In my last post I declared I was back in a rhythm. I unintentionally lied to you! You see, as of September 1, I began a new chapter in my life and there is no rhythm at all this point. I've been off the last few weeks after resigning from our company in order to make a major career change. Exactly what I want to be when I grow up is still unclear at this point, however, I know it will involve working with children in some way. In the meantime, I'll be gaining experience working with children by substitute teaching starting today. I'm really excited about what the future holds!

You know what else makes me excited? Pasta. I could eat it several nights a week if JR was on board with me. However, he is a rice guy (nothing wrong with that!), so while pasta makes its appearance, it's only once a week if that.

When we are invited to gatherings, especially last minute ones, I use that as an opportunity to sneak in a pasta dish. This Italian Pasta Salad has made it's appearance at many family gatherings, which included a recent picnic. One of the things I like most about this dish is that I often have all the ingredients on hand and I can mix up what I use for vegetables, cheeses, meats and dressings that you This salad is so forgiving, and while I never have a duplicate final product it's always delicious. If you have time, make this the night before so the pasta has time to soak in the dressing.

Here is what you'll need if you're feeding a crowd (otherwise, cut back ingredients for a smaller portion):

• 2 pounds medium shaped pasta (i.e. shells, rotini, wagon wheels, bowties, etc.)
• 4-6 oz. pepperoni, diced (or diced ham, salami or other meat)
• 4-6 oz. cheddar cheese, diced (or any cheese of your choice)
• handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cucumber, diced
• 1 can of small black olives
• 6 oz. jar marinated mushrooms, halved (or artichokes)
• 6 oz. jar roasted peppers, chopped (or fresh peppers)
• 16 oz. bottle balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing (or other dressing of your choice)

Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions. Drain and cool.

Once pasta is cooled, mix all ingredients together. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Before serving, stir. Serves 12+.

I'm always looking for new ways to utilize these star vegetables of summer.  This salad is inspired by this corn soup recipe I started making 2 summers ago (I hope to make and blog this soon).  Since I had both a leftover ear of corn and fresh tomatoes on hand, and I knew they went well together I decided to make a light salad to accompany our Shrimp Burgers.

The corn and scallions tied in nicely with the burgers.  I just used a bit of vinegar to give it some flavor, but still keep the flavor mild which I appreciated for balancing out the tartness of the burger's tartar sauce.

Here is what you'll need:

• corn kernels, cut from 2 fresh cobs of corn
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 2 Tbsp chopped scallions
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp red wine vinegar
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a small bowl and combine well.  Let sit for a 20 minutes before serving.   Serves 2 as a side.

This post jumped to the front of the line after our Sunday lunch.  When I can serve my husband a meal with very minimal meat, and he's satisfied, it's cause for celebration!  As we started lunch JR was making comments such as, "this is really good", "I'd eat this again", "these figs are the perfect ripeness".  He never asked, "where's the meat?"  I'm shocked, but I shouldn't be.  I did add just a few very slices of shaved prosciutto to the salads, and that was enough for him.  Lesson learned.

Since fig season is so short, when I came across this recipe on courant.com last week, it immediately went on our weekly menu plan.  I'm so grateful it did.  I found arugula and a perfect goat milk feta, not too salty, at Sunday's farmer's market.  I was unsure about arugula since I'd never had it before and I'm not generally fond of bitter flavors, however, it worked really well here.

I served this with a side of toasted baguette (also from the farmer's market), sliced and drizzled with olive oil and the remaining dressing.  This really was the perfect lunch for a blazing hot Sunday.

Here is what you'll need:

• 1 bunch arugula
• 2.5 oz. feta cheese, cubed
• 4 figs, quartered
• 4 slices shaved prosciutto 
• 1/4 cup pecans
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp sea salt

In a small frying pan, toast the pecans over medium-high heat.  Be sure you watch them carefully and shake the pan a few times to move them around.  When you begin to smell the nuts, they're done.  Remove them from the heat and allow to cool.  Once cool, chop.

Arrange arugula, feta, figs, prosciutto and pecans on a plate.

In a small bowl, add vinegar, olive oil, honey and salt.  Whisk well.  Drizzle over salad.  Serves 2 as a main meal, serves 4 as a side.

• 2-3 cups of cubed ciabatta
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 lb. small tomatoes, quartered
• 1/4 English cucumber, cut into 1 in. chunks
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1 in. chunks
• 2 Tbsp chopped basil
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

In a large bowl, place ciabatta, 2 Tbsp olive oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper to taste.  Toss until all the bread is coated well.

Heat a nonstick pan to medium-high heat.  Add bread to pan and toast, turning over until all sides are browned.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Add remaining ingredients to large mixing bowl.  Toss until combined well.

Add toasted bread to mixing bowl just before serving.  Toss gently until well combined.  Serves 3.

As much as I like to cook homemade, I have no problem using boxed items from time to time.  Suddenly Salad Ranch & Bacon is one of those boxed items that I tend to go to for cookouts, because it goes over well with my family, particularly those who are less adventurous and/or don't like vegetables.  I am one of those people who likes to prepare enough side dishes so that there is at least one for each guest to eat (but sometimes I secretly want to just make what I like!).

When preparing for a recent cookout, I decided to try my hand at a knock-off.  After all, I almost always have these ingredients on hand, so why would I go out and buy the box?  While I'm sure I'm not the first to have made this, my only reference point was my memory of the prepared box mix.

The resulting salad was way more flavorful than any box can produce!  For starters, we're talking REAL bacon here.  Not only that, I had a bit better idea of what is in this, aside from the ranch mix, and I cut back some calories and fat by using milk, buttermilk and mayonnaise with olive oil.  Next time, I want to make a homemade ranch dressing, which I'm sure will bring this salad to a whole new level.

By the way, how can someone not like vegetables?  I will never understand.

Here is what you'll need:

• 1 lb bowtie or other shaped pasta
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 lbs bacon, cooked crisp and divided
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise with olive oil
• 1 packet powdered ranch salad dressing mix
• black pepper to taste

Bring salted water to a boil.  Add pasta and continue boiling 10 minutes.  Add frozen peas to water and continue boiling 2 minutes, or until cooked to al dente.  Strain pasta and peas, run under cool water to stop the cooking process and allow to drain well.

In a large fry pan over medium-high heat, cook bacon until crisp.  You may need to do this in several batched depending on the size of your pan.  Remove crisp cooked bacon from pan and drain on a plate lined with paper towel.  Allow to cool completely.  Crumble into bite size pieces.

In a large mixing bowl, add milk, buttermilk, mayonnaise with olive oil, ranch salad dressing mix and black pepper.  Whisk until well combined.

Add pasta and peas to dressing.  Gently toss until the pasta is well coated.  Add 1/2-3/4 of the cooked bacon and gently toss to combine.  Top with remaining bacon.  Serves 8-10 as a side.

Hello my dear readers!  I've been on a hiatus recovering from an unexpected ailment. My next few posts are recipes I made over a month ago.  I am so sorry, I just didn't have it in me to get them posted.  The good news is that I'm well now,  I finally feel like blogging and I have a bunch of recipes to share with you.  I thank you for sticking with me and hope you enjoy what is to come! 

You can see a trend with the last few posts; the weather was getting warmer and my last 3 posts are salads.  Well, I hope you don't mind, but the June 2011 edition of Cooking Light had several great looking recipes, a few of which happened to be salads including this one.  This works for me, because their prep really couldn't be any easier which is great for a weeknight meal.

My local store doesn't sell ricotta salata, so I opted to go with goat cheese which I think worked well.  Luckily I had just purchased a mint plant for my garden, because the mint really adds another dimension of freshness which I glad we didn't miss out on.  While I have a jar of dried mint, I think fresh ingredients all around is the only way to go with this dish.

Here is what you'll need:

• 1 medium zucchini
• 2 medium yellow squash
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp thinly sliced fresh mint
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
• 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 3 thin slices prosciutto (1 ounce), chopped (I think you need 4 slices, one to snack on)
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled ricotta salata, feta cheese or goat cheese

Using a vegetable peeler over a large mixing bowl, shave the zucchini and squash lengthwise into long noodle-like strips.  Salt vegetables and toss.

In a small bowl, combine mint, olive oil, lemon rind, lemon juice, and black pepper.  Pour liquid over squash, toss and allow to sit.

In a medium frying pan over medium-high heat, cook prosciutto until browned and crisp.  Transfer to a plate to cool.  Once cool, eat one slice and crumble the rest into bite size pieces.

Add prosciutto and cheese to squash and gently toss to combine.  Serves 3.

With Memorial Day weekend upon us, I wanted to post another healthy side dish option for you to balance out the carb and mayo laden dishes you're sure to face at BBQ's.  Don't get me wrong, I love carbs and mayo, but I also like to have some balance.

Before I get to the recipe, if you're still looking for other healthy side dish ideas, check out these salads Spinach, Fruit and Cheese Salad, Balsamic Strawberry Couscous Salad, Honey Mustard Cole Slaw, Black Bean and Corn Salad and Knock-off Tabbouleh.  And while I'm at it, this Strawberry Shortcake would make a great dessert if you're still searching for one.

When I made the Shrimp and Peas Pasta Salad I had a hard time thinking of what to serve with it.  While it could stand on it's own, I need some variety in my meal.  Since it already contained protein, vegetables, starch and fat, I was stumped.

I recalled the last bunch of radishes I threw away and challenged myself to use them up here.  While we like radishes, they aren't our preferred vegetable so they tend to get pushed to the bottom of the produce drawer.  Once they land there, they sit there, for weeks.  Then I can't figure out what's at the bottom of the produce drawer, and that's not pretty.  I wasn't going to let that happen again.

Enter this pickled salad for which I had all the ingredients on hand.  I added red onion and this became a perfect accompaniment to the pasta salad, ever so slightly sweet without the pungency of raw onion.  This is a very refreshing salad that I can see making again this summer to balance out the starchy, mayo laden, summer salads.  I may play around with it by adding some fresh herbs as well.

This was better the 2nd day, so I would recommend you make it the night before you plan to serve it.

Here is what you'll need:

• 1/8 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1/8 cup white vinegar
  
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 English cucumber, thinly sliced
• 1 cup thin radish slices
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

It just so happened we had a late work night the day I planned to make this pasta salad I had seen in Cooking Light's June 2011 magazine for dinner.  Needless to say, I was starving by the time I left work and that usually means I'd order take-out to pick up on my way home.  While take-out was tempting, I knew this recipe was planned for dinner and I thought I could make it quicker than I could gnaw my arm off.

• 8 ounces uncooked medium shell pasta (I use whole grain)
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• 1 lb small-medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used the small, sweet, pink Maine shrimp)
• 1 cup thinly sliced radishes
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise with olive oil
• 1/4 cup low fat buttermilk
• 3 Tbsp minced fresh chives
• 1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground red pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, minced

I just love spring and summer salads.  Today I made 3 of them; fruit salad, potato salad and this Balsamic Strawberry Couscous Salad which I found on Prevention RD blog.  I could have happily eaten spinach, strawberry and goat cheese salad for lunches again this week, however, I decided to switch it up which helps keep me from getting bored.

I made a couple changes to the recipe.  I used black beans, since I had 1/2 a can leftover, and an herbed goat cheese, since I had no fresh herbs on hand.  And since I'm on a spinach kick, that made a perfect bed for this salad.  This is absolutely delicious, and will keep me fueled this week.

My changes are included here:

• 1 1/3 water
• 1/2 tsp olive oil
• salt to taste
• 1 cup dry couscous, prepared according to directions

• 2 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 1 tsp sugar
• 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 oz herbed goat cheese, crumbled
• Baby spinach leaves
• Scallions for garnish

Bring water, olive oil and salt to a bowl in a small saucepan.  Add couscous, turn off heat, cover and allow to cook 5 minutes.  Fluff with a fork and set aside to cool.

Place strawberries in a large mixing bowl, sprinkle with sugar and balsamic vinegar.  Set aside a few minutes, until couscous is cool.

Add couscous, beans and goat cheese to strawberries, carefully mixing to combine.

Serve over spinach, which a few snips of scallions for garnish.  Serves 4.

When we get together for holidays, I find a lot of the dishes are heavy and scarce on produce.  I'm always struggling with how to balance my meal.  For Easter this year I decided to bring a lighter dish that would enable me to fill up on something healthy.  Then I could enjoy smaller portions of the other dishes without feeling guilty and overstuffed at the end of the meal.

I've been on a spinach kick lately, so it's no surprise to me that I ended up making a spinach salad.  I find that mixing spinach with fruit, cheese and nuts ends up feeling decadent, so I thought it would be a great fit for a holiday.  I dressed this with my favorite store bought light balsamic vinaigrette.

You can use just about any fruit, cheese and nut combination you choose.  Since we have a few allergies, I used the following combination, serving the nuts on the side.  I'd estimate this would serve 4 as a meal and 8 as a side.

Here is what I used:

• 1 bag baby spinach, washed
• 6 oz. blueberries, washed
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 3 oz. soft goat cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
• Your favorite balsamic vinaigrette

I've been experimenting with different creamy coleslaw recipes and have yet to find one I really like.  I used to follow the directions on the bag of shredded cabbage, but these days I don't buy the bag anymore.  Buying the full head of cabbage stretches into multiple meals, so that is what I do now.  This may not be a good thing for JR though! ;)

Today I wanted to make JR one of his favorite lunches, a double bacon cheeseburger.  However, I can't eat a double bacon cheeseburger without gaining 5 lbs, so I make myself a single with a vegetable side dish.  I wanted a smoky burger, so I thought a honey mustard coleslaw would pair nicely.

We both really liked the zip and mild sweetness that this had, plus I was happy to be able to keep the mayonnaise to a minimum making this fairly healthy.  This is definitely something can see us eating throughout the upcoming grilling season.

Do you have a favorite coleslaw recipe I should try?

Here is what you'll need:

• 1 tsp grainy mustard
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp honey
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 3 Tbsp mayonnaise with olive oil
• 2 cups shredded cabbage
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 carrot, shredded

Combine the mustards, honey, sugar and mayo in a large bowl.  Mix well.  Add remaining ingredients and mix until well incorporated.  Refrigerate for a minimum of 15 minutes before serving.  Serves 2.

Warning, this post contains parsley!  That may not be alarming to you, but it is a big deal for me.  I really thought I didn't like parsley, so much so that I contemplating making this with cilantro, however, I decided I needed to give parsley another try.  I'm glad I did, because it's not that bad afterall.
 
Are you wondering why this is labeled "knock-off"?  Basically because I didn't follow a recipe, and I'm pretty sure this isn't authentic in any way.  I wanted something similar to a dish I had for lunch at a Moroccan restaurant a few weeks back, and based on what I recall of the dish I came up with this.

I served this with whole wheat pita, raw cucumbers, baby carrots, grape tomatoes and hummus.  When you stuff all of these components in the pita you have yourself a delicious sandwich!

Here's what you'll need:

• 2 cups cooked couscous
• 1/2 cup diced English cucumber
• 1/2 cup quartered grape tomatoes
• ~1 Tbsp chopped mint leaves
• ~ 1/2 cup chopped Parsley
• 2 tsp olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 garlic clove minced

Combine all ingredients together in a bowl.  Let sit in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.  Serves 2 for lunch, 4 as a side.

Here is an easy salad I made up last summer when I was looking for something quick and easy to serve with empanadas.  I made this again recently to go with these Grilled Honey Tangerine Sandwiches.  I love that it is not only easy and delicious, but healthy and protein packed.  I always make the full recipe since this is a perfect for lunch the next day.

Here is what you need:

• 1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup frozen corn, cooked and cooled
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 2 Tbsp diced red onion
• 1 handful cilantro, chopped

Mix all ingredients together.  Chill until ready to serve.  Serves 4-6 as a side.