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Cucumber Tomato and Basil Salad

September 24th, 2015
cucumbertomatoandbasilsalad
You don’t need a lot of ingredients or fancy dressings to make a delicious salad. And you certainly don’t always need mixed greens! Here is a great 3 ingredient salad which you sprinkle with salt and olive oil and enjoy… without the hassle of complicated ingredients and store-bought dressing!

Ingredients

  • 1 Cucumber (sliced)
  • 1 cup grape tomatoes (sliced in half)
  • 1/2 cup chopped basil
  • Dressing
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preparation

In a bowl, add cucumber and tomato slices. Salt well and set aside for 5-10 minutes. Then sprinkle generously with olive oil, toss and enjoy!

Colorful Green Bean Salad

September 23rd, 2015

colorfulgreenbeanssalad2

This colorful salad is easy to throw together and delicious!!

Ingredients

  • 1 lb green beans
  • 1/2 cup radish slices
  • 1 cup grape tomatoes (yellow and red)
  • 3 oz feta cheese
  • Dressing
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Preparation

Trim beans but leave them whole. Cook for 3-4 minutes in salted boiling water. Drain well, refresh under cold running water and drain. Slice tomatoes in half and add to salad. Add radishes and sprinkle feta all over salad. Drizzle a bit of olive oil on top of the salad, then some balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Also delicious if you mix a little bit of honey with your balsamic vinegar and drizzle on top.

Avocado Caprese Salad

September 20th, 2015
avocadocapresesaladIf you like Caprese salads, you will love this!

Ingredients

  • 2 cups mixed greens
  • 1/2 cup sliced red grape tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup sliced yellow grape tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup avocados
  • 1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese Pearls
  • Dressing
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Balsamic Vinegar
  • Salt and Pepper

Preparation

Create a bed of mixed greens in your plate. In sections, add the cheese, avocado, red tomatoes and yellow tomatoes. Sprinkle with extra virgin olive oil and then balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste and either toss or leave as is and enjoy!

Citrus Caprese Salad

September 20th, 2015
citruscapresesalad
This salad is absolutely incredible!! It’s wonderful anytime of the year and even better  with salmon or chicken. It is the PERFECT party salad!

Ingredients

  • 1 medium onion
  • 4 large oranges
  • 4 medium tomatoes
  • 1 pound buffalo mozzarella cheese
  • 1 bunch Cilantro
  • 6 tbsp Olive Oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Peel onion and slice it into thin rings. Place in a bowl and squeeze the juice of one orange and one lemon into the bowl. leave to marinate for 30 minutes.Remove the skin and pith from the remaining 3 oranges and slice into six or eight wheels. Remove all seeds.

Slice the tomatoes into 6-8 wheels as well.

Slice the mozzarella cheese into 6-8 wheels

Assemble the salad by alternating the orange, onion, cheese, and tomato.

Sprinkle cilantro all over the salad, drizzle olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.

Salad Olivier – Russian Potato Salad

September 16th, 2015

russianpotatosalad

One of the most traditional Russian salads, it was originally created by the French Chef, M. Olivier, but claimed by the Russians as one of their dishes. It is certainly become a big part of the Russian life and everyone knows how delicious this salad can be. Ironically, there are many different recipes. You can choose to add meat to it or serve it meatless. We will be adding boiled chicken but some people use bologna as well.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups boiled chicken
  • 2-3 potatoes
  • 2-3 hard boiled eggs
  • 2-3 dill pickles (pickled with salt not vinegar)
  • 3-4 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 bunch green onions
  • 1 can sweet peas (you an also use fresh or frozen (thawed))
  • 2 carrots
  • salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Cut up the chicken and set aside.Boil potatoes and carrots until they are soft in the middle and let cool to room temperature. Dice potatoes and carrots and combine in bowl. Add diced eggs, pickles, green onions, dill and sweet peas. Add the chicken. Mix all ingredients well while adding salt and pepper.

Add Mayonnaise and mix all ingredients well again. Sprinkle with some dill and refrigerate for 2-3 hours)

This salad is delicious when served fresh but even better when it has been refrigerated for a few hours or even overnight.

Olive, Cucumber, and Feta Salad

September 13th, 2015

cucumberfetaolivesalad2

Having a party?  Your guests will love the idea of choosing whether they want their salad tossed or on a skewer.  Here is one salad served two ways.  You can either have it tossed or enjoy the same ingredients beautifully combined and skewered.

1 Fresh Cucumber
1 cup of black olives
13-14 feta cheese squares
3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp minced garlic

Slice cucumber, drain olives, and cut feta cheese into squares.  Assemble the salad on skewers by starting with the black olive, followed by two to three slices of cucumber and finished off with a square of feta cheese.  If serving as both a tossed salad and skewers, arrange the skewers around a large flat plate.  Once you have created the outer circle in skewers, fill the inner circle with the individual ingredients.  Start off with a bed of lettuce, add cucumbers, followed by slices of black olives and finish off with crumbled feta cheese.  You can either sprinkle the salad dressing on top of the mixed salad or you can toss the entire salad in another bowl and place the tossed salad inside the inner circle.

To make dressing, mix the balsamic vinegar, garlic, and olive oil together until combined.

If you are only serving the skewered salad.  Start off with pouring a small amount of dressing on the plate or your serving platter.  Place the skewered salad on top of the dressing and let sit for a few moments. You want the feta cheese to absorb some of the dressing. Then sprinkle the dressing on top of the skewers and serve immediately.

cucumberfetaolivesalad

Olive and Artichoke Salad Skewer

September 9th, 2015
oliveandartichokesaladskewer
Join the latest trend of salad on a stick! Great for BBQs and picnics and beautiful to serve at any party any time of the year!

Ingredients

  • 1 can Green Olives
  • 1 can quartered artichoke hearts
  • skewers
  • For the Lemon Butter
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 stick of butter

Preparation

Drain the olives and artichoke hearts. Skewer an olive and follow with 2-3 artichoke pieces… repeat the process until you get to the end of the skewer and then top off with an olive. Plate the finished skewers. To make dressing, melt the butter and add the lemon juice. Mix well. Brush a little bit of the butter dressing on each finished skewer, making sure that each olive and artichoke have a little bit of dressing. Serve the remainder of the dressing on the side.

Sautéed Bell Pepper and Goat Cheese Salad

September 7th, 2015

bellpepperandgoatcheesesaladPrepare yourself for something warm, something cool, something sweet, and definitely something fresh!  This beautiful  salad is perfect for fall!!

Ingredients

  • 2 red bell peppers
  • 2 yellow bell peppers
  • 6 scallions chopped
  • 1 bag mixed greens
  • 1 tbsp capers
  • 6 oz goat cheese
  • Vinaigrette Dressing
  • 4 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 Tbsp Vinegar (apple cider, white, whatever you like)
  • 1 Tbsp Honey
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Preparation

Cut each bell pepper in half and remove the cores and seeds. Then cut into thin strips. You can sauté or broil the bell peppers. I sautéed them for 15 minutes in olive oil until they are soft and the skin was slightly charred. Transfer the bell peppers to a bowl.Arrange the mixed greens on a platter and add the bell peppers. I like it when the peppers are still warm.  But if you prefer them cooled off, it’s delicious as well. Add the vinaigrette and toss.  Lastly, sprinkle the scallions, capers, and goat cheese and serve immediately.

 

Honey Beet and Feta Salad

September 3rd, 2015

honeybeetsalad

This salad is wonderful for so many reasons!  It’s unique, healthy, and beautiful to serve… LOVE IT!!!!  I also love that it is sweet and everyone who tries it is really impressed with how good it tastes!

1 lb Cooked Beet
1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tbsp Honey
1 tbsp vinegar reduction sauce (or you can use a sweet balsamic vinegar)
1/2 tsp Super Fine Sugar
2 tbsp Salted Sunflower Seeds
4-5 oz Feta Cheese
4-8 oz Spring Mix
Salt and Pepper to taste

Dice the cooked beets and set aside until needed. Heat the olive oil in a small pan. Mix in honey and sugar and season with salt and pepper. Stir until everything is dissolved.

Add the beets to the pan and stir to gently coat all of them. Remove from heat.

Arrange the spring mix in a large salad bowl and spoon the beets on top.  Add the feta cheese.  Pour the vinegar reduction sauce over the salad, sprinkle with sunflower seeds and serve immediately.

Fall Pear Salad

September 1st, 2015

fallpearsalad

You will fall in love with this delicious salad and it looks so beautiful on a plate! This recipe serves four!

Ingredients

  • 4 Pears
  • 4 cups Butternut squash or yellow squash (chopped into quarters)
  • 1 bag Mixed greens
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, blueberries, or cherries
  • 1/2 cup Feta cheese
  • Ingredients for the Maple Vinaigrette
  • 2 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • 4 Tbsp Grade B Maple Syrup
  • 4 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1/2 cup Olive oil
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Preparation

Cut the squash into quarters, place in a bowl, toss with a bit of olive oil so it is well coated and salt to taste. Roast the squash in the oven at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until the squash is to your desired tenderness. In the meantime, cut the bottom of each pear slightly so it can stand on its own in the salad bowl. Then, slice the pears and then re-stack the pieces so they look whole again. Set aside. Fill each salad plate with a bed of mixed greens and then place the sliced pear on top. Add the squash around the pear. Sprinkle the Feta cheese and dried fruit. To make the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until it is well blended. With a spoon, pour the dressing on top of the pear, then around the pear onto the other ingredients until you have the desired amount.