Tag: salad

Mexi Pasta Salad

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I am always on the hunt for a good summer cookout side.  There are only so many times a person can make a great Potato Salad before you feel like you have potato salad coming out your ears!  I have always enjoyed a good pasta salad though.  So, I made it my mission this summer to perfect a great pasta salad and by golly, I think I got it… In fact, I know I got it.

This pasta salad is something different, out of the box and packed with fresh ingredients and delicious flavors all marrying to become one heck of a side dish.  I served it at a cookout just yesterday along-side some BBQ chicken and grilled Montreal Steak.  But, I can totally see it with some Southwest Turkey Burgers or even just topped with some fresh avocado and Grilled Shrimp or chicken.

The trick is not to gobble it all up before you get it to the party!  I call it “Mexi Pasta Salad” because although I am pretty sure there isn’t an Abuela in Mexico throwing this together, it gives a good solid nod to the flavors of Mexico. With all your basic taco toppings thrown in and some cumin to spice things up, this salad is not your run of the mill deli get.

Add salt to a good size pot… a pot larger than you think you need for the pasta if possible.

Campanelle Pasta is what I am using today, you can really use any type of pasta for this.

Be sure to stir the pasta a few times throughout the cooking process to ensure nothing sticks together.

Here are some of the fresh ingredients you will need.

Some halved grape tomatoes.

Dice up that jalapeno into a nice small dice after removing seeds and ribs. (Unless you like a kick, then you can leave in as much of the innards as you like haha)

Dice up the bell pepper (any color is fine, I like red for it’s sweetness and color)

Once you dice up half your red (it’s really purple, I never understood why we call them red onions) pepper be sure to soak them in water for a bit to take out that onion tang that makes you cry, it’s a bit too strong for a pasta salad.

Roughly chop up half a bunch of cilantro.

Roughly chop a can of black olives. You can use freshly brined black olives if you like, but there is just something about the canned variety I like here.

Now for the little to no prep ingredients… Start with about 3/4 of a bag of frozen corn… If you happen to have fresh, please use that, I didn’t have any handy.

Rinse out a can of black beans.

Drain your pasta… I cook mine just past aldente.  Also, I did not feel like having to wash another bowl, so my extra-large pot (Magic Pot from Pampered Chef) was perfect for mixing everything in together!

In a small mixing bowl, add in 1 cup of may.

To that, add about 1/2 cup of sour cream. This may seem like a lot of moisture, but we are adding a lot to this pasta.

Now the zest of one lime.

You could add in the juice of the lime, but I find the zest strikes just the perfect balance and the juice is really not needed… Save the juice for your Blueberry Mojito!

Next add in about 1/2 tsp of ground cumin.

Now a good pinch of kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper.

Mix your dressing.

Add corn.

Add beans.

Add dressing.

Drain onions and add in.

Add your chopping block stuff.

Mix together.

And for some extra crunch, add in half a diced english cucumber. If you prefer to use a cuke from your garden, just be sure to seed it first to reduce water content.

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Mexi Pasta Salad

Serves 10-15 as a side

Ingredients:

1 lb. pasta, cooked in salted water

1 jalapeno, seeded and diced small

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

1/2 red onion, diced and soaked in water, then drained

1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved

1/2 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped

1/2 English cucumber, diced

1 can black olives, drained and roughly chopped

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

3/4 bag frozen corn or 2 ears fresh corn grilled

For the dressing:

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

zest of 1 lime

1/2 tsp. cumin

kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Directions:

Prepare all ingredients as stated in ingredient list.  Drain pasta.  In a small bowl mix together mayo, sour cream, cumin, zest, salt and pepper.

Add dressing to pasta. Add beans, corn, both peppers, drained onion, tomatoes, cilantro, cucumbers and black olives.  Mix well.  Taste for salt. Pour into serving bowl and chill at least 2 hours.

 

Caprese Salad

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I didn’t know about Caprese Salad until I was an adult. Not something very common in the Portuguese household I grew up in.  We had tomatoes, sure, but basil, nah… parsley, yes, couves (kale) yes, but no basil.  And sure we had cheese, but not motzerella cheese, heck my parents even made their own white cheese in a little ring (which is totally delicious and totally off topic).  But, I digress, the point it, this is not something I was ever exposed to… however, later on… sometime in my mid-20’s I think, I experienced this salad… Yes, I said experienced, because in my opinion, it is surely not like any other salad I had ever had… And I have been making this late summer salad ever since!

It’s a simple salad, just three main ingredients.  The key to this salad is balance. The medley of flavors is something that can not be created with anything else in the world.  Freshly grown tomatoes straight from the garden, hand picked basil leaves and good quality motzerella cheese topped with a simple drizzle of olive oil, aged balsamic vinegar and a dash of salt and pepper… could there possibly be anything better?

I have these lovely sweet cherry tomatoes. In season and perfect for any salad, but when tomatoes are the star ingredient, they are especially yummy.

I have these lovely sweet cherry tomatoes. In season and perfect for any salad, but when tomatoes are the star ingredient, they are especially yummy.

Slice them up and place them right in your serving bowl.

Slice them up and place them right in your serving bowl.

Have you seen these cute little snack packs. Each pack contains three mini cheese balls.

Have you seen these cute little snack packs. Each pack contains three mini cheese balls.

This size ball matches up perfectly to the size of the tomato.

Slice each ball in half and add to the tomatoes.

Grab some fresh basil. You want to pinch it off right where you see the next leaves sprouting. That will ensure new growth.

I like to match up the number of tomatoes to cheese and leaves… but, just a torn leaf.

Tare each leaf to equal the number of tomatoes. This will ensure each bite has all three ingredients.

Tare each leaf to equal the number of tomatoes. This will ensure each bite has all three ingredients.

Mix together in preparation for dressing.

Start the dressing by sprinkling kosher salt.

Crack some fresh cracked black pepper.

Now drizzle with extra version olive oil.

A nice aged imported balsamic vinegar is key here, so you want to buy the nicest one you can afford… You should be able to get a decent one for under $20 and it will last a while…

Drizzle the balsamic.

Toss and serve.

Toss and serve.

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I’m not sure if you noticed, but please take note, I made sure that each ingredient was exactly equal.  That is to say there are an equal number of tomato pieces to cheese pieces to basil pieces ensuring that each and every bite will incorporate all three ingredients at the same time allowing them to join together in a wonderful burst of flavor in your mouth!

Recipe for Caprese Salad:

(serves 1-4)

12 cherry tomatoes, halved

12 mini motzerella cheese balls, halved

4 fresh basil leaves, torn into thirds

1 pinch kosher salt

4 cracks black pepper

2 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Toss tomatoes, cheese and basil together in a bowl.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar.  Serve.

Enjoy!

*Note: this is a gluten-free recipe.

Strawberry Lime Corn Salad

done5Do you ever get sick of the same ole dinner night after night? I know, it’s probably not exactly “the same”, but getting stuck in a dinner time rut is so easy to do.  Tonight I made a BBQ Salsa Lime chicken and to go along with it, I decided to get creative!  Hence the Strawberry Lime Corn Salad was born…

This time of year is so wonderful for fresh fruits and veggies.  My kids both love strawberries and they both gobble up corn like you wouldn’t believe.  So, I decided to combine the two with a little panache.  I actually made this salad right outside by the grill while enjoying my family.  The kid’s played on the swings, my husband enjoyed a cold drink and I was chopping and dicing away (for about 5 minutes because it’s really that quick!)

If you are making your corn on the grill like I did, you will want to start off by timing it out so that your corn will have time to cool well before dinner, just so that you can handle it.  Another great way to make this ahead though is just to microwave your corn.  (To microwave corn: Don’t remove the husk at all, just place as is in the microwave for 3 minutes on high, then allow to cool for 5 minutes before shucking.) Microwaving is a great method for this particular salad because when you microwave corn, what you are doing is sucking all the sweet juice from the cob and pushing it all into the corn kernels; so, you end up with a very dry cob, but super juicy kernels.

Let’s get started:

Place corn on the grill about 1/2 hour before dinner… The corn itself will take about 15 minutes to cook, and then you can allow 5-10 minutes cooling time.

Grab some fresh strawberries, 6-8 or so.

Grab some fresh strawberries, 6-8 or so.

Dice up your strawberries. I would say a medium dice for a strawberry.

Slice up one scallion… discard the tip of the root and the tip of the top.

Add in your scallions.

Zest one lime.

Add your zest into the salad.

Add your zest into the salad.

Aren't those grill marks pretty? Allow this to cool a bit so that you can handle it with your hands. You'll need two ears of corn for this recipe.

Aren’t those grill marks pretty? Allow this to cool a bit so that you can handle it with your hands. You’ll need two ears of corn for this recipe.

Remove the kernels from the cob be carefully cutting down along the edge.

Add in your corn.

Now take that lime you just zested, cut it in half and add the juice from both halves right into the salad.

Now take that lime you just zested, cut it in half and add the juice from both halves right into the salad. Mix everything together.

 

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Recipe for Strawberry Lime Corn Salad:

(Serves 4-6)2 ears of corn, grilled, kernels removed from cob

6-8 fresh strawberries, diced

1 lime, zested and squeezed

1 scallion, chopped

1 splash white wine vinegar (about a Tbs.)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Serve, enjoy!

*note – this recipe is gluten-free

**note – this recipe has no added salt

 

Cran-Raisin & Walnut Chicken Salad Wrap

done1I used to study at a little coffee shop in college just before the boom of the “internet café” that has long since closed.  They had great space to study, great coffee, great chess and one really special sandwich.  It was a chicken salad wrap with cranberries, raisins and walnuts in it!  As a college student who was bound to mediocre pizza and stale fries from the student cafeteria, something as unique as this wrap was a real treat, not to mention, somewhat of an education in my culinary journey through life.  This is my take on the first “wrap” I was ever inspired to teach myself to make.

The mixing of the sweet dried fruit and the crunch of the nuts pair really well with the creamy savory chicken salad.  Take that filling and nestle it in crunchy romaine lettuce and a smooth pumpernickel wrap and you may never be satisfied with a plain ole chicken salad sandwich again!

Let’s start by making the salad:

Chop up and slightly shred some left over chicken breast.

Add in your real mayonaise.

Add in your real mayonnaise.

I used to just get a bag of dried cranberries and then a box of raisins... but, I recently found this cool bag of already mixed cranberries and raisins. How cool is that?

I used to just get a bag of dried cranberries and then a box of raisins… but, I recently found this cool bag of already mixed cranberries and raisins. How cool is that?

Add them in to the chicken.

Chop up some walnuts… If you don’t like walnuts, you can swap this out for your favorite nut.

Next, add in some chopped walnuts.

Next, add in some chopped walnuts.

Now some salt and pepper and mix together.

Now some salt and pepper and mix together.

Now, let’s put build the wrap:

I found this pumpernickle wrap (and it's low-carb!).

I found this pumpernickel wrap (and it’s low-carb!). If you prefer wheat or plain, or sun-dried tomato, go for it, make it fun!

Lay out a few leaves of romaine lettuce.

Add the salad on top of the lettuce.

Add the salad on top of the lettuce.

Start by folding one side and then the other.

Now take the long side, fold it over and roll.

You shoul be left with something that looks like a burrito.

You should be left with something that looks like a burrito.

Cut on a diagonal and garnish with a grape tomato and a caper on a coctail tooth pick.

Cut on a diagonal and garnish with a grape tomato and a caper on a cocktail tooth pick.

Recipe for Cran-raisin & Walnut Chicken Salad Wrap:

(serves 2)

1 cup chicken breast, chopped

1/2 cup real mayonnaise

1/2 cup dried cranberries and raisins, mixed.

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

2 pumpernickel wraps

6 romaine lettuce leaves

grape tomatoes and capers for garnish

Directions:

Mix together first 5 ingredients.  Build wrap by placing the romaine lettuce on the wrap.  Scoop out half the salad and tuck into the lettuce.  Fold in the top and bottom and roll the alternating ends to wrap.  Cut in half on a diagonal, garnish with tomatoes and capers.

 

Buffalo Chicken Salad

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“It’s yummy!”  This is what I got from my husband when I asked him what to write about Buffalo Chicken Salad.  And quite plainly put, it is just that, yummy.  It’s also very low in carbs and pretty darn healthy.  So, when I am looking for a quick lunch that I can pull together in under 15 minutes, I take a little help from my pantry and my freezer!

This is a simple and quick lunch that is filling and super easy!.  I keep my freezer stocked with organic individually wrapped chicken breasts.  These are great because all I have to do is toss the sealed packages in a bowl of warm tap water and they are defrosted in under 10 minutes.  Then I am not having to work with an entire package of chicken every time I want to whip something up!

Two other pretty important pantry staples in this recipe are my buffalo wings sauce.  Now, anybody can make buffalo sauce.  All it is is hot sauce and melted butter.  That being said, I buy the bottle because sometimes I just feel like skipping that step.  Also, blue cheese dressing.  This recipe is a bit more complicated and honestly, when you’re trying to put a meal on the table in under 15 minutes, a well made dressing is the way to go.  Plus, you can skip having to buy blue cheese and constantly wondering if its supposed to be blue or if new blue has developed!

OK… so those are my tricks for this recipe, let  me take you through it:

Slice up your chicken breasts… I use one breast for my husband and I to both eat a good hearty salad.  If you like two, then use two.

I brown both sides of the sliced chicken getting some good caramelization on both sides. This takes about 4-5 minutes per side.

While the chicken is browning, I like to wash and run my mixed greens through a salad spinner.

Dice up one stalk of celery.

Wash and dry some grape tomatoes.

Toss the celery, tomatoes and mixed greens together. (All of it should be dry at this point)

This is the buffalo sauce I like to use.

This is the buffalo sauce I like to use.

Once the chicken is completely cooked through and nicely browned on both sides. Add in sauce. I do this right in the pan. You can transfer to a bowl if you are worried about scratching your pan. (I like less dishes)

Once the chicken is dredged in the sauce, take two forks and shred the chicken right in that sauce. This will allow all the cooked chicken to get coated in sauce.

Once the chicken is dredged in the sauce, take two forks and shred the chicken right in that sauce. This will allow all the cooked chicken to get coated in sauce.

And with that, the star of this meal is ready!  This is what you will be left with after shredding.

Here is my favorite blue cheese dressing... I like the chunky kind so that I don't need to deal with blue cheese as I mentioned.

Here is my favorite blue cheese dressing… I like the chunky kind so that I don’t need to deal with blue cheese as I mentioned.

Now build your salad. Your greens are already mixed with your celery and tomatoes (If you like, you can add in carrots here too) drizzle with dressing, and then top with chicken. (if you are not trying to keep it low carb, some croutons would be nice here as well)

Enjoy!

Enjoy!

Ingredients for Buffalo Chicken Salad:

(serves 2)

1 large chicken breast, sliced

2 Tbl. olive oil

1/2 c. Buffalo Wing Sauce

4 cups mixed greens, washed and spun dry

2 stalks of celery, chopped

10 grape tomatoes, washed and dried

1/2 c. blue cheese dressing

kosher salt

Directions:A quick 15 minute, low-carb, gluten-free meal!  

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a non-stick skillet.  Place sliced chicken in skillet and sprinkle lightly with salt.  Brown on both sides, about 4- 5 mins. cooking through.

Turn off heat.  Add in buffalo sauce.  Shred chicken.

Mix greens together with celery and tomatoes. Assemble salad with dressing and top with chicken.

Enjoy!

Stacy’s Best Potato Salad

AAAdone1My Dad LOVES potato salad.  I don’t ever remember a time when there would be a family gathering or a cook out without it.  So, years and years ago, I set out to make the very best potato salad there could ever be.  I must preface this by first stating that I was never a huge fan of potato salad to start off with.  This made my task a bit daunting, but I was up for the challenge!

Most potato salad you encounter consists of some bland boiled potatoes tossed with some cold mayo and if you’re lucky there will be some salt and pepper thrown in.  Well, get that image out of your mind… this is not that.

Once my quest to develop the “best” potato salad was complete, it was a regular request from friends, family and co-workers!  Everywhere I went, requests for this potato salad would follow. (So, be careful… because once you make it, it may be all people ask you to bring too! But, it’s so easy, that might be just fine with you.)  I often get the comment, “I don’t even like Potato Salad, but I love Stacy’s Potato Salad, it’s the only one I will eat.”  And quite honestly, it’s the only one I will eat too, as I mentioned, I am not a big fan of Potato Salad in general.

I think what makes it different is a combination of both ingredients and method.  If you follow along, you will get perfect results every time.  In the end, you will find this is a hybrid of potato salad and egg salad (the egg adds not only flavor, but an extra special creaminess.) The sauce itself lends some tartness from the mustard and crunch from the relish and an ever so slight backdrop of heat from the hot sauce and black pepper.

Let’s get started.

raw potatoes

I start with red bliss potatoes. For this recipe I am using about 3 lbs. of potatoes, which is enough for a regular night. If you are looking to bring this to a party or a cookout, you are going to want to double or even triple the recipe. This recipe doubles and triples very well.

fill pot water

Fill a pot with COLD water. Don’t turn the burner on until after you have placed your potatoes in.

potatoes in water

Dice to about the size of a quarter or slightly larger. Place in COLD salted water. This is necessary. If you place the potatoes in boiling water, you will change the consistency of the potato.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Boil until fork tender.

eggs in water

Once you get the potatoes going. Get your eggs started. Place the eggs in a pot and cover with COLD water. Bring the water to a boil and shut off the burner. Immediately cover the pot and let stand for 15 minutes. Drain water and cover with cold water to chill. Perfect hard-boiled egg every time!

hard boiled egg halfs

A perfect hard-boiled egg. (Sometimes I make an extra one and reserve for a sliced garnish, not today though)

chopped egg

Chop and set aside.

mayonaise

Start the sauce off with mayo. Your favorite jarred will be fine. But, be sure it is REAL mayonnaise, not dressing.

add hot sauce

To the real mayonnaise add mustard (just plain yellow), relish (i use dill) a pinch of salt, a couple swigs of your favorite hot sauce and lots and lots of fresh cracked black pepper. My Dad loves black pepper, so I put in close to a full teaspoon of it. You can adjust this to your taste.

add egg

Now, add in the chopped egg.

mix it up

Stir together to combine.

add mixture

When the potatoes are done cooking and you find that they are fork tender, drain the water, but do not run cold water over to cool. You want the potatoes to be warm, even hot for this next step. Pour the mixture over the potatoes in the pot you cooked them in (this way you aren’t messing up another bowl.)

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This is what you end up with. Sprinkle with paprika and chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

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Once chilled, you are ready to serve. Enjoy!

Recipe for Stacy’s Best Potato Salad:

(serves 6)

3 lbs. red bliss potatoes, diced.

6 qts. cold salted water

3/4 cup real mayonnaise

2 Tbs. yellow mustard

2 Tbs. dill relish

1 tsp. hot sauce

1 tsp. cracked black pepper

pinch of kosher salt to taste

2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped

dash of paprika

Directions:
Prepare potatoes by placing diced potatoes in cold salted water.  Bring water to a boil and watch for potatoes to become fork tender.

In the meantime, prepare sauce for salad. Mix together the real mayonnaise, mustard, relish, hot sauce, black pepper and salt.  Add in the chopped eggs.  Mix to combine.

Drain the potatoes and keep drained potatoes in the cooking pot.  Add in the mayo mixture.  Stir to combine.  The potatoes and egg yolks will meld together.  Top with a sprinkle of paprika.  Let come to room temperature and chill for 2 hours.

Enjoy!

note: this recipe is gluten-free.

note: if you don’t like the taste of one of the ingredients, add a little less, but try not to eliminate it.  For example, my sister is not a big fan of mustard at all, so I add a little less when she is coming over, but I don’t eliminate it as each ingredient has a chemical reason for being in the recipe.  (and she loves it)