Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Salads, salads


When summer starts, all I want to make are salads for dinner--pretty much any kind. I thought I would share a few of mine and then you would share some of yours, since I need some more ideas.



This one from the picture (sorry not a great picture) is Rice and Black Bean Salad with Lime and Cumin Dressing (recipe below). It would be great with grilled meat but we just had it with tortilla chips (also good).

A few others we have had recently:

Sesame Noodles with Broccoli (super fast and good)

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1599610

The next idea came from Giada on Food Network. I did an Italian orzo salad with kielbasa type sausage (you could grill or saute or use a summer sausage like salami for that matter) and red peppers, tomatoes and a bunch of fresh herbs from the garden and lemon juice and olive oil. Bryce was happy to have something meaty.

Finally a potato salad with bacon, fresh peas, vinegar and olive oil over arugala blend.

Rice and Bean Salad

Ingredients
Rice:

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 cup brown rice (I used brown basmati)

2 cups water

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed

1 avocado, diced (optional)

1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper

1/2 cup finely chopped green onions

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeƱo pepper

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

2 small or 1 large tomato, diced

Dressing:

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

6 tablespoons fresh lime juice

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 garlic clove, minced
Preparation: To prepare rice, heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add rice; cook 1 minute. Add 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 45 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat; uncover and cool to room temperature. Add corn and next 7 ingredients (corn through tomatoes).
To prepare dressing, Stir together all ingredients and stir into rice mixture.

Can't wait to hear your ideas!

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