Greek Spinach-Pasta Salad

{Meatless Monday}

I got this one from my Better Homes and Gardens magazine...love that magazine!  I have been subscribing for well over a decade and I just don't think I'll ever stop!  ; )

Here's what you need for this salad:

6-oz. pkg. fresh baby spinach
1 can (15 oz.) Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup dried tomatoes (not oil-packed), snipped
2 green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel
2 T. lemon juice
2 T. olive oil
1 T. fresh oregano
1 T fresh lemon thyme or thyme
1/2 tsp. kosher salt or sea salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
12 oz. dried cavatappi (twist) or farfalle (bowtie) pasta
 Shaved or shredded parmesan


In a large serving bowl combine spinach, beans, cheese, tomatoes, green onions, garlic, lemon peel and juice, oil, oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper. Cover; let stand at room temperature while preparing pasta or up to 2 hours; stirring occasionally. 


Shortly before serving, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Toss cooked pasta and pasta water with spinach salad mixture. Serve warm or at room temperature. Top with shaved Parmesan cheese.

I only had elbow macaroni the first time I made it, but have since made it with the twist pasta and I liked it better.  This is a light and fresh salad that is perfect for summer. 

Greek Chopped Salad

{Meatless Monday}

This is a recipe that I have had FOREVER on a torn out magazine page from Family Circle.  It has been at least 2 years since I even had a subscription to that magazine!  I am so glad I finally decided to try it.  It is a lovely, simple, fresh salad for this coming summertime.

Here's what you'll need:

For the dressing:
3 T lemon juice
2 T chopped red onion
3 tsp. chopped oregano
1 minced garlic clove
1/8 tsp EACH sugar, salt, and pepper

Whisk all together and then slowly whisk in 4 T olive oil.

For the salad:
2 hearts (or 1 whole) romaine, chopped into 1/2" pieces
1 med. cucumber, cut into 1/2 " pieces
2 cups diced tomatoes (or quartered cherry tomatoes)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 c. chopped parsley
1/3 c. chopped kalamata olives
4-5 oz. feta

Toss together in large bowl and mix with dressing JUST before serving.  The recipe says this only makes 4 servings, but it made more like 6-8.  I actually only mixed half the dressing with half the salad for the first night, and then we had the rest the next day...and it was still fresh.  It wilts really quickly, so only put the dressing on the amount you know you will eat right then.

The Kalamata olives are very strong (which I love) but very expensive (which I don't love!), so you could use regular black olives and it would still be yummy.  When I pointed out to my hubby that he better enjoy those Kalamata olives because they were very expensive, he offered a solution:  he said I could save money by not buying the chickpeas.  ; )  He is not a fan of them, but they are the protein source (along with the feta) in this salad.  If you don't like chickpeas, I am sure you could substitute any small white bean and it would work.
I am almost always too cheap to buy cherry or grape tomatoes, so I just dice up a couple roma tomatoes to substitute.  We ate this as our main dish with some toasted English Muffins on the side.  (And in the spirit of complete disclosure...only my husband, myself, and my 13 year old ate this salad for dinner.  The other kids had egg McMuffins.... ; )  It seemed like a good compromise and it left all the yummy salad to those of us who appreciated it!

Teriyaki Bowtie Spinach Salad

 {Meatless Monday}

This is the MOST amazingly delicious salad!!  I was not sure what to expect. It is a mix between a pasta and a spinach salad, but it is so scrumptious.  There are just so many goodies in it, what's not to like??

Here's what you need:

1 16 oz package bowtie pasta, cooked, rinsed in cold water, and drained

1 bag of baby spinach

2 cans of mandarine oranges
1 cup craisins
1 red pepper, chopped
1 bunch green onions

1 cup cashews 

1/2 cup fresh parsley

1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted if you want

Dressing:
1 cup oil
2/3 cup white wine vinegar--I used 1/2 Rice Vinegar and 1/2 regular Vinegar
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper
2/3 cup Soy Vay Teriyaki sauce (you MUST use this brand...it is SO much better than Kikkoman's)
5 Tbs sugar 

I was able to find this brand at my Walmart...it was just over $3, I think.  It really is a GOOD teriyaki sauce...like one you would make at home!

I mix up the dressing while the pasta is cooking.  Then combine the cooled pasta with the dressing and refrigerate for 1-4 hours.  Once I have that in the fridge, then I chop up the red pepper and green onions and put them in a container in the refrigerator.  All you have to do now is throw it all together about 10 minutes before you are going to serve it.  It makes A LOT...so for my family, I "marinated" all the pasta with all the sauce, but then I only mixed up half of the salad for our dinner.  Then, the next day, I was able to mix up the other half for lunch with friends and everything was still fresh.

I recommend making this SOON...it is so yummy...I think it will become a favorite salad for you too!

Mexican Salad with Cilantro dressing

This is a lot like a salad I posted a while back, but with just a few yummy variations.

My sister in law made this salad when we were all in Seattle for my brother's graduation from dental school.  I FINALLY found the dressing that she had used, but about died when I paid 5.49 for it!!  We will be making this last a long time!!

I just threw together these things:

Romain lettuce, chopped
black beans, drained
corn, drained
pepper jack cheese, grated or in small cubes--or any cheese you have!
red and/or yellow bell peppers, cut into small chunks
Chips around the edge

Litehouse CREAMY CILANTRO dressing.....oh, YUM!!!  This stuff is amazing.  I wish I could learn how to make it myself and safe a bundle on my grocery bill.  I was kind of afraid to introduce my husband to it, because I'm afraid he'll want it to become a staple in our house...but he might have to get a second job to support the habit! ; )

Veggie Ensaladas (Bajio style)

I don't know if you all have Bajio or Cafe Rio near you, but we love their veggie salads.  Last week, some girlfriends and I ordered salads from Bajio and then the following day, I decided to make my own since I had leftover dressing...and it was DELICIOUS!

So I thought I'd share the recipe here.  They turned out very good, but I do think that the next time I want to make these, I will go buy a couple of their little dressing cups...because it is about 10 times yummier than regular ranch and it absolutely MAKES the salad!

Here's what you need: (I just realized I forgot to put rice in the picture.  Grr....it was already in the rice cooker!)

 Tortillas, Refried Beans, Black Beans, Rice, Cheese, Corn, Onion, Lettuce, Salsa, Ranch, and Chips.

Saute the onions and corn in a little oil/butter and corn juice.  Season with salt and pepper.  Saute for 7-8 minutes until onions are tender.

I heat up my black beans, undrained, in the microwave.

And I always add tomato sauce and taco seasoning to my refried beans.

Place your warmed tortilla in a large bowl.  Layer in this order:

 Onions and Corn (my FAVORITE part!)

 Rice -- I just used seasoned white rice...you could do Spanish Rice, also

 Refried Beans

Black Beans (and white beans since I already had some cooked up in my refrigerator)

Lettuce

Salsa

Cheese

Ranch Dressing

Broken up Chips

All of the kids really loved this dinner.  My little 5 year old ended up with a huge salad...and almost ate it all!  We just eat it with a fork and tear off pieces of the tortilla to eat with each bite.

5 Minute Southwest Salad

{Meatless Monday}

This is a super easy and quick dinner that we love. It is especially yummy on warm summer days. These are the ingredients:



Romaine lettuce (or your favorite)
Flavored Black Beans (these were just a "seasoned" variety, but normally I use S&W Caribbean Style)--slightly drained, but not rinsed
Corn
Diced Tomatoes
Cheese
Crushed Chips
Ranch Dressing

Layer all ingredients and top with chips and ranch. Very fresh and yummy!!




p.s. I promise that I will post some more "casserole" type recipes soon...but really, who wants to be inside cooking during the summer??