Southwestern Slaw

Tis the season for rummage sales.  I love to go rummaging but don't take the time to go nearly enough anymore.  I used to go quite often when my kids were little.  I would come home with bags of toys, clothes, sporting goods etc. for the family for only a few dollars.  It was very rewarding!!!  To think you could acquire all of this for little money.  That was important then as I was a stay at home mom raising 4 kids.  I still love rummage saling but don't take the time to go very often anymore, although I would love to.  Once or twice a year my husband and I will take a day and rummage.  We each get an allowance to spend that day (to keep us from over-doing).  We go out to lunch and generally just enjoy the day.  Well last Saturday was a day that we did that.  The weather was beautiful!!  There was a city-wide sale that provided plenty of goods to choose from.  My weakness is always kitchen gadgets and books.  I can't pass them up.  I always have to stop and take a look.  Well, again as usual I came home with a recipe book that I am quite excited about.  That book is "The Dinner Doctor" by Anne Byrn.  She has many ideas and tips that she shares in this great book.  I have been browsing through that almost 3" thick book to choose recipes to try.  One that I tried last night I liked quite well and will mark it to make again.  Here it is:

Southwestern Slaw


1 16 oz. pkg. coleslaw mix
1/2 c.  finely chopped red onion
1/2 c. ranch  salad dressing
1 t. ground cumin
1 ripe avocado, peeled and cubed
Creole seasoning or salt
black pepper
2 T. chopped fresh cilantro

Place coleslaw mix and onion in a serving bowl and stir to combine.  Stir the cumin into ranch dressing and pour over the cabbage mixture stirring to combine all.  Add salt  to taste. (At this point I put in frig. to marry flavors until dinner, about 2 hours). At serving time I folded in the avocado cubes and sprinkled the top with cilantro.  I didn't have Creole seasoning so I didn't use that.

Golden Rice Pilaf

The wonderful blend of flavors in this dish are amazing!  A great side dish paired with grilled fish or chicken.  I got this recipe off a radio show that you could call in and share favorite recipes.  I will give you the recipe the way it was given but I have adapted it somewhat by using less butter.  It still has great flavor but with less fat and calories.  I also make it now using 1/2 brown rice and half white, but the cooking times are more complicted that way so I will give you the original and you can adapt it to your own preference.

2 medium carrots, julienned**
1 medium onion, diced
1/4 c. butter
2 1/4 c. water
1 c. rice
1/2 c. raisins
1 T. chicken bouillon powder
1/2 t. curry powder
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. thyme
1/4 c. toasted, slivered almonds

Saute onion in butter until wilted and starting to carmelize a bit.  Add in carrots and saute 1-2 minutes longer. Add rest of ingredients but almonds.  Heat to boiling; cover and simmer on med-lo  heat 15 minutes until rice is cooked and water is absorbed.  Fluff; cover and let sit 5 minutes more.  Sprinkle with toasted almonds and serve immediately.
**If you don't have a mandolin for julienne, just use the largest holes on your box grater to grate the carrots.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

It's strawberry season again, finally! Yesterday while grocery shopping I noticed that my grocer had strawberries on sale for $.99 a quart.  Amazing!  They looked really good so we bought 4 quarts.  We will eats lots of them fresh but of course there are many amazing things to do with strawberries.  I like that it is quite fashionable to add fruit to salads these days.  Since we are encouraged to eat more fruits and veggies anyway and green leafy veggies are very high in vital nutrients that we should be eating more of, I will be making this salad alot this spring again.  I just read an article in a diabetes magazine that people should use vinegar in their diets.  Bob Greene (Oprah's trainer for the past 16 years) in the article "encourages everyone to use vinegar, whether or not they have diabetes, because it lowers the glycemic index of a carb-containing meal.  The leading theories:  vinegar reduces starch digestion--so you're actually taking in fewer carbohydates--and it slows the rate at which the stomach empties, leading to a slower, more even trickling of glucose into the bloodstream.  I like to know when I am eating something delicious that it is also good for my body.  This salad has greens and also vinegar as well as healthy strawberries.  Heart healthy nuts can also be added.

Spinach Salad with Strawberries with Raspberry Viniagrette


For each salad I put a large handful of  pre-washed baby spinach into a salad bowl.  I then slice a few strawberries in,  add about 1 T. slivered almonds either toasted or not.  Sometimes I slice in a kiwi too.  Spoon about 2 T. of the viniagrette over each salad.  Fresh raspberries or blueberries can be substituted or use macadamia or hazelnuts etc.

For the Raspberry Viniagrette:


2 T. raspberry vinegar
2 T. olive oil
2 T. raspberry jam

Whisk the ingredients together and serve over salad.  You can also use balsamic vinegar or other flavored vinegars.  Vary the flavor of the jam as well.  This of course tastes best with homemade jam or jelly.

Broccoli Oriental

Broccoli is one of those great for you veggies that are of the cruciferous vegetable family along with cabbage and cauliflower.  They are associated with cancer prevention.  We eat broccoli at least once a week and this is one variation.  I think broccoli pears well with oriental flavors and this is no exception!

Broccoli Oriental


2 10 oz. pkgs. frozen broccoli spears (I use fresh)
1 T. butter
1 T. sugar
1 T. soy sauce
2 t. toasted sesame seeds

Cook broccoli according to package directions.  Drain; keep warm
Combine butter, sugar, soy sauce and 1 T. water; heat till butter melts.  Pour over broccoli; top with sesame seeds.

***To toast sesame seeds, sprinkle in skillet on stove top over med. heat.  stirring occasionally until light golden brown.

Easy Rice Pilaf

This is a good side dish to go with chicken.  It is a homemade version of Rice a Roni.  You could also make this with beef stock.  The original recipe came from The Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash, but I cut the butter down from 4T to 2 to save on fat and calories.

Easy Rice Pilaf

2 T. butter
1/2 c. thin pasta, such as vermicell, broken into 1/2 inch pieces (I use orzo)
1 c. rice
2 c. chicken stock

     Heat butter; just before it begins to brown, add pasta.  Stir until lightly browned.  Stir in rice and saute for a moment until lightly colored.  Add stock; stir once.  Cover pan and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to a gentle simmer.  Cook until all the liquid is absorbed, 15-20 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper if desired.

Crockpot Creamy Ranch New Potatoes

I made these potatoes over the weekend and they we really good.  I like crockpot recipes especially when in a hurry or for entertaining to free me up to visit with guests.  I made these when entertaining and they were easy and no fuss.  I am not quite sure where I got this recipe so don't know who to give credit to.

Creamy Red Potatoes


2 # red potatoes
8 oz. Neufchatel cheese
10 3/4 oz. cream of potato soup
1 envelope ranch dressing mix

Wash and cut potatoes.  If using small red potatoes cut in half or quarters, if using the large cut in 1/8's. Mix remaining and stir into crockpot with potatoes.  Spray crockpot to aid cleanup. Cover and cook on low 8 hours.

Sweet Potato With Apple

We are told to eat a "rainbow" of fruits and veggies each day so I try to incorporate several colors into our meals  every week.  We enjoy sweet potatoes and this recipe is one of our favorites using this orange veggie.

Sweet Potato With Apple


1 large sweet potato
1 Granny Smith or Macintosh apple
brown sugar
cinnamon
salt

Peel sweet potato and slice into 3/4 inch slices.  Lay in single layer in 2 quart casserole.  Add enough water just to cover sweet potatoes.  Microwave 6-7 minutes on high.  Drain. Salt lightly.  Peel and slice apple and layer over sweet potato.  Sprinkle with 2T. brown sugar or to taste and sprinkle top with cinnamon.  Spray with butter flavored cooking spray.  Cover and bake 15- 20 minutes at 350-400 degrees. Makes about 2 servings.

Simple Kale & Mashed Potatoes - 147686 - Recipezaar

We have a really great friend, Wally, who had the blessing of going to Alaska on a fishing trip twice in the last few years and when he goes he brings home lots of salmon and halibut. We are the lucky recipients of some of his catch. I am always looking for new ways with salmon and came upon a new version that I am trying tonight. I will share that with you tomorrow if it is worth sharing after giving it a test run by the family tonight. However, as I was deciding what to make to accompany this new recipe I remembered a great recipe that I have made a couple of times this past summer with the abundance of kale from my garden. I have frozen some of the bounty and thought to use it in this again tonight. My family will grumble when I serve kale unless they find they enjoy the concoction I put together. This is a version that they like pretty well. I add about 1/3c.  freshly grated Parmesan and some garlic powder or garlic salt to this as well.   I love the crunch of the kale along with the smoothness of the potatoes. It also looks pretty mixed together like this. I think next time that instead of  Parm. and garlic salt, I will try adding a couple T. of ranch dressing mix.

Simple Kale & Mashed Potatoes - 147686 - Recipezaar