My mom served this at Christmas time.  It was so good, I made it again the next week.

It’s also super simple.  Chop veggies.  Stir in Marzetti’s ranch dip.  The end.

This salad holds up in the fridge really well for several days.  Even the tomatoes stay perky instead of doing that limp, soggy thing that cut tomatoes can do.

Here’s the recipe, but feel free to vary it for what you like and have available. 

This is not your typical tuna salad.  There’s no mayo.

Instead, the tuna is served over avocado slices and topped with tomatoes, cilantro and a simple vinaigrette dressing.  The flavors are out of this world.  For complete happiness, serve it with good, crusty bread.

Oh yeah, you don’t need to turn the oven on for this dinner either.

Here’s what you’ll need: 

This is more method than recipe. Trust your taste as you fix it.

• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
• small handful fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup diced red onion (not in photo)
• drizzle olive oil
• several splashes white wine vinegar
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 can white albacore tuna, drained

Stir together the tomatoes, cilantro, onion, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Place half the avocado slices on each of 2 plates, arranging in a circle.  Put half of the tuna in the middle of the avocado.  Top with half the tomato salad.

Makes 2 servings.

*tip* If you’re only making one serving, leave the skin and pit in tact on the extra half of avocado, pop in a baggie and store in the fridge.  This will keep it from turning brown too quickly.  It should last at least until the next day and possibly another day.

It’s cucumber season!

I can’t actually tell that from looking at our garden. We don’t have any cukes yet, but I have noticed that people have been searching “Cucumbers and Onions” a lot lately.

In case you are blessed with many cukes, here’s another delicious way to eat them. 

This is really more method than recipe.  Use the quantity you need for your family and adjust everything according to taste.

• 1 large cucumber or several small
• 4-6 tomatoes
• red onion, sliced thin
• drizzle olive oil
• generous sprinkle red wine vinegar
• Kosher salt
• fresh ground black pepper

Chop the cucumber and tomatoes into bite-size pieces.  Mix together in a bowl with red onion slices.  Drizzle a stream of olive oil over all.  Sprinkle on red wine vinegar.  Add a teaspoon or so of Kosher salt and some black pepper.  Stir, taste and adjust seasonings.

Do you have cucumbers in your garden? Have you been gifted with any this season?

It’s hot outside.  Super hot and humid.

If you’re looking for a cool dinner idea, this is your recipe.

I wish I could say that I had garden fresh tomatoes for this dish, but my plants have yet to decide to really produce tomatoes.  All I have are a few small green maters that taunt and torment me because they haven’t changed in size or color for weeks.

I’m a gardening failure.  But that’s a whole ‘nuther post.  For this dish I used a couple of store bought tomatoes and grape tomatoes (tragic because this is August) and 3 delicious cherry tomatoes from my garden.

Here’s what you’ll need for the salad:

• 2 bags frozen cheese tortellini
• large bunch fresh broccoli, cut into florets
• about 3 medium tomatoes or the equivalent in cherry or grape tomatoes
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
• handful of fresh basil, chopped

Boil a big pan of water.  Add the broccoli to the pot of boiling water.  A minute or two later add the tortellini.  The pasta only takes a couple of minutes to cook, so you can do the broccoli at the same time.  Once the tortellini is done, drain the water and rinse the pasta and broccoli in cold water to stop the cooking process.  Drain and place into a large bowl, along with the tomatoes.

To make the dressing, combine the rest of the ingredients in a container with a tight fitting lid.  Shake it all up till it’s well combined.  Pour over the salad and toss to coat.

You can serve this right away or refrigerate it for several hours or even the next day.  I served this with grilled chicken, because my oldest son revolted at the idea of “no meat!”.  In quotes because those were his exact words and expression.  I don’t see him ever becoming a vegetarian.

What’s your favorite meal when it’s super hot outside?

There must be a million and one variations of potato salad.  This is my mom’s version, which is a lot like my Grandma’s version.  The main difference is that mom adds sweet pickles to hers.  Grandma’s was full of paprika and is one of my favorite foods that she made.

Here’s what you’ll need.  Usually, I use real mayonnaise in recipes, but mom uses salad dressing in her potato salad so that’s what I used too.

• 6 potatoes, peeled and chopped (about 4 cups)
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/3 cup chopped sweet pickles
• 4 eggs, hard-boiled and chopped
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1 cup salad dressing, like Miracle Whip
• 1 Tbs. sweet pickle juice
• 1 tsp. yellow mustard
• 1 tsp. paprika
• salt and pepper to taste

Boil the potatoes in a 3 quart saucepan until they are tender, about 20-25 minutes.  Drain and run under cool water to stop the cooking process.  Put the potatoes in a large bowl and stir in all the other ingredients.  Taste for salt and add more if needed.

Refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving.

I thought I was making a salad, but my family decided it was a salsa.  It did taste good scooped up on chips.

There must be a kachillion ways to make this dish.  I put mine together based on what I had available in the pantry.

• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies
• a palm full of chopped cilantro
• salt, to taste
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Mix all the ingredients together, except the cheese.  Add the cheese right before serving.  Eat with a fork, like a salad or scoop it up on chips like salsa.  Your choice!

This salad was perfect with the Hawaiian Grilled Chicken.  It’s full of pineapple, green onions, macadamia nuts, bacon…Yum!  I found the recipe on Bethany’s blog, For the Love of Grub.  I made the salad on Saturday, so we could eat it Sunday after church.  I mixed the dressing up, but did not add it until right before serving.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 head romaine lettuce, torn
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 6 slices of bacon, crumbled (I used 8 pre-cooked slices)
• 1 can pineapple tidbits, drained and reserved for dressing
• 1/2 cup macadamia pieces
• 1/4 cup toasted coconut
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice
• 3 Tbs. red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, onions, bacon, macadamias, coconut and pineapple.  In a container with a tight fitting lid, combine the other ingredients.  Shake to mix.  Pour over the salad right before serving.

I learned that you can toast coconut in the microwave.  The directions were on the bag. So easy!

I think I’ve mentioned before that I’m not that good with side dishes.  For week night suppers, I put the emphasis on the main dish and do very simple things for side dishes.  This is one of those easy go-to sides.  When I’ve forgotten that we might want something to go along with a casserole or chicken, this salad comes in handy.

It’s so easy, I’m almost embarrassed to post it.  But I figure you might want an easy side dish too, so here goes.

What you’ll need:

• 1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
• 1 can mandarin oranges

Mix these together in a bowl and chill.  Occassionally, I forget about this until minutes before we’re going to eat.  I pop the cans into the freezer for a few minutes and then stir it all together.  And then there are the nights when I don’t even have time to chill the fruit.  It tastes fine at room temp too.

Yeah, sometimes I’m not very organized

Sneak Peak: Next week I’m going to be talking Holiday food.  There will be a big list of recipes to make for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I’ll also be talking about budgeting for the extra groceries that the holidays demand.

Eating salad is a great way to get in all those veggie servings that are recommended, but it’s easy to get in a rut after a while.  Here are 7 ways to add flavor and variety to your greens.

Onions

Red onion is good in nearly any salad.  It adds such a kick and contrast to the other flavors.  Chopped green onions are good too, but red onion remains my favorite.

Fresh Fruit

Add oranges (fresh or mandarin from a can), diced apples or pears.  Strawberries are also good in salads if they’re in season.

Dried Fruit

Dried cranberries, blueberries or even raisins add interesting flavor and texture to the greens.

Granola

Why should croutons have all the fun? Pull out the box of granola and give your salad a generous scattering.

Cheese

Shredded swiss, crumbled feta, gorgonzola.  Adding cheese is a quick and easy way to dress up the salad.

Nuts and Seeds

Sunflower seeds, pistachios, almonds or pecans add crunch.  As a bonus, they’re a healthy alternative to croutons.

Vinegar & Oil, Salt & Pepper

Skip the bottled salad dressing.  Give your salad a shake of red or white wine vinegar and a splash of oil.  A bit of Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper finish it healthy and delicious.

How often do you eat salad? How do you dress it up and keep it interesting?

I was contacted recently by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.  They have asked several bloggers to be part of “It’s What’s for Dinner Wednesday” challenge.  Each week in September NCBA will share a recipe on their facebook page and the bloggers will create the recipe at home  (or our version of it) and share it on our blogs.  You can also participate and enter to win a cool prize pack from the NCBA by visiting the facebook page.

The recipe this week is Cajun Southwestern Salad.  The original recipe can be found here.  I will say that I altered the recipe quite a bit.  I had a couple reasons for doing this.  First, I have a bunch of grape tomatoes that my sister-in-law gave me and I needed to use them.  Second, the original recipe called for figs and blood oranges.  I wasn’t at all sure I would be able to find those ingredients.  Besides, the closest I’ve ever gotten to a fig is in a Newton.  So, I’ve altered the recipe for the average, non-adventurous family.

Here’s what you’ll need for my version:

• Top loin beef steaks
• Creole or Cajun seasoning
• Baby spinach
• Grape tomatoes
• Almonds
• Red onion, sliced thin
• Gorgonzola cheese
• Garbanzo beans
• Ranch dressing

Sprinkle the steaks with the Creole or Cajun seasoning.  Grill them to the desired doneness.  Slice the meat thin.  I went ahead and cut the meat into bite-sized pieces.  That made it easier for the kids to eat and easier to eat in the salad.  You can toss the salad all together before serving or set it up like a salad bar and let people fix it how they want it, which is what I did.

I didn’t have any Ranch dressing on hand, but I remembered seeing a recipe on Pioneer Woman for Homemade Ranch Dressing.  It was quick and easy to make.  I used low-fat mayo and light sour cream.  I had some parsley growing in the garden, but had to use dried dill, which worked fine.  The result was really yummy.  A nice complement to the Gorgonzola cheese and Creole seasoning.