Life As It Is.

Pear Salad with Maple Dijon Dressing.

This is one of my favorites right now. I've made it a lot lately. Thankfully, everyone in the family likes it and it goes over well with guests too. I found the recipe on pinterest, but the pinterest recipe calls for bottled dressing. I didn't want to use bottled dressing. My favorite green bean recipe has a dressing that I love and the first time I tasted it, I thought it would be great as a salad dressing. So I've always made this salad with the dressing from the green beans and it works really well.

Pear Salad:

• Romaine lettuce
• 1-2 medium pears, chopped
• dried cranberries
• chopped pecans (I usually use homemade cinnamon roasted pecans because I've been keeping them around for the girls' oatmeal)
• bacon, cooked & crumbled (I chop it, cook it, and keep it in the fridge for a couple days to use on salads, omelettes, side dishes, etc)
• feta cheese, crumbled

Maple Dijon Dressing:

(note that the amount shown is a double batch thinned out...I wanted an extra batch so I could make the green beans later)

• 3 Tb maple syrup
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 TB red wine vinegar (I use pomegranate red wine vinegar)
• 1/2 tsp. dijon mustard
• 2 garlic cloves (i run it through the microplaner)
• Salt & pepper

Throw it all in the food processor or blender.

 

 

BBQ Cilantro Lime Dressing.

I am a huge fan of homemade salad dressing. It is rare that I use store-bought salad dressing...perhaps some thousand island for the times that Seth is craving a reuben. So I'm always making different salad dressings, trying new recipes, experimenting with what I have on hand.

We do a lot of vinagrettes because they're easy and healthy, but this particular dressing is a creamy (and not so clean) salad dressing. But it is packed with flavor, so you won't need to use much. So here's the dressing we use everytime we have bbq chicken salad now.

BBQ Cilantro Lime Dressing:

• 2/3 cup olive oil mayo
• 1/3 cup nonfat greek yogurt
• 2 TB milk
• 2 TB fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 TB fresh lime juice
• 2 tsp. white vinegar
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced (I just use my microplaner)
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1/8 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. cumin
• 1/4 cup BBQ sauce

Throw it all in the blender and push go. This is such a flavorful dressing. Love it. I found the recipe here.

I've tried various other dressings to go on bbq chicken salad, including an avocado vinaigrette and a gorgonzola vinaigrette, meant to go together. The avocado vinaigrette wasn't bad, but none of us cared for the gorgonzola dressing (we're not gorgonzola/blue cheese people). But I'll include the recipes in case you have more mature taste buds than we do :) These recipes came from Two Peas and Their Pod.

Avocado Vinaigrette:

• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 1 medium shallot, chopped
• 3 TB peach jam
• 1 avocado
• salt & pepper

Blue Cheese Vinaigrette:

• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 1 medium shallot
• 2 TB peach jam
• 1-2 garlic cloves, pan-roasted & chopped
• 1 cup nonfat greek yogurt (I think the original recipe called for sour cream)
• 1 cup blue cheese or gorgonzola
• salt & pepper

 

BBQ Chicken Salad.

Salads seem to be a favorite at our house. One of the great things about salads is that you can put out a lot of healthy options and then let everyone pile on what they like.

BBQ chicken salad is one of our favorites. What we put on the salad depends on what we have in the house, but a general idea of what I use:

• BBQ chicken (usually oven baked unless it is grilling season)
• romaine, spinach, or spring mix (or some combination of the three)
• tomatoes
• avocado
• sweet bell peppers (yellow, orange or red)
• red onion
• corn (frozen or fresh off the cob)
• black beans
• hard-boiled egg

I'll do a separate post with the salad dressing that we've come to love to go along with this bbq chicken salad.

Annual Apples.

These apples have been a tradition in our house for maybe the last eight or nine years. I think I've been making them for about as long as I've had children, so that is probably a decently accurate estimate. I don't usually make them more than once or possibly twice per year (if my arm is twisted) because they are a lot of work. They are delicious, but every time I make them, I'm reminded of why I don't make them very often.

These make a great stocking stuffer...just find out the recipient's favorite candy bar so you can customize it for them. The Reese's Peanut Butter Cup is the apple of choice for me and Seth.

This year, I made the apples for a housewarming party that we had. The apples weighed in at over a pound and a half each. The apples are dipped in caramel, then dipped in chocolate, then smothered in chopped candy bar. Healthy? No. Delicious? Yes. Good thing I only make them once a year.

Hopefully when my girls are grown, they will remember how good the apples tasted, and not how frantically mom ran around the kitchen trying to melt chocolate, keep the caramel from burning, and trying to keep the chopped candy from sliding down the chocolate.

 

• approximately 5 granny smith apples (I get the biggest I can find), washed and dried
• as many dowels as apples (I used to sharpen them by hand, I've smartened up and now I use a pencil sharpener)
• about 50 caramels (I buy Kraft, so this is about one bag)
• 2 TB water
• 3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3 TB Crisco
• candy bars (we've used Reese's PB cups, Butterfinger, Snickers, Kit Kat, Twix, 100 Grand, Heath, mini Reese's Pieces, etc)

Wash your apples really well (buy organic so they aren't so slip slidey). If you don't wash them and dry them well, your caramel will slide off. Stick the dowel in the apple (or you could use a stick/branch, which looks cool, but I'm always worried about how sanitary that would be so I've never done it).

So for every 5 apples, melt 50 caramels and 2 TB water in a double-broiler. Or use a metal bowl over a saucepan like I do, because I don't have a double-broiler. Works just fine. Just let it take it's time, it isn't a fast process. Simmer the water, don't boil it, so as not to burn your caramel.

Dip your apples in the caramel, then what I do is put them on a cookie sheet with a Silpat (silicone liner). Put the caramel-covered apples in the freezer for 20-25 minutes.

Chop up candy bars. I put them in the freezer for a little while before I chop them so they don't make a big melty mess when I chop them. Then I stick them back in the freezer til it is time for that particular candy to go on the apple (this is a long process when you're making lots of apples).

Melt the chocolate with the Crisco (the crisco is what will make it nice and smooth) in a double-broiler or carefully in the microwave (checking every 30 seconds, take it out before it is all the way melted and stir to melt).

Take your apples out of the freezer and dip in the chocolate. It is usually a two-man job to dip the caramel and the chocolate so you can spend adequate time twirling the apple and so it doesn't pool under the apple (if you go too fast, it will want to slide off because it is so warm). So I recommend taking your time and twirling before putting the apple down. Immediately after the chocolate, sprinkle the smaller pieces of chopped candy on the apple. Then I'll stick it in the fridge for a few minutes, then stick the larger pieces of candy on.

Lastly, you can drizzle the apple to make it look all pretty and professional....you can use white chocolate, caramel, or chocolate. Chill them for a bit and then you can  wrap them up and they look like they came from a fancy chocolate shop!

Tortellini.

Nothing special about this, it isn't homemade tortellini or anything. Just something the girls really like that I want to post here because we print these so Sadie can add them to our family cookbook.

• tortellini
• spinach
• tomatoes
• EVOO
• garlic

Just cook the tortellini, throw in as much fresh spinach as I can cram into the pot, add some tomatoes that I've sauteed in a touch of EVOO for a couple minutes (perhaps with some minced garlic if I'm feeling like it, because let's face it, this is a quickie meal!).

Buttermilk Banana Bread.

I've mentioned this recipe before, I think. Sadie and Avery have made this recipe by themselves. I think this is the best banana bread recipe I've found and I credit the buttermilk. This is another recipe I found on twopeasandtheirpod. Not always healthy, but there are good "everything in moderation" recipes on there, if you know what I mean.

Buttermilk Banana Bread

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup mashed bananas (3 medium bananas)

4 TB buttermilk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1.75 cups all-purpose flour (I always substitute white 100% whole wheat flour)

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. baking soda

Grease and flour one large loaf pan (pretty sure I usually use two medium size loaf pans).

Cream butter and sugar in your kitchenaid mixer. Add eggs, bananas, buttermilk, and vanilla. Mix well.

Add in the dry ingredients and mix until well-combined. Pour into prepared pan(s) and bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let the bread cool and then carefully remove from pan. I can never wait until it is completely cooled to cut myself a slice :)

p.s. I think I usually very lightly sprinkle just a bit of cinnamon sugar on top of the bread before I bake it. Not necessary, but just a little extra yumminess.

Evidently this bread is wonderful with a glass of milk (I'm not a milk-drinker, so I'm taking Avery's word on it).

 

Honey Beer Bread.

Okay, full discloure, this recipe was not my personal favorite; but other members of my family enjoyed it, so I will share. Seth thinks I didn't care for it because of the beer I used; he thinks I would like it better with a different beer. Maybe so. I love the bread at The Eating Establishment in Park City, so when I made this recipe, I was hoping it would taste like that. Not so much. I wonder what kind of beer they use at The Eating Establishment? Anyhow, try this recipe with your favorite beer and you'll probably like it. Next time, I'll try a different beer. This recipe is really simple and quick.

Honey Beer Bread

3 cups flour (honestly can't remember if I used white or whole grain)

2 TB sugar

1 TB baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 TB honey

1 bottle of your favorite beer

4 TB butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 " x 5" x 3" loaf pan.

Whisk together the dry ingredients. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the beer and the honey (might want to microwave honey for a few seconds so it stirs in easily).

Pour half the melted butter into the loaf pan. Spoon the batter into the pan, then pour the rest of the butter over the top. Bake 50-60minutes until it is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

Black Bean and Mango Tostadas.

 

This is a great recipe that can be customized to your family's tastebuds. There is something so appealing to me about piling a bunch of fresh, healthy ingredients on a plate and then letting each individual choose exactly what/how much they want. The first time I made these, before we had ate, Seth said, "What, no meat?!" I told him no but that I could add chicken or something next time I made it, if he preferred. But after we ate, he decided that it was just right as it was. I love this recipe. Fresh, whole foods make me happy.

Black Bean and Mango Tostadas

Corn tortillas
1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained and heated up
1 mango, peeled and chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
2-3 tomatoes, chopped
Fresh cilantro, chopped
Romaine lettuce, chopped
1-2 avocado, chopped
Lime wedges
Salsa, if desired

Turn the broiler on high. Spray corn tortillas with cooking spray or brush with olive oil (I have a pump-sprayer that makes the olive oil spray like aerosol) and sprinkle with salt. Place on a baking sheet. Put corn tortillas in the oven until crispy, just a few minutes. Flip them once to make sure each side is crispy.

Let everyone pile their corn tortillas with black beans, mango chunks, onion, tomatoes, cilantro, lettuce, and avocado. Dress with fresh lime juice and salsa.

Mango Strawberry Jicama Salad.

We love mango at our house. And strawberries. So this recipe was a must-try. The girls and I like jicama quite a bit (if you haven't tasted it, it tastes like garden fresh peas with the crunchy consistency of raw potato...at least that's my opinion).

2 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup chopped mango
1 cup chopped jicama (and peeled, obviously)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
3 Tablespoons fresh lime juice

Mix it all up and eat it up!

 

Tomato Cucumber Salad

 This is such a tasty recipe for summertime when the garden is overflowing with cukes and tomatoes. We took this camping for a potluck night and it was a hit. This is one of those recipes where I just kinda throw in whatever feels good, so sorry, there are no measurements, just approximations.

Several tomatoes, diced (I use roma because that is what I like to grow)

 couple of cucumbers, peeled and chopped

Basil, torn (or you can chop if you prefer)

Feta, crumbled

couple globs of olive oil

splash of red wine vinegar

Salt & freshly ground pepper

Combine, adjust as necessary. This is a light, tasty, easy sidedish or great as lunch.