Easy Fruit Salad

I've made this fruit salad a few times now and totally love it.  It's yummy, easy, and a crowd pleaser!  I found it here at Food.com.  I've never followed the entire recipe, and I've halved it a time or two.  It's been good every time I make it, which proves that it's a good recipe!

Fruit Salad
found at Food.com

1 (29 oz) can peach slices, undrained (I've also used the smaller can)
1 (20 oz) can pineapple chunks, undrained (I've also used the smaller can)
1 small box dry vanilla instant pudding mix (I've also used sugar free, which isn't quite as good)
1 lb strawberries, stemmed and quartered
1 banana, sliced (I usually omit)
1/2 pint blueberries
1 bunch of grapes
 1-2 tablespoons sugar (I have never used)   

In a large bowl, combine peaches, pineapple and pudding mix.  Mix well until pudding is dissolved. 
(If making it the night before, refrigerate) Stir in strawberries, banana, blueberries, grapes, and sugar.
Chill for an hour or two. 

Greek Vinaigrette

Earlier this summer I declared it the 'summer of the salad'.  I love to order salads in restaurants but am always disappointed with what I make at home.  Well, no more!  This salad dressing is fantastic and was wonderful on a grilled chicken greek salad! 

Greek Vinaigrette
from myrecipes.com

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
1 tsp fresh oregano
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Combine first five ingredients.  Whisk in olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  Leftovers can be stored in refrigerator for up to one week.

Strawberry Quinoa Salad

I've taken a break from cooking since having Owen.  But now that he's over a month old, I have very few excuses for my lack of cooking.  Seriously, canned soup and frozen pizza has gotten old!
I'm going to try and cook at least one new recipe a week, and I'll share them all (the good and the bad) with you!

This week I pulled out my stack of recipes I've been meaning to try, and made Strawberry-Quinoa Salad.  I found this dish in an old Weight Watchers Weekly from a couple of years ago.  It was super easy to make and Nate and I found it delicious.  Caroline was not a fan of either the dressing or quinoa...and wanted me to promise to never make quinoa again.  (she must not realize that I add some to the steel cut oatmeal that I make)

Strawberry Quinoa Salad

1 cup quinoa, rinsed
3 cups strawberries, hulled and quartered
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
1/2 cup low-fat sesame-ginger salad dressing
fresh spinach

Cook quinoa according to package directions.  Transfer to large bowl and let cool completely (20-30 minutes).  Stir in strawberries, cucumber, and 1/4 cup salad dressing.  Combine salad blend and remaining 1/4 cup dressing.  Toss to coat.  Top salad greens with strawberry mixture.

Broccoli Coleslaw Salad

One of our favorite summer salads is the easy one that I found in a family cookbook. Nate likes it because there isn't any mayo in it, and Caroline and I like the crunchiness. It's simple to throw together and tends to be a crowd favorite.

Broccoli Coleslaw Salad

by Kris Trapp Cutler - found in the Gibbs-Cutler Cookbook

1 pkg broccoli coleslaw

2 pkgs Ramen noodles (chicken or oriental)

1/2 cup sugar (I use about 1/2 of this)

1/4 cup vinegar

3/4 cup oil (I use about a 1/2 cup)

Flavor packets from noodles

4 oz sunflower seeds

Crunch up the ramen noodles and mix with the coleslaw in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine the sugar, vinegar, oil, and flavor packets. Pour over coleslaw mixture. Add sunflower seeds before serving.

Couscous Salad

I really like to make couscous. Maybe it's because it's one of the easiest things to make - less than seven minutes - or because it's kind of fun to eat. Anyway, I saw this recipe on the back of the couscous box and thought it sounded tasty. I was right! I like the fact that it's served cold and that it features a lot of vegetables. It's a great salad for a casual meal.

Zesty Greek Couscous Salad

from Near East couscous box

1 package couscous

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 tablespoons lemon juice (I used closer to 3-4)

3 tsp olive oil

2 large tomatoes, chopped (I used three)

1 medium zucchini, halved and thinly sliced

1/2 cup fresh basil, cut into strips (I forgot to buy this so I sprinkled some dried into it. It's much better with the fresh)

1/3 cup green onions, sliced

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Prepare couscous according to package directions, except omit butter or olive oil and add black pepper with water.

In large bowl, combine prepared couscous, lemon juice and olive oil. Add tomatoes, zucchini, basil and green onions. Chill 4 hours or overnight.

Stir in cheese just before serving.

Serves 7 (generous servings)

Garden Cucumbers

Caroline and I recently went to a Farmers Market here in town. Everything looked fantastic - and we decided to purchase some cucumbers. I thought this recipe sounded like the perfect way to showcase our purchase. It was! The cucumbers were well seasoned, but not too tart from the vinegar. They also kept their crisp texture and didn't get soggy. I'm definitely making this again!

Marinated Cucumbers
by Phyllis Smallfoot
featured in the 2007 Sunnycrest UMC Church Cookbook

7 cups sliced cucumbers
1 green pepper, chopped
1 thinly sliced onion (I used 1/2)
1 1/2 cup sugar (I used closer to 1 cup)
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon celery seed (or celery salt)
1 tablespoon mustard seed (I used dill seed)
1 cup vinegar

Mix sugar, salt, celery seed, mustard seed, and vinegar together and pour over the cucumbers, green pepper, and onion. Refrigerate for 24 hours.

Roasted Corn Salad

(Again, sorry for the half-eaten photo)
This is one of my must-have summer salads. It's so easy to put together, tastes great hot or cold, and it's low fat. Plus, the leftovers are even good! I've made this so often that I now 'eyeball' the ingredients instead of measuring, so it's even faster!

Roasted Corn Salad
from 3 Fat Chicks
3 points per serving

3 cups corn kernels (can use fresh or frozen) - I use a small bag of frozen corn
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar - I use regular balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 cup chopped seeded tomato - I use 1 or two tomatoes depending on size
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper - I use one whole green pepper
1/2 cup chopped green onions - I use 3-4 green onions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine corn and 1 tsp vegetable oil on a jelly roll pan (I line mine with aluminum foil.) Bake for 20 minutes or until brown, stirring occasionally.
Combine 2 tsp oil, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add corn mixture. Stir. Stir in green pepper, tomato and green onions.

Spinach Strawberry Salad

I am working on a series of posts of the different items Nate and I helped make for our Easter lunch.

The first dish I want to highlight is the Spinach Strawberry Salad I made. To me, a good salad must have lots of yummy fruits and veggies on it. This definitely fit the bill! I had each person dress their own salad to help control the amount of dressing. I found this recipe on Our Life in the Kitchen. Great blog - and great looking food! This was simple to prepare and had big WOW factor. I just realized that I forgot to put crumbled feta on the salad. I guess it wasn't needed!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great time celebrating Thanksgiving today! We spent part of the day in Claremont at my grandma's house for lunch. It was delicious! I love it when everyone brings a dish for a holiday meal - that way you can try all sorts of new things. Yum!!

I brought two things for the holiday meal - low fat sweet potatoes and a lettuce salad.

The sweet potatoes was a new recipe that I found in a Weight Watchers magazine. They were easy and fantastic! I'm even looking forward to the leftovers.

Sweet Potato Crunch

Serves 8
2 points per serving

4 sweet potatoes

1 1/2 cups vanilla nonfat yogurt

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 tsp salt

2/3 cup low fat granola

Place washed sweet potatoes in oven and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 40-60 minutes or until they are soft to the touch. After the potatoes have cooled, remove the skin.

Place sweet potatoes in a mixing bowl. Add yogurt, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Whip on medium speed until thoroughly combined.

Coat cooking dish with cooking spray. Scoop potato mixture into the prepared dish.

Sprinkle granola evenly across the top of the potatoes and lightly coat with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes.

The other dish I brought was a Cashew-Pear Tossed Salad. I like to make this for group meals, since it's a large salad. Plus the flavors compliment a variety of dished...not to mention it is delicious! I tweaked it a bit for our own tastes, but here's the whole recipe.

Cashew-Pear Tossed Salad

from Carla Sanderson (Claremont United Methodist Church cookbook)

1 bunch romaine lettuce, torn

1 cup salted cashews (I left out)

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese (I left out)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 medium pear, thinly sliced

2/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup lemon juice

2 tsp finely chopped red onion

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup sugar

1-2 tsp poppy seeds

1 tsp mustard

In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, cheese, pear, cashews, and cranberries. In a jar with a tight fitting lid, combine the remaining ingredients; shake well. Drizzle over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Sundried Tomato Pasta Salad

I've made this salad a couple of times this summer, and think it's a great! It takes hardly any time to put together and it has some fantastic summer flavors. Any my favorite part of any recipe - the leftovers are still good! I found the recipe at http://thepioneerwoman.com Check out the website, it's one of my favorites!

Sundried Tomato Pasta Salad
adapted from Ina Garten
Dressing (makes more than enough; spoon leftovers over a block of cream cheese and serve with crackers)1 7-oz jar sundried tomatoes, drained4 cloves garlic3 tablespoons red wine vinegar1 cup extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper
Salad16 ounces corkscrew pasta1 jar Kalamata or assorted olives1 pint rip cherry tomatoes, halved. Several (10 to 15) basil leaves, chopped or julienne1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Prepare dressing by blending sundried tomatoes, garlic, salt, pepper, and vinegar until tomatoes are chopped. Blend while drizzling in olive oil; continue blending until mixed together.Cook pasta according to package directions, drain, and rinse with cold water until no longer hot. Pour 2/3 of the dressing over the pasta, add olives, and toss together. Add remaining ingredients, tossing together and adding more dressing until the salad is coated to your liking. Serve on a big platter with an extra sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.