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 jalapeño 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!

strawberry yumminess

this is my favorite way to eat strawberries - dip them in a little sour cream, then in a little brown sugar. it sounds a little weird, and i was sceptical the first time i tried it, but really, it's sublime.

honey ice cream with almond nougatine

after our trip to the shore, there was about 5 lbs of leftover honey. what to do with all this honey? i asked myself. i had been wanting to try the new haagen daz honey ice creams, so i decided to try my own. and what i especially loved about it was that after a day in the freezer, it didn't harden up like a rock, but stays creamy and scoopable.

this is a super simple recipe and would taste even better with an aromatic honey like heather, chestnut or eucalyptus.

i had never made almond nougatine before, but it is sooo easy and would make a great topping for not only ice cream, but cakes or even a little tasty crunch in a salad. i put 3/4 of it mixed in the ice cream, and saved the rest to sprinkle on top.

honey ice cream

2 vanilla beans

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

1/2 cup honey

flatten vanilla beans and cut them in half lengthwise. with a small spoon, scrape out the seeds. put seed and pods in a large saucepan and add the cream, milk, and honey. stir to dissolve the honey. heat over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, just until tiny bubbles form around the edges of the pan, 4 to 5 minutes. remove from the heat and steep, covered, for 1 hour. cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. strain over a fine mesh strainer and transfer into an ice cream maker and freeze according the manufacturer's directions. add crushed nougatine the last minute or so of freezing.

almond nougatine

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1 tsp vinegar

1 cup slivered almonds

grease a jellyroll pan and set aside.

in a small saucepan over med-high heat combine sugar, water and vinegar and stir until sugar is dissolved. cook, without stirring, until the mixture is the color of caramel. this may take up to 10 minutes. as it starts to color, watch it closely as it will get darker very quickly. when it is golden, remove from heat and stir in almonds. pour mixture onto the greased sheet pan and using a silicone scraper, smooth out into a thin layer - the nougatine hardens quickly, so you have to move fast! let it cool completely, then you can break it up into large pieces with your hands, or put it in a plastic bag and hit it with a rolling pin until it the size you want it.

Breakfast Indulgence

Oakley wanted chocolate chip waffles for breakfast, so I made these and put TJs Raspberry jam on them (for me, of course, not the kids). These tasted like a decadent dessert (and I am not a huge fan of fruit and chocolate but this is a great combination)...YUM. You don't have to feel bad because they are even made with half whole wheat. Oakley even gobbled up 1 1/2 waffles--amazing for him.

Chocolate Chip Waffles

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup white flour

1 TSB baking powder

dash of salt

a few dashes cinnamon

1 3/4 or 2 cups milk (depending on how thin you like your batter)

1/4 cup canola oil

2 egg whites, whipped until stiff

1/2 - 1 cup chocolate chips (depending on how chocolatey you want it)

Mix all dry ingredients. Stir in milk and oil. Fold in egg whites and chocolate chips. Cook according to waffle maker instructions. For best results top with good quality raspberry jam (like TJs).

pork tenderloin with honey-mustard sauce and wilted garlic spinach

i had this tenderloin and didn't have anything yummy to stuff it with, so i just seared it made a mustard pan sauce. then i looked for some kind of roughage in the fridge and found only a bag of baby spinach. ta-da! dinner is complete.

to sear: heat heavy straight-sided pan (that has a lid) on medium-low heat for 5 minutes. turn heat to high one minute before putting in the meat and turn on the fan. coat the meat with vegetable oil NOT olive oil. (pouring it in the pan will cause excess smoke and scorching) and place in the pan, reduce heat to medium-high. don't try to move it, wait at least two minutes before turning, until it has a nice brown crust on it. repeat on all sides. reduce heat to med-low and put the lid on. let it cook for 20-25 minutes, until the internal temp is 160 degrees. remove from the pan and cover with foil. if the bottom of the pan looks black and burned, clean it out a bit before making the pan sauce.

honey-mustard pan sauce:
from bobby flay

2 shallots or 1 small onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper to season

heat 1 tablespoon oil in the pan and add the shallots, cook until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. add the stock and lemon juice and cook, stirring and scraping up the bits on the bottom of the pan, until reduced to 1 cup. whisk in the mustard and honey and cook for 2 minutes. add the parsley and season with salt and pepper. (i only had spicy dijon mustard and it was so tasty with it - henry even liked it)

wilted spinach with garlic:
1 bag baby spinach
1 or 2 cloves garlic - thinly sliced
1 - 2 tablespoons oil
1/4 cup water

heat the oil in a large pan (that has a lid - you can reuse the sauce pan after pouring out the liquid) and add garlic. fry just until it begins to brown. add the water and spinach, cover with the lid. let it steam about 3 minutes then remove the lid to let any excess water evaporate and the oil coats the greens and they look shiny. season with salt and pepper.

Springtime Risotto

Sorry--no picture for this one (I will explain why later). But, I had to post it because it was tasty and because it solves the stirring problem presented by regular risotto (using the crock pot).

1 TBS olive oil
3 TBS chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine (or chicken broth)
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 cup garden peas
1/2 cup asparagus tips
1/4 cup parmigiano cheese
2 TBS butter
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a small saute pan over medium heat, warm the oil. Cook the onions until soft, 3 min. Add garlic and rice and cook for 1 min. Add 1/2 cup wine or broth and cook uncovered until reduced by half, 8 min(didnt take me nearly that long). Scrape it all into your slow cooker. Add broth, peas and asparagus tips. (Warning, and this is why there is no picture, don't add the vegetables now, they get too soft. Add them when you have maybe 1/2 hour left or just saute them separately and add at the end).

2. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Add butter and recover for butter to melt. Stir in cheese and season with salt and pepper.

The risotto part of this was SOOO good--smooth and creamy. As I said, just put the vegetables in later. Another good variation is to add fresh corn, tomatoes and basil at the end of cooking instead of the spring vegetables.

chicken oh-lay!

this one has the makings of mormon culture-lore all over it, but just like funeral potatoes, it's soooo tasty! and like all traditional mormon recipes, it contains both cream of mushroom AND cream of chicken. but don't let that turn you off (christanne) because this is one you will make over and over again. many thanks to my sister (in-law) neela for making this for the annual 4th of july festivities all those years ago. i haven't been the same since.

like most casseroles, this can be made in a crock pot or baked in the oven. today i had every intention of going the crock route, but between buying my eldest his summer wardrobe and playing with friends, there was no time for trifles like starting dinner early. so when i got home i threw it all together and tossed it in the oven. an hour later, voila! yummy cheesy yumminess. (i halved mine and it was plllllenty for all of us. the full recipe feeds about 87 people. not really, but you get the idea.)

chicken ole

1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 tablespoon minced onion (optional)
1 7 oz can green chile salsa (salsa verde)
1 cup sour cream
12 (or more) corn tortillas, torn into 10 pieces each
4 cups shredded chicken or turkey
1 lb (or however much you want) shredded cheddar cheese

lightly grease sides and bottom of slow cooker (or casserole dish and preheat oven to 450). combine soups, salsa, sour cream and onion in a bowl. start with a thin layer of cheese in the bottom of the dish - this gets browned and crunchy. it's the best part. then arrange alternating layers of tortillas, chicken, soup mixture and cheese. you can divide it into 3 or four layers. your final layer should be the soup mixture and then the cheese is added the last few minutes of cooking. cook 4 to 5 hours on low in the crock pot or covered for 1 hour in the oven. if you like crunchy browned sides, bake it at least an hour, checking after 45 minutes to make sure the sides aren't burning. when they are just the perfect brownness, remove from heat source and sprinkle with cheese. dish it up and love it!