Macaroni Salad

14.5 oz box of macaroni
1/2 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 C baby carrots, sliced
1 T minced onion
4 oz. frozen peas
1 C mayo (we used mayo made with olive oil)
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1 T cider vinegar
paprika
parsley
sea salt
black pepper

Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions; be sure not to over cook the pasta so that the noodles become overly soft.

Add the frozen peas in the last minute of cooking. Then, drain. While the pasta is cooking, chop up the veggiesAllow the pasta and peas to cool down and then place in a large bowl.  As the pasta cools down, stir every few minutes to prevent the noodles from clumping together as they dry.Add the chopped up veggies. Stir to combine.Add the minced onion, and stir these veggies in too. Alternatively, you can use fresh onion here.Stir together the mayo, sugar, dry mustard, and cider vinegar until smooth and creamy. Pour the mayo mixture over the pasta.  Do this in small batches.  Add a little, stir it in well and repeat.  This way, the creamy sauce gets all over the pasta and you can stir it in well. Stir in the mayo mixture until the pasta and veggies are coated. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.  If desired, you can also add tuna fish or chicken (either canned or grilled chicken breast).

Oriental Chicken Salad

Yield:
8 servings
Ingredients:
Salad ingredients:
leaf lettuce, washed and torn
shredded red cabbage (optional)
sliced almonds
chow mein noodles
fried chicken strips (recipe below)
homemade honey mustard dressing (recipe below)
Fried chicken strips ingredients:
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon parsley flakes
1/4-1/3 cup vegetable oil

Dressing Ingredients:
6 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon white vinegar
8 teaspoons mayonnaise or salad dressing
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon sesame or olive oil
Instructions:
1. Slice chicken breast into thin strips (as thin as possible).
2. In a medium-large container with a tight-fitting lid, combine flour, seasoned salt, pepper, garlic powder, and parsley flakes. Add 1/4 of the chicken meat; close tightly and shake vigorously to coat. Continue adding meat in three more sections, each time replacing the lid and shaking the container (leave meat in when adding more).
3. Heat 1/4-1/3 cup oil in a large skillet over medium heat (or just slightly above medium). Add chicken and spread out over bottom of skillet. Allow to fry for several minutes, then stir. Continue stirring and frying until chicken is completely cooked. Drain on paper towels to remove excess grease.
4. Combine dressing ingredients and whisk to remove lumps.
5. To assemble salad, layer plates with lettuce, cabbage, fried chicken, chow mein noodles, almonds, and top with the homemade dressing.


Additional Notes:
The fried chicken pieces can be still warm/hot, or, if you need to make this up ahead of time, you can refrigerate the chicken and serve a completely cold salad: it's good either way!
Preparation Time:
15 minutes
Cooking Time:
15 minutes

Coleslaw

1 medium head cabbage, chopped very finely
¼ cup shredded carrot
1/3 cup sugar
½ t. pepper
¼ cup milk
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup buttermilk
1 T white vinegar
2 T lemon juice

Put chopped cabbage and shredded carrots in a large bowl. Combine remaining ingredients in a separate bowl. Add this to the cabbage and mix until cabbage is well coated with dressing. Cover and refrigerate for minimum of 2 hours before serving

Catalina Salad Dressing

Makes about 1 qt.
 1 cup ketchup,
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup light olive oil or  canola
1 ½ cups sugar
1 t minced garlic
1 T season salt


Combine all ingredients in a blender and mix on medium until everything is completely combined.  Store in a quart size canning jar and put in the fridge until ready to use.

Carrot Raisin Salad .

                   


3 to 4 cups carrots, shredded
½ cup raisins
½ cup mayonnaise
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained or 1 small apple chopped in small pieces

In a medium bowl add your shredded carrots, raisins, and drained pineapple. Stir this up well and add mayonnaise until moistened.  If the pineapple is still a little moist that is o.k. it will add a nice sweetness to the salad.  Serve right away.

Roasted Vegetable Pasta

8 oz.  whole wheat fettuccine or your favorite pasta

2 T. olive oil

1 small eggplant, diced in large pieces

1 small onion, diced in large pieces

2 tomatoes, diced in large pieces

1 small zucchini, diced in large pieces

1 red bell pepper

1 clove garlic, minced (or more if you are like me and love it)

1/4 cup butter, room temp or melted

1 T. fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp. salt and pepper

1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan

1/2 cup chopped basil

Dice vegetables into one inch pieces and place on a large cookie roll pan (Note: if you use a pan with deeper sides it will steam the produce while it's roasting; which is fine if you like it that way. Otherwise, a shallow pan keeps veggies more firm and crisp.) Toss with olive oil and roast or broil for at least 15 minutes or until skins are evenly blistered and charred, turning as needed. Remove from broiler and set aside.

While vegetables are roasting, boil water for pasta and cook al dente and drain. In the meantime, in another bowl, combine garlic, butter, lemon juice, parmesan, salt, and pepper. 

When vegetables and pasta are done, add to the large bowl with the garlic, butter, and parmesan sauce and toss well. Serve with additional parmesan and basil on top.

Bon appetit!

Summer Garden Pasta Salad

2 small raw squash, chopped in quarters - zucchini, crook neck, or a mix

handful of cherry tomatoes
1 small red onion
1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
feta cheese
1-2 cups chopped chicken, cooked
1 bag bow tie or other favorite pasta (I usually use whole wheat)


Dressing:
Mix equal parts of extra virgin olive oil and red wine vinegar. 
1/2 - 1 tsp. dried oregano (or fresh if you have it)


Chop and combine ingredients to your liking. Toss with dressing. 

Buttermilk Ranch Dressing Mix

Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix

1/2 cup Bob's Red Mill Buttermilk Powder

1 T. dried parsley flakes

1 tsp. dill weed

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. dried chives

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. pepper, ground 

Combine all ingredients either by hand or in a blender on low speed. Store in an airtight jar in a cool dry place until ready to use.

To make ranch dressing:  

Combine one tablespoon mix with one cup of mayonnaise and one cup milk.

To make ranch dip: 

Combine one tablespoon mix with one cup of mayonnaise and thin with just enough milk to make desired consistency.

For cooking recipes: 

Use one tablespoon mix per envelope of commercial Ranch Dressing.

Hint: For long term storage, seal in a vacuum pac such as a Food Saver or Seal-A-Meal bag.

Low Fat Oriental Chicken Salad

Dressing

2 cups water

2 T. brown sugar

3 t. dry pectin

1 T. rice wine vinegar

1 t. soy sauce

1 t. minced garlic

1 t. kosher salt

¼ t. black pepper

¼ t. paprika

1 package ramen noodles

1 cup water

½ t. chicken bouillon

3 cups torn green leaf lettuce

1 cup shredded Napa cabbage

2 green onions, white and green parts sliced on the diagonal

2 mushrooms, thinly sliced

1 rib celery, thinly sliced

½ cup cooked, shredded chicken

3 baby carrots, cut into matchsticks

1 T. roasted sunflower seeds

Combine dressing ingredients in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat to boiling, whisking frequently. Cook at a low boil for about 10 minutes, until slightly reduced. Remove from heat, cool, and refrigerate.

Bring cup of water to boiling in saucepot. Add ramen noodles and boillon. Boil for 3 minutes then turn off heat and allow to cool (noodles will absorb excess liquid).

Combine lettuce, cabbage, onions, mushrooms and celery. Toss with 1/3 to ½ cup of dressing. Place in serving bowl and top with chicken, ramen noodles, carrots and sunflower seeds.

Serves one with approximately 525 calories – but this is a BIG salad and has enough protein to satisfy.

Low Fat Asian Linguine With Vegetables

2 ounces whole wheat linguine

1/4 cup chopped broccoli

1 t. sesame oil

1/4 cup Red bell pepper, cut into strips

1 Green onion, cut on the bias
2 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

1/3 cup Oriental salad dressing

Cook linguine in boiling water as directed on package with broccoli; drain and set aside. In the same pot, heat the sesame oil over medium heat. Add the pepper and white parts of the onion (reserve the green parts) and stir fry for 2 – 3 minutes, until veggies start to soften. Mix in reserved linguine and broccoli and add salad dressing. To serve, top with slices of reserved green onion and basil leaves.

Dressing

2 cups water

2 T. brown sugar

3 t. dry pectin

1 T. rice wine vinegar

1 t. soy sauce

1 t. minced garlic

1 t. kosher salt

¼ t. black pepper

¼ t. paprika

Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix

 I found this recipe on a recipe card that belonged to my  mother in law and we all love it.. 

Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix  

Ingredients:

5 Tbl dried minced onion
7 tsp parlsey flakes
4 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dill 

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together and store in an air tight container.

For Dressing:  Mix 2 Tbl dry mix with 1 C mayonnaise and 1 C buttermilk.  Allow flavors to blend for a couple hours before serving.

For Dip: Mix 2 Tbl dry mix with 2 C sour cream.  Allow flavors to blend for a couple hours before serving.

Italian Dressing Mix

• 1 tablespoon garlic salt

• 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
• 1/2 tablespoon sugar (something like evaporated cane juice would work well)
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 2 tablespoons salt

Use as Italian seasoning in breadcrumbs or sprinkled on grilled chicken. Can also be used as a dressing or marinade by mixing 2Tbsp of the mix with 1/4 cup vinegar, 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, and 2Tbsp water.