 roasted red pepper, 1/2 of the blue cheese dressing mixture and 1/4 cup croutons. Serve immediately.

Nutritional Analysis

(per serving)

Calories	190	Cholesterol	6 mg
Protein	9 g	Sodium	247 mg
Carbohydrate	27 g	Fiber	6 g
Total fat	6 g	Potassium	1,185 mg
Saturated fat	2 g	Calcium	138 mg
Monounsaturated fat	3 g