DIY Croutons

I recently was unable to find my favorite croutons.  When I've looked up recipes in the past it seems like it takes a long time to bake a crouton, so I've never tried...until now.  I finally found a simple recipe and I've already made it twice.  I'm posting it here for future me b/c present me is digging these croutons!

Step 1-Melt 1 T spoon of butter with 1 1/2 T olive oil and 3 gloves of crushed garlic.  Heat it on low heat for about ten minutes just until the garlic is starting to soften and brown slightly.  You are just infushing the oil with the garlic flavor.  

Turn the heat off, and then lay some thinly sliced piece of baguette to the ban and coat one side.  There is enough oil for about 16 slices.  I sliced my bread about 1/3 inch thick.  

I then flipped the bread over so the second side was covered.  

I put my slices on a foil lined pan and backed them at 350 for about 15 minutes.  They go from looking uncooked to crispy really quickly, so start eyeing the bread at 15 minutes and check it frequently if it's not quite done.  

Serve with salad.  

Corn Salad

 

I've been meaning to post this for awhile, but I just (re) found the recipe.  My mom had this at a potluck last spring and she told me we absolutely had to try it.  I made it for the 4th of July and it was a huge hit.  The pickiest people I know I call family and they all at it and liked it.  

This will be making all the summer get togethers from here on out!  

Ingredients:  2 15 oz cans of whole kernel corn (drained), 2 c. grated cheddar cheese, 1 c. mayo, 1 c. green pepper (chopped), 1/2 c. red onion (chopped), 1 10 1/2 oz bag of Frito corn chips (crushed)

Instructions:  Mix and chill.   Stir in corn chips just before serving.  

*The original recipe called for chili cheese corn chips, I just used what I had on hand.  

*If you won't be eating the whole salad in one sitting, divide it in half and only add half the chips.  It does not taste as good when the chips have been in it overnight b/c they don't have the right texture, so just reserve them and mix the second half together with the chips when you are dishing it out as left overs.  

Tomato Basil Pasta

Last summer, one of my favorite instagrammers posted this recipe and I took a screen shot.  I tried it out this week and it was delicious!  It far exceeded my expectations, and was very simple to put together.  It reminded me a little bit like a supreme pizza.

All you need is a box of rotini pasta, 1 jar of tomato basil pasta, a cucumber (peeled, sliced, halved), 1 c. of cherry tomatoes (I quartered them), half a purpose onion (halved and thinly sliced), and 1/3 c. feta.  It also called for basil leaves to garnish, but ain't nobody got time for garnish in quarantine.

I boiled the pasta and then tossed the rest of it together when the pasta cooled a bit.  I put it in the fridge and then I had lunch for a week.

This salad already has me dreaming of summer!

Banana Split Salad

I use the term 'salad' really lightly here, but there are a few fruits in here, so it almost counts.  But, it's summer, which means jello desserts in my book!  I found this recipe via insidebrucrewlife and I had to give it a go.  It was delicious!  

Ingredients:  3/4 oz box of instant banana pudding, 20 oz can of crushed pineapple (don't drain), 8 oz Cool Whip (thawed), 1 c. mini marshmallows, 1/2 c. walnuts (finely chopped), 1/3 c. mini chocolate chips, 2 ripe bananas (sliced), 20 oz of maraschino cherries (drained and halved)

Instructions:  Stir together the pudding mix and pineapple until dissolved and thickened.  Fold in your Cool Whip.  Gently add marshmallows, nuts, chocolate chips, bananas, and cherries.  Place it fridge for one hour.  Add bananas right before serving (I tossed mine in lemon juice and put them in when I made the salad and they didn't brown).  

Apple Cranberry & Almond Coleslaw

When fruit is out of season, I struggle with veggies and usually end up looking for recipes like this one.  I also had some sliced almonds and cranberries left over from Christmas, so I decided to use them up.  I really liked the addition of the apples, and it was a fun side to add to some chicken sandwiches.
The recipe came from Cooking Classy.  Minus that mayo, it was a good way to get in some veggies.  I adapted it a little b/c I bought a bag of coleslaw mix instead of cutting my own carrots.
Ingredients:
Dressing:  3.4 c. plain Greek Yogurt, 1/4 c. mayonnaise, 1/4 c. honey, 2 T apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.
Coleslaw:
1 pkg of coleslaw mix (sold in the packaged salad selections at most stores-measures about 7 cups), 2 apples (peeled and sliced into matchsticks-about 3 c.), 1/2 c. green onions, 3/4 c. almond slivers, 3/4 c. dried cranberries
Instructions:  Mix all the dressing ingredients.  In a separate bowl mix all the coleslaw ingredients and then pour your dress over these and toss until everything is well coated.
Serve immediately.

Caramel Apple Salad

I realized calling this a 'salad' is a far stretch, but there are at least 2 healthy ingredients in there, and a salad is a salad is a salad, so.....leave your judge-eeee opinions on some other place.
I've been determined to make one of everything caramel apple right now, and so I had a lot of left overs from the last 17 caramel apple recipes and realized I could make this recipe (originally from The Gunny Sack).
It says it serves 12, but....who are these people?  They need to learn to up their portion size.  Maybe 8?
So if you are looking for a non-salad salad that could be called a dessert, but doesn't have to be, so let's not go there, try this one!

Caramel Apple Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  
Sugared Pretzels:  1 c. pretzels (roughly chopped-measure after chopping), 1/2 c. chopped pecans, 3/4 c. brown sugar 3/4 c. melted butter
Cream Cheese Mix:  8 oz cream cheese (softened), 3 c. diced apples (I peeled mine), 1/2 c. caramel sauce (I just grabbed the already made kind in the tub near the apples), 3 c. whipped cream
Instructions:  
Sugared Pretzels:
1.  Mix together the pretzels, pecans, brown sugar, and butter.
2.  Spread on a large baking sheet (I lined mine with foil).  Bake at 400 for 7 minutes.
3.  Cool and then break into small pieces.
Cream Cheese Mix:
1.  Beat softened cream cheese until smooth.  Add in caramel sauce until smooth.
2.  Fold in whipped topping, apples, and sugared pretzels.

Bacon and Egg Asparagus Salad

You guys.  This.  This was sooooo tasty.  I usually prefer my vegetables roasted, but I decided to try out this recipe from skinnytaste because....well, bacon.  Apparently if you get Whole30 approved bacon and Dijon this works in that program.  I'm not doing anything whole30, but if all the food taste like this I could be convinced!

Asparagus Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  
1 hardboiled egg (peeled and sliced)
1 2/3 c. chopped asparagus
2 slices of bacon (cooked and crumbled)
1/2 t. Dijon mustard, 1 t. extra virgin olive oil, 1 t. red wine vinegar, pinch of salt and pepper
Instructions:
1.  Bring a pot of water to a boil.  Add the asparagus and cook for 3 minutes (tender, yet still a little firm).  Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking.
2.  Mix the Dijon, oil, vinegar, salt and pepper in a separate bowl.
3.  Top asparagus with bacon, eggs, and drizzle with the vinaigrette.

Greek Pasta Salad

I may never emotionally recover from my trip to Greece.  So, in order to heal my Greek Homesick Heart....I make variations of Greek food.  This was tasty.  The original recipe (from lecreamedelacrumb) called for tortellini, but I had cheese raviolis I wanted to use up....and it was really delicious.  This stays on my rotation.  I'll probably cut back on the apple cider vinegar for personal taste, but it really was good and it had all my favorite veggies!

Greek Pasta Salad

Ingredients: 
1 lb cheese tortellini pasta (cook according to package's instructions)
1 c. cherry tomatoes (cut in half)
1/2 red onion (sliced thin)
1 large cucumber (peeled and sliced thin)
1/2 c. canned artichoke hearts (roughly chopped)
1/2 c. olives (whole or sliced)
1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
1/3 c. fresh basil leaves (chopped fine)
Dressing Ingredients:  
1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil, 1/3 c. apple cider vinegar, 3 t. minced garlic, 1 t. dried oregano, 1 t. dried basil, 1/2 t. dried thyme, 2 t. sugar, 1 T Dijon mustard, 1/2 t. salt, black pepper (to taste), juice of 1/2 lemon
Instructions:  
1.  Combine the dressing in a jar, shake well.
2.  Mix all the other ingredients.  Pour dressing over the top and toss.
3.  Store in fridge (the original recipe calls for up to only 6 hours, but mine was great the next day as well).

Fall Salad

I'm clearing my phone of pictures and I found this one of a salad I really loved and want to remember.  I tossed together spinach, apple slices, candied pecans, and white cheddar cheese.  I added some balsamic vinegar for dresshing and it was the perfect comination of salty and sweet.  So, before I say goodbye to fall and all her flavors, I wanted one last memory, so next year I remember I do like more than pumpkin bread & caramel apples when fall rolls around. 

Cabbage Coleslaw

I made this coleslaw a few weeks back.  On day three I realized I hadn't photographed it, and by this point it had turned purple from the purple cabbage, but it still tasted good.  In fact, it was better the next day.
It was easy to toss together, and it sounded strange, but it was one of my favorites to date.  If I was feeding this to others I might skip the purple cabbage just for looks, or maybe not, it's kind of fun!
Ingredients:  
1 med head of cabbage, shredded (I grabbed a bag that was already shredded and had carrots), 1 large red onion (diced), 1 c. grated carrots, 2 stalks of celery (chopped), 1 c. white sugar, 1 c. white vinegar, 3/4 c. veg. oil, 1 T salt, 1 T dry mustard, black pepper to taste.
Instructions:
Mix all the veggies.  Sprinkle with sugar and mix well.
In a saucepan combine the vinegar, oil, salt, mustard, and pepper.  Bring to a boil and pour over the cabbage.  Mix well.
Chill and serve cold.

Broccoli Bacon and Pasta Salad

One of my favorite salads includes broccoli, bacon, onions etc, and so when I found this on where you add pasta, I had to try it out.  It's a great dish before a run.  Granted, I wasn't in the middle of running when I made this salad, but you can never been too prepared for a long run....or a long nap.
So...with just a few more bbq's before fall kicks in...here's another pasta salad that makes a great side dish...or you know....a runner's carbo load.  I found the original recipe on a site called mandysrecipeboxblog.

Broccoli Bacon and Pasta Salad

Ingredients:  12 oz spiral pasta, 1 c. mayonnaise, 1/4 c. red wine vinegar, 1/4 c. sugar, 1 t. salt, 3 c. raw broccoli (chopped), 1 c. cheddar cheese (cubed), 1/2 c. roasted sunflower seeds (salted or unsalted), 1/2 c. crumbled (and cooked) bacon, 1/4 c.red onion (diced)
Instructions:
1.  Cook pasta according to pkg directions.  Drain and rinse in cold water.
2.  Place pasta in a bowl and add broccoli, cheese, sunflower seeds, bacon, and onion.
3.  In a separate bow, whisk the mayonnaise, red wine vinegar, sugar, and salt.  Pour over the salad and toss to coat.
4.  Place in fridge for at least an hour to chill.

Sweet Coleslaw

The only thing better than tasty is easy.  I love coleslaw, but a lot of it is just too dry...or too liquid(y).  I found this recipe at allrecipes and it's my favorite by far.  It's the perfect side dish to summer anything.
So if you like summer, simple, and tasty-try this!

Sweet Slaw

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  16 oz bag coleslaw mix, 2 T diced onions, 2/3 c. mayonnaise, 3 T vegetable oil, 1/2 c. white sugar, 1 T white vinegar, 1/4 t. salt, 1/2 t. poppy seeds
Instructions:  
1.  At last two hours ahead of time, combine coleslaw and onions.
2. Combine all remaining ingredients, stir, and then toss with coleslaw mix.
3.  Chill until serving.

Italian Pasta Salad

It's always hard to distinguish one salad from another on the internet, so the best way I can describe this recipe is that....I like it so much I have an old fashion recipe card written for this one, you know, in case the internet goes out of style and we stop keeping electronic copies...this one is one I DON'T want to lose.  Some pasta salads are bland, but not this one.  It's definitely a tangy salad with the salami and lemon juice.  I love it, and love that it doesn't leave me craving flavor.  It's a super simple one to throw together and....it makes enough you might actually be willing to share a bowl or two.

Italian Pasta Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  1 lb angel hair pasta (cooked), 1/2 lb salami (chopped), 1/2 c. black olives, 1/2 c. green peppers (chopped), 1/2 c. roasted red peppers (chopped), 1/2 c. marinated mini mozzarella balls (halved), 1/4 c. olive oil, 2 T. lemon juice, 1 t. kosher salt, 1/4 t. crushed red peppers
*if you can't find the marinated mozzarella balls, you can use cubed mozzarella pieces.  
Instructions:  
1.  Cook the pasta according to the directions (until al dente).  Drain, and place in a bowl.
2.  Add salami, olives, roasted red pepper, green peppers, and mozzarella.
3.  In a separate bowl whisk olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and red pepper flakes.  Toss with salad.
Serve immediately, or serve cold.....it's great either way.
*SERVES 8

Fruit Salad

It's time for fruit.  I discovered this fruit salad last summer and it really was delicious.  I like it because it's one that you can make beforehand, but it doesn't require creams and mayo and all the things that take away the benefits of eating fruit.  OK, yes, there is some brown sugar, but....in the grand scheme of life, this one leans more towards healthy than not in my mind.  I didn't have blueberries to toss in when I made this (because the  crop at the store had seen better days), but really, any combination of fruit works, it's the sauce that makes the salad!
So, warm weather, and fruit...I'm ready for you!

Fruit Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients: 2/3 c. orange juice, 1/3 c. lemon juice, 1/3 c. (packed) brown sugar, 1 t. vanilla,   1/2 t. orange zest, 1/2 t. lemon zest, 2 c. cubed pineapple, 3 peeled and  sliced bananas, 3 kiwis peeled and sliced, 2 c. strawberries (remove stems and slice), 1 c. seedless grapes, 1 orange (peeled) and sliced, 2 c. blueberries

Instructions:  

1.  Bring orange juice, lemon juice, orange and lemon zest, and brown sugar to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat and let simmer for about 5 minutes (should be thickening up).  Remove from heat and add vanilla.  

2.  Toss all the fruits and the cooled sauce together in a bowl.  Cover and put in the fridge for at least 3 hours.  

Fall Spinach Salad

It's time to pack up fall and say hello to Christmas, but first...one last fall-ish dish.  This recipe makes a ton-it says it serves 16, but I could inhale the pecans alone.

Fall Spinach Salad

PRINT HERE

Salad Ingredients:  
2 pkg of baby spinach (12 oz total), 1 medium apple (chopped), 1 c. crumbled feta 4 oz, 1 c. glazed pecans, 1/2 c. diced red onions, 1/3 c.dried cranberries, 5 pieces of bacon (cooked and crumbled)
Dressing Ingredients:  2 T apple cider vinegar, 1 T. sugar, 1/2 t. Dijon mustard, 1/8 t. pepper, 1/4 c. olive oil

Apple and Spinach Salad

I'm always looking for delicious salads....and often failing, but....I found a keeper via a posting on facebook.  Oh.  My.  Goodness.  I've made it over and over.  In the winter I craft fresh fruit and there aren't a lot of offerings in the store, but apples, apples are in season, so this one is just right!

Apple Salad Recipe

PRINT HERE

Ingredients for Salad:  1 bag of baby spinach, 2 granny smith apples (sliced), golden raisins, cashews, thin slices of red onion
Ingredients for Dressing:  1/4 c. sugar, 1/4 c. apple cider vinegar, 1/4 c. vegetable oil, 1/4 t. garlic salt, 1/4. t. celery salt,

Strawberry Pecan Salad

 There is a strawberry jello salad I love to make.  It does involved three different levels of ingredients and some very careful transferring levels so the layers don't mix together.  I recently saw the recipe at the Gunny Sack for this dessert salad and it sounded very similar...and oh my goodness was it ever delicious.  I think I'd make a lot of friends if I brought this to a potluck....but....I have enough friends, so I kept this gal for myself and a few people that accidentally gained access to my house.  You could add any fruit (pineapple?) you want, but....strawberries are my favorite with salty pretzels.

Strawberry Pecan Salad

Ingredients: 1 c pretzels (crushed), 1/2 c. pecans (chopped), 3/4 c. brown sugar, 3/4 c butter (melted), 2 c strawberries (diced), 8 oz cream cheese (softened), 1/2 c. sugar, 1 t. vanilla, 8 oz whipped cream
Instructions:
1.  Mix pretzels, pecans, brown sugar, and butter.  Spread and press down into a large baking sheet with sides.  Bake at 400 for 7 minutes.  Cool, and break into small pieces.

2.  Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla.  Fold in the whipped cream.  

3.  Add the strawberries and pretzel chunks.  Keep chilled.  

Basic Macaroni Salad

I am an expert on macaroni salad.  Trust me, I have years of experience.  I am always trying out new recipes in search of THE perfect mix.  I don't like it toooo creamy, or tooo sour.  I'm pretty much Goldilocks minus the bears and porridge, add some noodles.  This one, THIS one even meets my standards.  I think I'll eat a bowl and go find the perfect bed to take a nap...it's the green pepper, seriously, what?  It makes all the difference....and I'm not even much on fresh green pepper, but apparently I just haven't been eating it in the right dishes.  The original recipe is from 365ofbaking.

Macaroni Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  1 lb elbow macaroni, 1 green pepper (seeded and chopped-should be about 3/4 c.),, 3/4 c. chopped white onion, 1 3/4 c. mayonnaise, 3 T white vinegar, 1 T bottled yellow mustard, 1 1/2 t. kosher salt, 1/4 t black pepper
Instructions:  
1.  Prep macaroni according to directions.
2.  Drain and set aside to cool.
3.  Mix all the other ingredients in a bowl.
4.  Chill in the fridge for at least two hours before serving.

Tortellini Salad

I always love pasta salads, but this one ranks towards the top, and it so simple to put together.  The original recipe came from lemontree.  It makes the perfect side to any potluck, and it's best at room temperature, so if it sits out for a bit....you still win.

Tortellini Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  2 pkgs of frozen cheese tortellini (about 36 oz total), 3/4 c sun dried tomatoes (drained and chopped), 1/2 c. prepared pesto, 1 c. Parmesan cheese (freshly shaved), 1/2 c. red onion (chopped)

Instructions:

1.  Prepare tortellini according to package instructions.  Rinse with cold water and let it cool.  

2.  Combine all the ingredients.  Serve, or chill and serve at room temperature.  

Hawaiian Chicken Salad

I work at a school.  We have been adopted by a church that spoils all the teachers and students on a regular basis.  Recently, one of the Sunday School classes brought us lunch and one of the dishes was this Hawaiian Chicken Salad.  I didn't know what was in it, but it was seriously delicious.  Seriously.  The lady who brought the dish shared her recipe, and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to make.  Seriously, give this a try. 

Hawaiian Chicken Salad

PRINT HERE

Ingredients:  1 large can of Swanson Chicken breast (drained), 1 c. mayonnaise, 1 c. celery (chopped), 1 c. pecans (chopped), 1 c. flaked coconut, 1 small can crushed pineapple (well drained), 1/2 c sour cream
Instructions:  Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.  Chill.  Serve on lettuce leaf as a salad, or on bread. 
*Makes enough for 6+ sandwiches.