Salads

Black Bean Lime Salad

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This is a DELICIOUS black bean salad that I had to share with you! It’s light, and fresh, and perfect for summer parties or barbecues. The lime juice makes it extra tasty. You can serve this with chips, as a topping for a taco/burrito bar, or as a side for hamburgers or grilled chicken. Great recipe!!

Black Bean Lime Salad

Ingredients:
3 cans black beans, rinsed
2 colored peppers, diced (or a mixture of red, yellow, orange, green – whatever you like!)
1/3 cup red onions, diced small
A large handful of chopped cilantro
Zest of 1 lime
Juice of 2 limes
1/4 cup of olive oil
A little salt to taste
Optional – diced avocado – add right before serving

Instructions:
Add all ingredients together in a bowl, gently toss until mixed, cover and put in fridge for at least an hour to let flavors blend. If you are adding avocado, add right before serving. Enjoy!

Notes:  
To add a different kick, you can add 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar instead of the lime juice. Or you can add both if you would like.

Source: My amazing sweet friend, Liz Zimmerman.

Chicken Salad with Grapes

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This recipe comes from my sister-in-law who got it from an old roommate’s dad or something like that. I have tweaked it a bit over the years, as is usual for most recipes I use. It uses sour cream as well as mayonnaise to lighten it up a bit. The other secret ingredient is fresh lime juice. It adds some brightness to the salad.
Please feel free to add or omit ingredients. And a lot of the measurements are approximations. I do not measure when I make this. I just add as I go. 
4 Chicken breasts cooked and cut into small cubes
3-5 Cups seedless red grapes cut in half
3-4 Green onions, chopped
1/2-1 Cup sliced almonds
1/2 Cup mayonnaise
1/2 Cup sour cream
Juice of 1 or 2 limes
1/2-1 tsp. dried thyme
Sprinkle of seasoned salt
S&P to taste
Combine chicken, grapes, green onion and almonds in a large bowl. 
In a separate bowl, combine the mayo, sour cream, lime juice, thyme, seasoned salt and S&P. 
Pour dressing over the chicken mixture and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning and lime juice as desired. 
Serve with your choice of bread, rolls or crackers.

Corn and Blueberry Salad

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Call me crazy but I love this fruit and veggie combo.  It keeps pretty well in the fridge too.

Ingredients:

6 fresh sweet ears of corn, husked
1 c. fresh blueberries
1 cucumber, sliced
1/4 c. finely chopped red onion
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
2 T. lime juice
2 T. olive oil
1 T. honey
1/2 t. cumin
1/2 t. salt

Directions:

1.  In Dutch oven bring salted water to boiling.  Add corn.  Cook, covered, 5 minutes, or until tender.  When    cool enough to handle, cut corn from cobs.

2.  In a serving bowl combine corn, blueberries, cucumber, red onion, cilantro and jalapeno.  For dressing, in screw-top jar combine lime juice, oil, honey, cumin and 1/2 t. salt.  Cover; shake well to combine.  Add to salad; toss.  Cover and refrigerate overnight (up to 24 hours).  Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Source:  Better Homes and Gardens

Nutty Apple Salad

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A cool summer salad for hot summer days. Think of things you like with Peanut Butter and it might be in this salad!  
Ingredients:  
2 Granny Smith Apples
3 stalks of Celery, diced
2 C seedless grapes, halved
1 C mini marshmallows (I omitted these in a valiant effort to use less sugar, but by all means…toss ’em in!) 
1/3 C cold Evaporated Milk
1/2 tsp sugar (I used a squirt of Agave Nectar)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3T Mayo (I used Vanilla Yogurt because I despise mayo!) 
3T (heaping Tablespoons) creamy Peanut Butter
1/2 C mixed nuts (or nuts of your choice), chopped
Prep:  Before you even think about getting your celery and fruit chopped up, put a medium sized glass or metal bowl in the freezer and a can of evaporated milk in the fridge. You’ll want them both nice and cold. Ok…now you can chop the apples, dice the celery, half the grapes and set them aside. And if you’re using marshmallows, add them in with this stuff.

After your bowl is nice and COLD, take it out of the freezer–maybe with an oven mitt so it doesn’t stick to your hands…and don’t lick it 😉  You know I’m thinking of the Christmas Story, right? Ok…moving on:

Next, pour the cold evaporated milk into the cold bowl and beat it on high with a mixer until it’s nice and frothy (I love that word).  Beat in the yogurt and PB, take a little taste, then pour the mixture over the solids.

Stir it all together and chill until serving.  Yum!

Caprese Salad

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I never even knew what a Caprese Salad was until I went on a cruise and saw it listed on the menu.  I tried it.  I…LOVED…IT!! Oh my goodness–so fresh.  And fresh basil–are you kidding me right now?  So awesome.  Anyway, after the most recent cruise, I decided we needed to try this at home and it is so easy to prepare.  I made some yesterday and got requests to make it again today.  This was our entree for supper for two nights in a row.  We probably ate the equivalent of a salad for two…each.  Yes, but didn’t I tell you it was really good?  Try it.   See for yourself.  Let me know what you think.

 

 

 
 
Ingredients:
3 fresh tomatoes, sliced in 1/4-inch slices (Romas are good but you can also use cluster tomatoes)
1 lb. fresh mozzarella, sliced in 1/4-inch slices
1/2 pkg. of fresh basil, chopped (or more, to taste)
Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and pepper to taste
 
1.  To plate your salad, alternate slices of tomato with mozzarella.
2.  Sprinkle with chopped fresh basil.
3.  Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil
4.  Salt and pepper to taste.


TIP:  I have used a white balsamic vinegar when I didn’t want the brown liquid on my mozzarella.  It has a slightly sweeter taste.

 
 


 
 

 

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Fresh Spinach Salad

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This is a delicious recipe. Be sure to allow enough time to chill the dressing for 30 minutes. You can either prep the eggs, bacon, and onion during the chilling time, or you can prepare them in advance so those portions of the salad will also be chilled once the salad is assembled.
 
Ingredients:
1/2 C vegetable oil (I use EVOO)
1/4 C red wine vinegar (I prefer balsamic vinegar)
3/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. dried whole oregano
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 lb. fresh spinach (I use the bagged, prewashed kind)
6-8 slices bacon, cooked and sliced (or you can buy precooked bacon crumbles or pieces, though I don’t recommend bacon bits)
2 boiled eggs, peeled and diced
1 small red onion, sliced and separated into rings or chopped (I don’t use the whole onion b/c it has such a strong flavor–just use as much as your taste-buds like)
grape or cherry tomatoes as desired
 
1. Combine oil, vinegar, salt, oregano, and pepper in a jar. (I have this awesome dressing emulsifier from Williams Sonoma.) Cover tightly and shake vigorously. Chill at least 30 minutes.
 
[Photo from Williams Sonoma]
 
2. Combine spinach, bacon, eggs, and onion in large bowl.

3. Add tomatoes to the salad. (You might choose to halve them for easy stabbing.) I don’t toss the salad because doing so causes the toppings to collect at the bottom.

 
4. If you have a dressing dispenser, I recommend keeping the dressing in it and adding the dressing to the individual servings (rather than tossing the salad with the dressing until it’s well coated) because the salad shrinks dramatically once the dressing is added. You can imagine how soggy your leftovers will be if you add it all at once. If you don’t have a dressing dispenser, you can use something with a spout, like a liquid measuring cup, and just whisk the dressing with a fork as needed.
 
Makes 8 servings.
 
Source: Brew Family Cookbook (Tomatoes aren’t part of the original recipe; I add them for color and flavor.)
 

Asian Coleslaw

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This is so refreshing and yummy. I found this recipe on pinterest and had to try it. I tweaked it a bit and it was great!

Dressing:
1/4 c honey
1/4 c vegetable oil
1/4 c unseasoned rice vinegar
1 TBSP soy sauce
1 tsp oil
1/2 TBSP peanut butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp hot sauce (optional)
1/2 TBSP ginger
1 large garlic clove, minced

Slaw:
4 cups prepared shredded coleslaw
2 cups prepared shredded carrots
1 red pepper,, thinly sliced into bite size pieces
1 cup pre-cooked, shelled edamame
2 med scallions, finely chopped
1/2 cup choped salted peanuts (optional)
1/2 cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro (optional -i did not add!)

I am not a cilantro fan, so that is the reason for the exclamation point.

Make the dressing by combining all ingredients in medum bowl. Stir until peanut butter is dissolved. Set aside.

combine all of the slaw ingredients in a large bowl. Add dressing and toss well. Let sit at least 10 minutes so vegetables have a chance to soak up the dressing. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary…I needed to add salt to this. Chill the slaw in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Spinach Salad

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After all of the holiday treats I have been eating, I thought I probably should throw in a salad..or 3! This spinach salad was served at our Relief Society Enrichment Night (women’s group at church) with lasagna and garlic buttered french bread. It was really delicous! I changed the recipe to fit our likes and thought I’d share it with ya’ll! The recipe calls for oil, but was substituted with water! So refreshing!

SALAD:
1 pkg. of spinach
1 pkg of iceburg garden salad
1 small red onion, 1tsp grated for dressing and slice the rest
1/2 lb. any white cheese
1/2 lb. bacon crumbled

DRESSING:
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
1/2 cup oil OR 1/2 cup water
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. grated red onion
1/2 tsp. dry mustard

Dump all of the salad packages into a huge bowl. Slice red onion over top and sprinkle cheese and bacon over top. Toss with dressing..really well!

Easy-Peezy Chicken Salad

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This recipe is here for you if you ever need to make an appetizer in a flash!

Ingredients (all to taste):

canned chicken breast, drained
dill salad cubes
mayonnaise
kosher salt (or regular)
pepper
1. Mix all ingredients together! You can serve with crackers but it’s also good as a sandwich.
Note–careful not to add too much salt as there is already salt in the pickles.
Source: my old boss, Lynn Burleson, had her husband make this at our request for several work events. It’s so good that I was disappointed when it didn’t show at one!

Field Greens With Roasted Bacon-Wrapped Pears

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2/3 cup pecan halves
12 fully cooked bacon slices
3 large pears, peeled and quartered
Wooden picks
6 cups mixed salad greens
2/3 cup shaved Parmesan cheese
Apple-Ginger Vinaigrette

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant. Wrap 1 bacon slice around each pear quarter; secure with a wooden pick. Place pear quarters on a wire rack in a 15×10 inch jellyroll pan. Bake 10 minutes.

2. Arrange salad greens on 4 serving plates; sprinkle with pecans and Parmesan cheese. Top with pears. Serve with Apple-Ginger Vinaigrette.

Apple-Ginger Vinaigrette:
Makes about 2 cups

1/2 cup apple jelly, melted
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 T. Dijon mustard
3 T. chopped fresh chives
2 T. light brown sugar
2 t. grated fresh ginger
1/4 t. salt
1 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Whisk together first 7 ingredients; gradually whisk in oil in a slow stream, whisking until well blended.

Source: Southern Living Test Kitchen

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