Bowtie Pasta Salad

 We are trying to make a conscience effort at our house to eat better. I found a this yummy recipe in Runner's World and changed a few ingredients and a few other things and came up with this yummy pasta salad great for a light summer timer meal.  My boys even tired some of it and thought it was ok.

2 T Olive Oil
1 small red onion chopped
1 T minced garlic
1 c mixed olives pitted(I used a bag of salad olives that I found in the produce department)
Juice of 1 lemon
1 c cherry tomatoes
1/2 c crumbled feta cheese
1 box bow tie pasta cooked and drained
1 c spinach

Put oil in skillet over medium heat add onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes.  Stir in olives, lemon juice and tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook until heated and then let cool.   Put pasta in a large bowl and add cooled mixture, feta and spinach. Enjoy!!

Sarah's Salad

I made this salad for a family party and was asked for the recipe.  Sorry the picture is not the best this was taken after most of the salad was eaten!

1 head iceberg lettuce
3 strips of bacon
1/2 10 ounce pkg frozen peas
1/4 t sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/2 c shredded Swiss cheese or cut 2 1/2 ounces in strips
2/3 c. chopped green onion
1/4 c mayonnaise
1/4 c salad dressing

Wash an drain lettuce.  Dry thoroughly. Dice bacon and saute until crisp; drain on paper towels.  Run hot water over frozen peas and drain. Tear lettuce into bite-sized pieces into salad bowl.  Sprinkle with sugar, salt and pepper.  Add peas, cheese, onion, mayonnaise and salad dressing. (These ingredients by be layered, if desired, with mayonnaise spread on last. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.) Chill.  Toss when ready to serve and garnish with bacon.

Spinach Lasagna Rolls

I got this recipe from Good Things Utah  (click on Good Things Utah for the recipe)from their guest Kat Peterson.  They were super easy to make and my boys and the neighbor girls ate spinach and didn't even realize it!!  This recipe makes a big batch so if you have a small group you are feeding you can freeze some of them.

Now that I made this recipe several times I have made a few variations they are listed in red.

1 lb Lasagna Noodles (Boiled in salty water for 8 minutes)
2 Jars (24 oz) Spaghetti Sauce I only use 1 large jar and I pour a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan
1 lb Turkey Sausage I lightly season my turkey with seasoning salt
1 Onion
1 15 oz Ricotta Cheese
2 Eggs
2 Packages Frozen Chopped Spinach (Thaw and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Chop) I don't like the taste of frozen spinach I use fresh it works perfect
6 Tbsp. Fresh Italian Parsley (divided) I only use about 1-2 T in the mixture and I don't put any on the top
1 tsp. Dried Basil
1 tsp. Dried Oregano
4 cup Mozzarella Cheese (1 lb) (reserve ½ C for the top)I have been using an Italian cheese mix
1 cup Parmesan Cheese (reserve ¼ C for top after baking)



Cook pasta in a large pot of heavily salted water for 8 minutes. Drain noodles and set aside.
Brown the turkey sausage in a skillet over medium/high heat with one chopped onion and cook until the onion is translucent. Let this mixture cool slightly.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the meat mixture with the rest of the ingredients except for the sauce. Place a large handful (about ¼ cup) of the mixture on one end of a lasagna noodle and roll the noodle up. Place in a greased baking dish and cover with your favorite jar of sauce. Makes 2 8X8 baking dishes with approximately 9 rolls each. (These can be covered and frozen at this stage)
Bake covered with foil for 30-45 minutes. (Baking time will double if frozen) Remove the foil and bake uncovered for 10 minutes. Let stand with loose foil for 15 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with remaining parmesan cheese and parsley.

Chicken Pasta Salad

6 oz Rotel Pasta
1/2 c. sunflower seeds
1/2 c. oil
1/3 c. soy sauce
1/3 c. vinegar
3 T. sugar
1/4 t. salt and pepper

Cook pasta.  Mix dressing and add to pasta with 3 c. shredded chicken.  Marinate all together overnight.  Just before serving add spinach pieces and chopped green onions.

Flank Steak Salad and Dressing

Marinade

1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. red wine
3 cloves of garlice minced
1/4 t. rosemary
1/4 t. chili powder
1/2 t. pepper

Mix all ingredients and marinate over night and grill to desired doness.

Salad Ingredients

Romaine Lettuce
Cucumber
Red Onion
Blu or Feta Cheese
Tomatoes

Dressing

Juice from 1 lemon
3 cloves of garlic crushed
1/4 to 1/2 c. oil
1 t. salt
1/2 t pepper

Mix juice, garlic, salt and pepper while adding oil.   Beat with whisk briskly.  Cover and put in fridge for at least 3 hours.

Spaghetti Carbonara

Cook 1/2 lb bacon cut in small pieces and set aside.

Herb Marinade

1 clove of garlic
3T olive oil
1 1/2 t basil
1 t. oregano

Cook on low heat.

add 1/2- 3/4 cup of chopped onion

add 1/4 c. cooking wine
salt and pepper to taste
add 1/2 to a full pint of heavy cream

Pour cream into marinade and cook for about 10-15 minutes on medium until you see small bubbles turn to warm and add bacon into the sauce.   Pour sauce over thin spaghetti noodles and toss then serve.

Buttermilk Ranch Dressing/Barbecue Ranch Dressing

This recipe is from Our Best Bites

1 cup mayonnaise
2/3 c buttermilk
1/4 t white vinegar
1 t parsley
1/8 t. dill
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/4 t onion powder
11/2 t dried chives
1/8 t. black pepper
1/4 t. seasoned salt
1/8 t. dry mustard

Whisk together the mayonnaise and buttermilk until the mixture is lump free. Whisk remaining ingredients. For best results, refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.

Variation:   For barbecue ranch dressing add 1-2 T barbecue sauce.

do ahead muffins aka: best recipe ever!

My friend & fellow ballet mom, Gail told me about this recipe recently.

Can I just say...

IT HAS CHANGED MY LIFE FOR THE BETTER!

It's amazing & I am experiencing breakfast happiness & love.

The key: make the batter ahead of time...

freeze the batter in the muffin tins to form a frozen shape...

then pop them in the oven on the busy morning when you need them!!!

BrIllianT

I made them last night- then popped them into a gallon sized freezer bag this morning-

except for the 10 I baked up.

Not only are they easy but they taste fantastic.

I made blueberry & cannot wait to try the other varieties.
check out the recipe

HERE

thanks gail!

Spinach and Feta Pasta

Tonight I made a new recipe from my new cookbook Our Best Bites.  It was a HUGE success!  It only took me about 15 minutes to make this simple easy pasta dish.  For the recipe go here.   This picture does not have the feta cheese in it, I had to put that on the side not every one at my house is a feta cheese fan. 

Spinach,Tomato, Pesto and Cheese Panini

 

 I was introduced to this YUMMY sandwich at a meeting by one of my friends.  It is very simple but oh so good!  All you need is a bread of your choice.  Sourdough tastes yummy and so does multi grain bread.   You need a little bit of pesto and spread it on both slices of bread. Then add some sun dried tomatoes to one side of the bread.

 

Then add spinach and  fresh mozzarella cheese. That's all the ingredients!

 

Then put the sandwich on your panini maker to grill it or grill it on the stove.  These sandwiches are very YUMMY and hit the spot!