Italian Pasta Salad

I love pasta salads! You almost always can put whatever you want in them and throw on a vinaigrette dressing and your done. It's hard to mess up a pasta salad. Which is one of the main reasons it is always a go to dish when company comes over. ;) This salad is delicious, light, and flavorful. I love the salami & mini pepperoni's along with the mozzarella. So tasty!! It can be a side or a whole meal in itself. What are your favorite ingredients to put in your pasta salad?

 

Ingredients:

 

• 1 (16 ounce) package fusilli (spiral) pasta                       
• 3 cups cherry tomatoes, halved                                                                 
• 1/2 pound provolone cheese, cubes                       
• 1/2 pound salami, cubed                             
• 1 bag of small pepperoni's
• 1 large green bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces    
• 1 (10 ounce) can black olives, drained                  
• 1 (4 ounce) jar pimentos, drained                    
• 1 (8 ounce) bottle Italian salad dressing

Instructions:

 

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain, and rinse with cold water.

2. In a large bowl, combine pasta with tomatoes, cheese, salami, pepperoni, green pepper, olives, and pimentos. Pour in salad dressing, and toss to coat.

 

Recipe adapted & modified from All Recipes.

Mom's Potato Salad

 

This is the potato salad recipe that I grew up eating and LOVE! It's really very simple to put together and good along side almost everything. This past week I made this salad along with chopped beef sandwiches. Oh So Good!

Ingredients:

• 4-6 medium size potatoes
• 4 boiled eggs
• mayonnaise
• dill pickle relish
• salt and pepper

Directions:
Cut up your potatoes into small cubes and boil until done. Drain and place in a bowl and let cool in the fridge. If you don't let them cool long enough then when you mix your salad your potatoes will become mushy.

After boiling your eggs in boiling water for 10 minutes remove and also let cool in the fridge. Once cool, remove the shells and chop up into cubes.

I don't have the exact measurements for the mayo and relish. I just add it to the potato and egg until I like the consistency.

Mix it all together and it is OH so GOOD!!

Salt and pepper to your liking. ENJOY!

Beefy Cheesy Stuffed Baked Potatoes

   

Ingredients:

• 4 medium baking potatoes, washed, skins left on
• 8 ounces ground beef, extra lean
• 2 cups broccoli florets, finely chopped
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, low-fat, shredded, divided
• 1/2 cup sour cream, light
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 1/4 cup fat free half and half (or use fat free chicken or beef broth)
• 1 teaspoon Montreal Steak Seasoning
• 1/4 cup onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon Garlic salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 clove garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Pierce potatoes all over with a fork. Place in the oven at 425 degrees F until the potatoes are soft. When cooking is complete, set potatoes aside to cool down enough that the potato can be handled.
2. While the potatoes cook, brown meat, onion and minced garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When mixture is completely cooked remove from heat and allow to cool, season with Montreal Steak seasoning mix. 
3. Put broccoli in a microwave safe bowl, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon water, cover and cook until tender about 2 minutes. Drain the broccoli; add to the meat.
4. Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, carefully cut the potatoes in half. Leaving a 1/4 inch border all around the potato, scoop out the inside into a medium bowl. Place the potato shells in a baking dish. 
5. Add 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, sour cream, fat free half and half, garlic salt, and freshly ground black pepper to taste to the potato insides and mash with a fork or potato masher. Add half the scallions and all of the broccoli and meat to the potato mixture; stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired.
6. Evenly divide the potato mixture among the potato shells and top with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese and sprinkle with the remaining green onions.
7. Place back in the oven until the filling is hot and the cheese is melted, 10 minutes.

Source: Nutmeg Notebook

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

 

 We have had a much cooler spring in Texas this year for sure!! But this last weekend it has started to warm up into the 80's and I am starting to crave summer salads. As I was looking at recipes this one caught my eye and I had to give it a try. It is a lot like the Southwestern Chopped Chicken Salad I wrote about a while back. The salad ingredients are almost the same, but the dressing is different. They both are very good!!

Dressing:

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2/3 cup light sour cream
1 tablespoon minced chipotle chile, canned in adobe sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
4 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Salad:

4 cups shredded romaine lettuce
2 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 breasts)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup diced peeled avocado
1/3 cup thinly vertically sliced red onion
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (8 3/4 ounce) can no-salt added whole kernel corn, rinsed and drained

To prepare dressing, combine first 7 ingredients, stirring well.

To prepare salad, combine lettuce and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over salad; toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.

Tip: Add a spoonful of adobo sauce for a spicier salad. Kidney or pinto beans also taste great in this dish.

Source: Nutmeg Notebook

Easy Chicken Macaroni Casserole

This recipe is nice because your whole family will enjoy it. I say this because it is hard finding dishes that all four of my kids will eat and that my husband and I enjoy as well. :) I also season, cook, shred, and freeze chicken ahead of time.  This makes at least one step of some of my recipes a lot easier because all I have to do is pull it out of the freeze & thaw and that part is done. Gotta love that!! :)
I hope that you enjoy this dish as well. It's good!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup chopped onions (to be completely honest, I omit the onions to make it kid friendly but it is still good)  ;)
• 3 tablespoons butter or 3 tablespoons margarine, melted
• 2 (10 3/4 ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 cup milk
• 3 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
• 2 1/2 cups cooked macaroni
• salt
• pepper
• 1/4 cup Ritz cracker crumbs

Directions:

• In a large skillet over med-high heat, saute onions in butter until onions are tender. (if you decide to use).
• Add in soup and 1 1/2 cups cheese; gradually stir in milk.
• Cook over medium heat until cheese melts; stir in chicken and macaroni; taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
• Transfer mixture to a greased 2 1/2 quart casserole; sprinkle with cracker crumbs.
• Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until heated through.
• Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese and bake 5 minutes.

Source: www.food.com

Club Pasta Salad

I made this for lunch a couple of Saturday's ago for my mom and dad and it was a huge hit. The combination of ingredients is delicious!! My family and I give this salad Five stars!! :)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups uncooked shell pasta
• 1 (1oz) packet Hidden Valley ranch dressing mix
• 1/4 cup bacon bits
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 cups cut-up cooked turkey or 1 1/2 cup chicken
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut into fourths
• 1/2 cup julienne strips cheddar cheese
• 4 cups bite-size pieces lettuce

Directions:

Fill large saucepan 2/3 full of water. Heat to boiling. Stir in contents of pasta.

Gently boil uncovered 15 minutes. Stirring occasionally, until tender.

Drain pasta. Rinse with cold water. Shake to drain well.

Combine Hidden Valley ranch mix, onion powder and bacon bits with mayonnaise in a large bowl. Stir in chilled pasta and remaining ingredients except lettuce. Serve on lettuce. Refrigerate leftovers.

Source: Food.com

Cheddar Broccoli Loaded Baked Potato Skins with Avocado Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

• 8 small Idaho potatoes, scrubbed and dried
• canola oil/cooking spray
• salt
• 8 oz. broccoli florets, chopped (about 4 cups)
• 4 slices of bacon, crumbled
• 3/4 cup extra-sharp Cheddar, shredded

Avocado Creme:

• 2 scallions, thinly sliced, green reserved
• 1 medium avocado, peeled and pitted
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 F.
Pierce potatoes several times with a fork and wrap in paper towels. Microwave on high for 12-15 minutes, until potatoes are cooked through. Remove from microwave and cool until potatoes are easy to handle. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop out about half of the inside of the potato, leaving skin intact. Reserve scooped potato flesh for another use.

Brush both inside and outside of potatoes with oil (I used the canola oil cooking spray) and sprinkle with salt. Place potatoes, skin-side down, on a baking sheet and bake until skins are crisp and edges are golden brown, about 20 minutes.

In the meantime, prepare the filling. Steam the broccoli until crisp-tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and set aside. Cook bacon over medium heat until crisp and set aside on a paper towel to drain.

To make avocado cream, combine scallion whites, avocado, sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, garlic and salt in a small bowl.

You can use a fork to mix and make smooth or you could put it in a food processor and process on high until smooth. About 30 seconds. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Toss the broccoli with cheese (I also threw in the potato as well instead of using it later) filling evenly among potatoes. Lower oven to 400 degrees F and return potatoes to oven until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of the avocado cream on top of broccoli-filled potatoes, then top with scallion greens and 1 teaspoon crisped bacon bits. Serve hot.

Serves 8

Source: ahintofhoney.com

Southwestern Chopped Chicken Salad

Salad:
2 cups shredded chicken
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 can sweet yellow corn (or 1 cup frozen corn, thawed)
2 roma tomatoes, diced
4 green onions, sliced
1 head ice berg lettuce, washed and chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 ripe avocados, diced
1 cup crushed tortilla chips

dressing:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2/3 cup Greek yogurt
1 tbsp ranch seasoning
1 tbsp taco seasoning

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine all salad ingredients together, excluding the tortilla chips. Next time I make this salad I am also going to exclude the lettuce as well. The lettuce became too soft for my husband and I so next time we will place the lettuce on a plate and then spoon all the other ingredients on top of the lettuce.

In a small bowl combine the dressing ingredients together. You could either coat all the vegetables with the dressing or just pour over each individual salad. That's up to you. Top with tortilla chips and Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Lauren's Latest

Crock Pot Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Tonight I tried a new potato soup recipe. Oh my goodness was it delicious!! I found the recipe on the It's what's for dinner... blog.

Ingredients:

• 5 russet potato's
• 3 garlic cloves (minced)
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped really fine
• 64 ounces chicken broth or stock
• 16 ounces cream cheese
• bacon, sour cream, chives, or shredded cheese for garnish

Directions:

I found this recipe at around noon on a Friday and didn't have time after running to the grocery store to cook it in the crock pot so I combined all of the ingredients together (except for the garnishes) and brought them to a boil on the stove top. Once the potatos were cooked I put it on low let it simmer  until we were ready to eat (about an hour and a half).
Serve warm topped with bacon, sour cream, shredded cheese, & chives.

A few nights ago we had a honey baked ham and still had left overs. So, I cut all the remaining pieces off and threw them plus the bone into the soup and it made it DELISH!! :)