Jello Salad

One of my favorite dishes during the holiday season is my mom’s jello salad. Everyone in my family loves it and I’m pretty sure we would all be disappointed if it didn’t make it on the holiday menu. It includes some of my favorites: strawberries, pineapple, and bananas. It is easy to make and would be perfect side for any meal. For those that are familiar with strawberry pretzel salad, this is it’s rival, and honestly it would be hard to name a favorite between the two because they each offer something a little different. If you are debating what to serve this holiday season, consider this salad…it is sure to be a crowd pleaser!

Jello Salad

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1 large box of Strawberry-Banana Jello

1 medium to large can crushed pineapple

1 bag frozen strawberries

2 to 3 crushed bananas

Bring the water for the jello to a boil. Add the jello and the frozen strawberries, stirring until thawed. Add pineapple and bananas and mix together.

Place half the mixture into a 9 x 13 pan (or a similar size). Let sit in the refrigerate until mixture is somewhat firm. Add the rest of the jello and store in the refrigerate until set for several hours or overnight.

One Year Ago Today: Pumpkin Pie Bars

Chicken Caesar Salad Pasta

You might remember me telling you about one of my favorite, simple pasta dishes – Pasta Toss. This dish is a play off pasta toss, but also happens to mimic another favorite, chicken Caesar salad. The pasta can be served either hot or cold. With the heat of the summer in full swing, I opted to serve the pasta cold. All the flavors of a Caesar salad were present.  I also decided to use store bought Caesar dressing. I am quite sure a homemade version would be better, but I was more interested in convenience. I cooked the chicken using my indoor grill pan. Other options would be using a rotisserie chicken from the store. Either way, this meal is a great spin on Caesar salad!

Chicken Caesar Salad Pasta

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1 1b pasta (bow tie or spiral), cooked, served warm or cold

2 cups chicken, cooked and sliced

2 Roma tomatoes, diced and seeded

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup green onions, chopped

2/3 Parmesan, shredded

1/4 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced

1/2 cup croutons

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated black pepper

1/2 cup Caesar salad dressing

Gently toss all ingredients together and serve immediately.

Source adapted from: Natalie’s Killer Cuisine

Egg Salad Sandwiches

The classic cold salad sandwiches: egg, chicken, tuna and ham. I generally always go straight for chicken salad. I’m not even sure I had egg salad in my younger years, but lately I’ve been  craving it. My favorite chicken salad recipe calls for tarragon, so when I was searching for an egg salad recipe, I knew I had found a good one when it called for tarragon as one of the main ingredients. The shallots provide a sharp onion flavor, rounding out the flavors of a good egg salad. If you want to prepare the salad ahead of time, I would combine all ingredients except for the eggs. Add the eggs at the last minute, this will ensure that the salad stays nice and fresh.

Egg Salad

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8 large eggs

1/2 cup mayonnaise

3 tablespoons shallot, finely chopped

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, finely chopped

2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoons black pepper

Cover eggs with cold water by 1 inch in a 2-quart heavy saucepan and bring to a rolling boil, partially covered. Reduce heat to low and cook eggs, covered completely, 30 seconds. Remove pan from heat and let eggs stand in hot water, cover, 15 minutes. Transfer eggs with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice cold water and let stand 5 minutes (to cool). Peel eggs and finely chop.

Stir together eggs and remaining ingredients in a bowl with a fork.

Serve on your favorite sandwich bread.

Source: www.epicurious.com

Greek Salad

Happy Friday!

I am currently consumed with homework and papers so this post will be brief. This salad was made to accompany the Chicken Gyros I posted about earlier this week. I love the idea of making homemade salad dressings. They are extremely simple to make and allow you to control the amount of sodium and other ingredients placed in the recipe. This is also the perfect side for gyros! The dressing itself is very light. Top the salad with the ingredients listed below or add in other elements that sound good to you and your taste buds!

Greek Salad

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For the Dressing:

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons minced fresh dill

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

For the Salad:

Romaine lettuce

Red onions, sliced

Sliced black olives (I omitted this)

Grape tomatoes, halved

Cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced

Feta cheese

To Make the Dressing:

In a small bowl combine all the dressing ingredients. Whisk together until well combined. (Store any left over dressing in refrigerator. Shake well before using.)

To Make the Salad:

Add lettuce to a salad bowl. Drizzle with the dressing and toss well to coat. Top as desired with onions, olives, tomatoes, cucumber, and feta cheese.

Source: Annie’s Eats, originally adapted from William Sonama

Chicken Salad

Everyone has their favorite chicken salad recipe…and this is mine. I like it because it includes red grapes. I like it because it uses dried tarragon, which is an excellent flavor combo. I like it because it includes less than 5 ingredients. I like it because I just do! My husband always request this for our lunches during the warmer months and it always seems to be the perfect meal. I served the salad at the baby shower on crackers, but I have also used croissants or regular bread for serving. This salad is simple to throw together and yet so satisfying!

Chicken Salad

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3/4 cup mayonnaise, miracle whip, or your preferred substitute

1 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cooked and shredded

2 cups red seedless grapes

Mix dressing and tarragon in large bowl. Add chicken and grapes, mix lightly to combine ingredients.

Refrigerate several hours or until chilled.

Mandarin Orange and Lettuce Salad

With the loss of power for almost 48 hours last weekend, we were forced to eat out each meal. We ate a big breakfast and then had a "Linner" (in between lunch and dinner) somewhere between 2 and 4 pm. I don't know what it is about eating out for meals, but if you do it for a couple of days straight, well, lets just say you start to feel like crap....or at least I do. After this weekend, salad sounded like the perfect dish. This is one of my favorite salads. I love the contrasting flavors and textures from the cashews, raisins, and mandarin oranges. You can use whatever dressing sounds best, with this salad I usually go for Italian, but a sweet and sour dressing also works well. Either way, this salad is full of color and flavor!

Mandarin Orange and Lettuce Salad

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6 cups torn mixed greens or a 16 oz package mixed lettuce

1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges, drained

1/3 cup golden raisins

1 (2 oz) package cashew nuts, toasted (1/3 cup)

1/2 cup commercial Italian dress or sweet-and-sour dressing

Combine lettuce, mandarin oranges, raisins, and cashews in a salad bowl. Pour salad dressing over salad, and toss. Serve immediately.

Source: Southern Living Quick and Easy Weeknight Favorites, Oxmoor House, 2001