Aw Shucks Southwestern Pasta Salad

If ever there was a recipe that is not sacrosanct in terms of ingredients, this would be the one.

You can add, subtract, change the amounts, just about do whatever you want, to make it fit your tastes.

That’s the beauty of pasta. It adapts. It has the ability to serve as the foundation of so many other tastes, and blend them beautifully.

This is but one version you might try. Quite frankly, it was what I had on hand at the time.

The dressing, however, can be used as a standard upon which to choose the veggies you wish.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2/3 of a box of pasta of whatever shape you prefer.
• 2 cups chopped celery
• 1/2 c chopped scallions
• 2/3 c chopped cherry tomatoes (or romas)
• 1 c corn (frozen if fine)
• 1/2 c Pico de Gallo (home-made preferred but commercial if you desire)
• 2 tbsp Mexican spices (taco seasoning–homemade or commercial)
• 2/3 c vinaigrette (using either lime juice or lemon as the acidic instead of vinegar)
• 1/4 c mayonnaise
• 1 tsp hot pepper flakes

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Cook the pasta al dente and then cool until no more than warm.
2. Add the veggies of you choice or those above.
3. Add the mayo to the vinaigrette and whisk until smooth.
4. Add the spices to the vinaigrette and stir until mixed.
5. Place the pepper flakes on a cutting board and run a knife over several times until it is minced. Add to the vinaigrette.
6. Pour over the salad, and mix.

Serves: 6

NOTE: You may wish to consider beans of any type, rinse before adding. Broccoli flowerets, cauliflower, lima beans, green beans, radishes, carrots, the list is pretty much endless. You might substitute a finely minced jalapeño or other fresh hot chile for the pepper flakes. Consider a pickled hot pepper. Note also that the addition of shrimp, seasoned ground beef, chicken, ham, etc., would make this a complete meal.

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Oh, Oh, Olive Salad

This is sublime. Simply said.

And it has a lot more uses than you might assume.

While traditional for a Muffulatta sandwich (which I’ll be posting tomorrow), it can be used with bruschetta and cream cheese or with goat cheese. It can be added to jazz up a pasta salad or macaroni or potato salad. You can be pretty inventive!

And if handled carefully, it can hold up quite well in the fridge. Just be very careful to use very clean spoons which haven’t been dipped in other foods, and you should be fine for several days if not a couple of weeks with this.

There are lots of recipes out there, but they are not all that different, just varying in a few ingredients. What is basic to all of course is the use of olives.

So do make sure you copy this one for use as your creative spirit leads you.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2/3 c green olives, chopped
• 2/3 c kalamata olives, chopped
• 1/2 c Gardeniara (pickled cauliflower, carrots, celery, and pepperoncini peppers), chopped a bit more finely
• 1/2 c roasted red peppers drained, and roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, micro-planed
• 1 Tbsp capers, rinsed
• 1/3 c chopped celery
• 1/4 c chopped green scallions
• 1/8 c fresh parsley, minced
• 1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped or 1 tsp dried
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• EVOO as needed to bind everything
• pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Mix all the ingredients together, add enough olive oil to bind, add pepper to taste.
2. Store in fridge at least over night before using to blend all the flavors.
3. Keep refrigerated using only clean spoons to remove as needed.

 

Orzo Pasta Salad

Like pasta salad?

Tired of the old spaghetti, and some veggies covered with Wishbone Italian? Me too.

I am always on the lookout for something interesting and  Lindsay McCue came through in a big way with this great salad. Everything worked. The pasta, the beans, the vinaigrette.

I made it as she wrote it, with only one difference. I didn’t want to open a new container of chicken broth, and so I only used 2 cups instead of four and added about 1 cup of water. As it was, the pasta absorbed most of the liquid (watch carefully) and was perfect as it was.

I also substituted sunflower seeds for the pine nuts because I had them, they are way cheaper, and they taste good!

This will be a go-to summer salad this year for sure.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 c chicken stock
• 1 1/2 c orzo pasta
• 1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans (drained and rinsed)
• 1 1/2 c grape tomatoes (halved or diced)
• 3/4 c chopped red onion (or scallions)
• 1/2 chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 c chopped parsley (or mint)
• crumbled feta cheese
• toasted pine nuts (or sunflower, or frankly anything else you might like nut wise)
• 1/2 c rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 c fresh lemon juice
• 2 tsp honey
• salt and pepper as needed
• 1 c EVOO or canola oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Bring the stock to boil and add the orzo. Cook until tender but al dente. Watch carefully if you use less than the 4 cups. It will absorb most all the liquid, which is fine. Drain if necessary and stir now and then to help it cool.
2. Add everything up through the parsley and stir.
3. Make the vinaigrette and add to the salad and stir.
4. Top with the feta and nuts and serve.

NOTE: This recipe can be swapped out in a number of ways. Change the beans, or the fresh herbs making it southwestern, add different raw veggies. Add jalapeños, or different cheese. Obviously you can Asian it up easily.  Add cooked chicken or tuna. It can be a whole meal if you desire.

Serves: 6

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Have It Your Way Cheeseburger Salad

Okay, this requires some explanation. This starts off sounding really good, then you read the recipe, and you go, “uh, I’m not so sure, . . .like where is the dressing? And dill pickles in a salad?”

But I decided, despite my reservations, to give it a go.

And well, let me just say, “WOW”.

Okay, it’s not like winning the lottery or anything, but as you start to eat this, the lights go on, and you start to smile, (not too much, or food will fall out of your mouth), and then it’s like an epiphany.

Oh, this is like a real cheeseburger, but one where the lettuce is soggy and wilted, and the onions haven’t slid out and there is only one measly pickle on it, and the dang mustard is dripping on my shirt. You use a fork and assemble each bite in the amounts you like! It becomes a cheeseburger that has crunch!

So do try it. Of course remove and add ingredients that suit your taste. And by the by, this recipe comes directly from Ree Drummond, the PioneerWoman.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1/3 c Ketchup
• 1 tbsp Yellow mustard
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp barbecue sauce
• 2 heads romaine lettuce or other type you like
• 4 dill pickles, diced
• 4 Roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 c grated sharp cheddar
• 4 whole hamburger buns
• 1 stick butter

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Brown the meat, then add the ketchup, mustards and bbq sauce. (taste as you do, I added more of most except the ketchup, and feel free to change up the mustards to what you prefer–jalapeño mustard could be awesome!) Continue cooking until meat is cooked through.
2. Meanwhile, take your buns (or use bread if you wish) and cube it up. Melt about 1/2 of the butter in a saute pan and add the cubes and brown, adding more butter as needed until the bread is all crispy and browned into croutons.
3. Dice up your other veggies and cheese. I put them in bowls on the table to you can build your own salad
4. Tear up the lettuce and place on the plates. Build your cheeseburger, your way!

Serves: 4

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Golden Honey Mustard Dressing

I am a salad lover, so it stands to reason that the dressing is important to me. I’m not a fan of bottled stuff, mostly because it doesn’t taste good, and I can’t figure out what half of the ingredients are.

So when I add meat to my salad, well it’s even more imperative that the dressing be great. This is simple and goes together so fast, that I could almost make it faster than you can unscrew the cap on some bottled junk.

When we have left over steak, or when I plan it out with a newly roasted chicken breast, I get all my favorite lettuces and cukes, and sweet peppers and on and on, spread out my luscious meat across the top, and ladle on this wonderful sweet yet tangy topping.

And then we binge! Oh, and if you want some real spice to this, especially with chicken, add a chopped up jalapeño and get down and dirty!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 c mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp standard mustard
• 2 tbsp honey
• pinch of salt
• 2/3 tsp pepper
• 2-3 tbsp milk (if needed to thin it down)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Put everything save the milk in a bowl and whisk it until everything is incorporated. Add milk as needed to thin.

Serves: 2 large salads, maybe 3.

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Be A Kid Again Jello Salad

Don’t start. I know this is so grade school, so 50′s. But it holds fond memories for me. It was the salad my mother made for Thanksgiving or Christmas, and it subs as dessert. And those holidays were the best when I was a kid.

What is more to the point, is that it is utterly adaptable to whatever fruit or nuts you like.

Explore the jello aisle, pick your poison, and then hop over to fruits and go wild. Mix and match as the holiday dictates or the tummy yearns for.

This is kid-friendly, and you know you sophisticated types sneak it when nobody is looking. So indulge!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 3 oz boxes of jello of your choice
• 1 pt. vanilla ice cream
• 1 cup fruit of your choice
• 1/2 c nuts of your choice
• 1 c miniature marshmallows

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Dissolve the jello in 2 cups of boiling water.
2. Add the ice cream and melt, stirring with a whisk.
3. Place in fridge for about 45 minutes. Take out and stir (it wants to separate)
4. Continue to do this until it starts to thicken.
5. Add the rest of your ingredients.
6. Stir. Place in a mold if you desire. ( I never bother)
7. Place in fridge until set.

Serves: 10

Possible choices:

• lime jello, pineapple, walnuts
• cherry jello, cherries, almonds
• orange jello, mandarin oranges, pecans
• peach jello, peaches, walnuts
• tropical jello, mangos or papaya, macadamia nuts
• clear jello, strawberries and blueberries, walnuts
• raspberry jello, raspberries, almonds

 

Elevating the Lowly ColeSlaw

 

 

Let’s face it. Coleslaw is about as exciting as iceberg lettuce.

No wonder.

In restaurants, it’s relegated to a tiny bowl or worse yet a paper cup. It is swimming in a white water, and you have to drain each forkful before moving it to your mouth.

At home, it’s not any better. You reach for a bag of “pre-shredded” mix, and grab a bottle of something called “slaw dressing” and pour it on. It’s a crime that the dang stuff don’t mix itself for ya.

But coleslaw is a glorious side, and can be a perfect beginning to succulent fried fish, or a great Coney dog. And don’t get me started if we talk about some hot and spicy ribs.

So, listen up, vary it up, and rediscover cabbage!

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 c shredded cabbage (do it yourself for heaven’s sake. It’s so much prettier!)
• 1/2 c assorted additions such as red cabbage, radish sticks, chopped scallions, broccoli “slaw’”, celery and/or carrots
• 1/3 c mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp vinegar. Choose from white, cider, wine, rice wine, lemon or lime juice.
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp pepper
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp cayenne, or 1 tbsp horseradish
• 1 tsp or more of toasted celery seed, parsley or cilantro, lemon scented herbs, mint, or anything that strikes your fancy (for the fresh herbs I’d say 2 tbsp.)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Combine your veggies in a serving bowl.
2. Place mayo, vinegar of choice, sugar, pepper, and salt in a small bowl and whisk.
3. Add whatever spices or herbs you have chosen to the dressing.
4. Pour over the veggies and mix. Eat immediately.
5. This dressing is thick but it will bleed out over time, so refrigerated leftovers will still get some liquid in the bottom. So try to plan just the right amount to be eaten in one sitting.
6. Note that you can change up the ingredients in both dressing and the veggies to compliment your main dish.

Serves: 3-4 

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