Fancy Nancy Salad Cups

Sophie attended a "Fancy Nancy" party with her girls scout troop (and yes, it was the cutest thing ever!!). So we had to make something fancy for her to bring. I went to Gourmet Mom-on-the-go knowing she'd having something cute, and I was not dissapointed. You just take pizza dough (I had some premade on hand) cut it into rectagles, and stuff them into the bottom of a muffin pan. The cooked at 400 degrees for about 12 minutes. The shape doesn't have to be exact, but I do wish I had thinned out the dough more. After we pulled out the cooked cups, we had to stab them with the end of the rolling pin to decrease the puffiness. (Does that even make sense??)

We stuffed our cups with salad materials we had on hand: romaine lettuce, apples, walnuts, and Italian dressing. I'm not sure that the girl scouts loved the salad (they had a lot of cupcakes to fill up on) but my kiddos loved eating their salad out of cups, and the cups themselves were tasty. Go to Gourmet Mom if you are interested; her sald cups are way cuter and she has a yummy salad recipe posted with it.

fruit salad

This was submitted by Kammy T as found on the blog Friends and Food.

2 cans of peaches

1 large can drained mandarin oranges

1 banana

1/4 small package of vanilla pudding

Prepare the fruit salad by draining off two cans of peaches (and chop into bite sizes if needed) and save about 1/2 cup of the juice. Add peaches to a bowl along with one large can drained mandarin oranges. Use 1/4 package of a small package of vanilla pudding and whisk in the peach juice. Stir into the fruit and let sit in the fridge until serving time, then add one banana sliced and toss in.

Tangy Coleslaw

2-10 oz pkgs of shredded coleslaw mix (I usually just use one 16 oz pkg because that's what they have at the commissary and it works just fine)

dressing:

1/2 C sugar (I only use 1/4, because I think 1/2 is too sweet)

1/2 C mayo (I use fat free miracle whip)

1/4 C milk + 1/4 C buttermilk (Instead of milk and buttermilk, I do 1/2 C skim milk with extra lemon juice added to make a buttermilk substitute since I almost never actually buy buttermilk)

2 1/2 T lemon juice

1 1/2 T vinegar

1/2 t salt

1/4 t pepper

Whisk together dressing. Pour over cabbage in a large bowl and toss to coat. Chill in the fridge (says 2 hrs, but I think I usually just do an hour.)

Thai Cucumber Salad

Facebook stalking gave me another recipe. This was posted by Mrs. Ashley Holloway who got it from Allrecipes.com (again, having trouble adding the link. . .anyone know why??). I haven't tried this recipe but it looks intriguing. I will be grabbing the ingredients tomorrow and will let you know how it goes!!

Ingredients

3 large cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup chopped peanut

Directions

1. Toss the cucumbers with the salt in a colander, and leave in the sink to drain for 30 minutes. Rinse with cold water, then drain and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Whisk together the sugar and vinegar in a mixing bowl until the sugar has dissolved. Add the cucumbers, jalapeno peppers, and cilantro; toss to combine. Sprinkle chopped peanuts on top before serving.

Tasty Toss Up

wanna see what i'm eating right now??

it's so yummy. It's my favorite pasta salad. I got it from my cousin Michelle's book club recipe book! The dressing it what makes it so delicious-so tangy. She adds tuna to hers which I love with it. You can hardly taste the tuna when you flake it and mix it in well (my kids are enjoying it right now totally blissful of the tuna factor). But if you are strongly opposed to it, leave it out, add flaked chicken or ham instead, or just skip meat all together!!

1/2 lb. pkg pasta curls

1-12 oz tuna drained and flaked

2 C thinly sliced cucumbers

1 large tomato seeded and chopped

1/2 C sliced celery

1/4 C chopped green bell peppers

1/4 C sliced green onion

1 C bottled italian dressing

1/4 C mayonnaise (i like miracle whip)

1 T prepared mustard

1 t dill weed

1 t salt

1/8 t. pepper

Make the noodles. Add the vegetables. Mix the dressing and add. I like to add parmesan to this btw. Cover and chill!!

(ps, I add whatever vegetables or pasta i have around)

(pps. what fabulous, summer recipes do you have??)

Pasta Salad

1 lb. pasta

1-2 cans tuna

onions, chopped

pickles, chopped

olives, chopped

miracle whip

celery seed/salt

black pepper

garlic to taste

-Cook a box of pasta per box directions (I usually use salad or macaroni noodles) and rinse them under cool water when they're done cooking. (Better they're slightly more firm than cooked.)
-Dump a can or two of tuna into a bowl, chop up a can of olives and add them, chopped onion to your liking (if you use dehydrated onion, add to tuna water), and as many chopped up pickles as you can handle.

-Add a couple of scoops of miracle whip, a couple of dashes of celery seed (or salt), a pinch of black pepper (you can also add garlic, or any other such spice to spice it up)- mix it all together and add the noodles. Stir and chill.

My kids would eat this everyday if I let them. We scoop it with wheat thins for lunch.

Bow Tie Spinach Salad

I was cleaning out my recipe box and found this. This is one of the first things I officially learned to make. My dear friend Aleis gave it to me after I had John and decided since I was home more, I needed to be the one who made dinner. She was sweet and helped domesticate me!! The original recipe makes a lot a lot of food. To feed my family, I half it and it's still way too much.

Directions:

Cook 6 oz Bow tie pasta. Marinate in dressing for 2 hrs.

Dressing:

1 C vegetable oil

1/2 tsp salt

6 tbs sugar

2/3 C white wine vinegar

2/3 C teriyaki sauce

1/2 tsp pepper

Mix all the following ingredients and refrigerate:

6-8 chicken breasts cooked and cut up

3 small cans mandarian oranges (drained)

1 or 2 cans water chestnuts (drained)

1/2 c finely chopped fresh parsley

1 bunch of green onions chopped

1/2 to 3/4 C honey roasted peanuts

When ready to serve, combine chicken ingredients and pasta with one bag already washed and cut spinach.

Cafe Rio copy cat Recipes

I've been seeing a lot of these cafe rio copy cat recipes lately (i had one version of their dressing this past weekend. I posted both versions because they're slightly different). If you have a version you like, please share!!

I got this one off of www.freezerdinner.com/. I would have just posted the link, but I noticed one recipe site I like is now private and I am really grateful I had posted some of those recipes here so I can still make them. I definitely don't want to lose this recipe-it's so good!! But check out the site-lots of yummy things to try there.

Chicken

5 lbs chicken breast- boneless skinless

1 small bottle zesty italitan dressing

1 Tbsp chili powder

1 Tpsp cumin

3 cloves garlic, minced

Mix all ingredients together in a large crock pot.

Cook on high for 5-7 hours. Remove chicken and shred with fork. Reserve a small amount of juice and pour over shreeded chicken to keep moist. Keep warm.

Pork

1 bottle of honey BBQ sauce

1 Tbsp honey

1 liter of Dr. Pepper or Coke

Place all ingredients in large crockpot and cook on low all night. In the morning take the raost out leaving the juice in the crockpot, shred the roast. Then place the shredded roast back in the crock pot and leave it on low.

Lime Rice

In a sauce pan saute:

2 Tbsp butter

1 yellow onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

In a large pot, bring the following to boil

6 2/3 C water

3 Tablespoons chicken bullion

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

2 teaspoons cumin

2 small cans diced green chilies

2 Tablespoons lime juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 Tbsp lime zest (optional)

Add onion and garlic to boiling water. Add 3 cups long grain rice. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

[I made in the rice cooker. Added a little less then the amount of water required for the rice cooker + the boullion and the lime juice + spices. Added the green chilis, garlic, and cilantro when the rice was almost done. Would have added onion at the same time but was too lazy too sautee so skipped it-maybe next time!!]

Fresh Salsa

4 fresh tomatoes, chopped

1 white onion, chopped

1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp lime juice

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Combine ingredients together in a medium bowl.

Cilantro Lime Dressing

1 pkg of Hidden Valley Buttermilk Ranch Dressing dry mix

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup mayonnaise

1-2 tomatillos, peel

1 clove garlic minced

1/3 bunch cillantro, chopped

1/2 tsp lime juice

1/2 small jalapeno, seeds removed

Blend ingredients together in a blender. Add additional mayonnaise if dressing is too thin. Keep refrigerated.

Serve in the following order:

Tortillas, Shredded cheese, Chicken or Pork, Black or Pinto Beans, Lime Rice, Red and Green Leaf Lettuce, shredded, Salsa, Guacamole, Fresh Cilantro, Parmesan cheese, Fresh lime slice, Cilantro Lime Dressing, Enjoy!

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

One of my VERY favorite side dishes or healthy lunch.

Ingredients:
1 1/2c quinoa
1 1/2c cooked black beans, rinsed if canned
1 1/2 T red-wine vinegar
1 1/2c cooked corn (1 can)
3/4c finely chopped red, green, or yellow bell pepper

Dressing:
5 T fresh lime juice
1 t salt
1 1/4 t ground cumin
1/3c olive oil

Cook quinoa as package describes (cooks like rice) OR you can boil some water, put the quinoa in it and let it boil for 10 mintues. Then I drain it in a sieve and let it sit in the sieve while I place it over a pot of boiling water with a towel over it for another 10 minutes. This makes the quinoa fluffy!

In a small bowl mix black beans with vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer quinoa to another large bowl and mix with corn, beans and peppers.

Mix/whip all ingredients for the dressing together and drizzle over salad. Serve chilled.

I personally like this dish the following day best!

no mayo cole slaw salad

I have this recipe at a lot of mormon functions, so I'm assuming you have it. But in case you don't, this is definitely a favorite of mine.

Ingredients:

1 lb pkg. shredded cabbage

1 C silvered almonds

1 C sunflower seeds

4 green onions (including tops) chopped

1 3 oz pkg chicken flavor ramen noodle soup mix

dressing:

1/2 C safflower oil (i've always used canola)

3 tbs white vinegar

1/4 C sugar

flavor packet from soup mix

salt

Directions:

In large bowl, toss cabbage, almonds, sunflower seeds, and onions together. Thirty minutes before serving, break up noodles, add to salad mix. In small bowl, combine dressing ingredients. Toss with salad. Refrigerate. Mix well again just before serving.

Harvest Salad

This recipe is like the balsamic bleu salad at Atlanta Bread Company. Yum!!

Ingredients:

• Your favorite lettuce
• Dried Cranberries
• Crumbled bleu cheese
• Walnuts
• Diced fuji apple
• Balsamic vinagrette dressing

Directions:

Mix your desired amount of each ingredient and enjoy.

black bean salad

(for rebecca)

My sister in law made this for me and once I tried it it's all I wanted to eat for like three weeks. Seriously yummy.

Ingredients:

dressing

• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tbl apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 c olive oil
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1 tbs honey
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

filling

• 1 can black beans drained
• 1 c corn (drained if canned)
• 1 red pepper diced
• 1 small red onion diced
• 2 tbl cilantro chopped

Directions:

Put ingredients for dressing in blender or food processor to combine. Mix with filling. Serve in warm tortillas.