Salsa Chicken Salad

Main dish salads are great for hot summer days. This recipe takes a little bit more time to prepare because of the time involved in washing and chopping the fresh cilantro, but if you love cilantro as much as I do, you won't mind. The dried cilantro just doesn't have the wonderful fresh flavor needed for a cold salad. A few members of the family working together will make short order of the preparations. We enjoyed cold slices of cantaloupe alongside our salad, with Chocolate Raspberry Squares, posted on 8/27/12, for dessert. Yummy!

Recipe:

1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1-1/2 cups instant brown rice
1-1/2 cups water
2 cups cooked cubed chicken
2 garlic cloves, minced or 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 cup mayonnaise, light is fine
1/2 cup salsa or picante sauce
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp. fresh lime juice
1 can (16 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
6 green onions, including tops, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
3 tbsps. canned diced green chilies
salt and pepper to taste

1. Combine olive oil, salt, rice and water in a microwave safe bowl. Cover and cook on high power for 10 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from microwave and let sit to steam for 5 minutes. Uncover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
2. Combine rice, chicken, beans, green onion and chilies in a salad bowl.
3. Combine garlic or garlic powder, mayonnaise, salsa, lime juice and cilantro in a small bowl; stir into salad. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour to blend flavors. Taste and add salt, pepper and more lime juice, if needed.

Yield: 6 cups
4.4 grams fiber per cup

A Recipe for "A Happy Marriage"

I found this very clever "recipe" in an ad some time back. These words of wisdom, done in a very sweet way, are very appropriate to marriage at any time. Blessings...

Take two happy people - one male and one female - and separate them from their parents. Add the following ingredients in generous proportions:
  Love
  Acceptance
  Respect
  Communication
  Patience
  Kindness
  Gentleness
  Self-Control
  Commitment
  Faith
  Hope
  Truth
Mix together, then thoroughly sift in daily life. Strain out jealousy, arrogance, selfishness, provocation and accounting of wrongs. Bake in the trials and tribulations of life for 50 years, then celebrate when golden.

Chocolate Raspberry Bars

These chocolate-raspberry bars are a wonderful way to satisfy the sweet tooth. The raspberry layer is sandwiched between a layer that resembles buttery cookie and a cream cheese-white chocolate layer that is then topped off by the semisweet chocolate. This is another favorite recipe that comes from an older "Taste of Home" cookbook. Blessings...

Recipe:

1 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup cold butter
Filling:
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
4 ounces cream cheese, softened (low-fat is fine)
2 tbsps. milk
1 cup (6 ounces) white chocolate chips, melted
Glaze:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tbsps. shortening

1. In a bowl, combine flour and powdered sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Press into an ungreased 9-inch square baking pan. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 15 - 18 minutes or until golden brown.
2. Spread jam over warm crust.
3. In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and milk until smooth. Add melted white chocolate; beat until smooth. Spread carefully over jam layer. Cool completely.
4. Chill until set, about 1 hour.
5. For glaze, melt chocolate chips and shortening over low heat stirring constantly. Spread over filling. Chill for 10 minutes. Cut into bars and chill for another hour. Store in the refrigerator.

Yield: 24 bars

Parmesan Zucchini

This time of year zucchini is prolific and the cost has finally come down below $1.00 per pound, in fact, I was able to purchase some last week for $.50 per pound. This is a good vegetable side dish on a busy day and it compliments just about any main course. The Parmesan cheese, garlic salt and marjoram dress up a rather bland vegetable that is quickly cooked under the broiler. Blessings...

Recipe: 

1 small zucchini per person
olive oil
garlic salt
freshly ground black pepper
ground marjoram
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Wash the zucchini, cut off ends and cut in-half lengthwise. Lay cut sides up on broiler pan.
2. Brush with olive oil using a small pastry brush. Sprinkle lightly with garlic salt, marjoram and a dash of pepper.
3. Broil with tops about 4 inches from heat for 6 minutes. Pierce with a fork to see how tender the zucchini is. If not tender enough for your taste, broil another minute or two, and check again.
4. Sprinkle with cheese and broil another minute. Be careful that the cheese doesn't burn.

Chicken Waldorf Salad

This recipe takes the classic Waldorf Salad and turns it into a main dish for a hot summer day. The combination of chicken and fruit is wonderful with the crystallized ginger, a different twist for salad in our home. I did make the original salad without the addition of the ginger and it was very good, the ginger just gives it a new flavor. I do hope you might give it a try for your family, blessings...

Recipe:   

2 cups chopped, cooked chicken
1 cup diced celery
1 cup grapes, halved
1 can (11 oz.) Mandarin oranges, drained
1 cup diced apple
1/4 cup broken pecans, toasted
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup mayonnaise (light is fine)
2 tsps. honey
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
2 tsps. brandy
1 tbsp. minced crystallized ginger (opt.)

1. Toss together chicken, fruit and pecans.
2. Whisk together dressing ingredients.
3. Gently stir dressing into chicken and fruit; serve immediately.

Note: Toast the pecans in a small frying pan over low heat for about 10 - 15 minutes, stirring often. Watch carefully so they don't burn. Let cool before adding to salad. Toasting the nuts brings out the flavor, so it is well worth the effort.
Note: If you have leftovers, they taste fine, but you will need to drain off the extra moisture that comes from the fruit juices.

Serves: 4

Stuffed Baked Potatoes

Recently a friend came for a very short visit, a meal, and a nights rest before flying back to California and his job. It was wonderful to have some one-on-one time with him. I served one of my husband's favorite chicken dishes, "Baked Orange Chicken", which is posted on 3/31/2010, if you would like to check it out, along with a Caesar Salad, this recipe for Stuffed Baked Potatoes and a Blueberry Crisp. It's such a blessing to open our homes to others for a visit, a meal, or maybe even a nights stay as they are on their way to another destination. Being available isn't always easy, but it is sure worth the effort. Blessings...

Recipe: 

3 large baking potatoes
3 tbsps. butter
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1/3 cup sour cream, or more to taste
1 1/2 tbsps. chopped chives
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
5 bacon slices, fried crisp and crumbled

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wash and scrub the potatoes and prick once with a knife. Bake until potatoes are tender, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
2. Let the potatoes cool a bit and then carefully cut them in half lengthwise and scoop the centers into a bowl.
3. Add the butter and mash until smooth. Fold in the cheese, sour cream, chives, and bacon. Taste, and add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Mound the mixture back into the potato shells and bake for another 15 minutes, or until they are heated through.

Serves: 6
Note: I don't spend the extra money for chives, but instead I finely chop the small green stems of green onions. I think it works just fine. I also used real bacon bits from a jar as a time saver. Do whatever works, the fellowship over the meal is the important thing.

Lasagna, a Favorite Meal

In a recent post I spoke of making lasagna for friends who came to stay with us for a few days. This is a favorite meal for family and friends, and especially when there is going to be a houseful of people, because I can make the sauce in advance and freeze it. The recipe goes together very quickly once the sauce is made, but if you would rather use a purchased sauce, of course, it is even faster. I would just encourage adding ground beef to the purchased sauce to make the dish more hearty and filling for a crowd. If you would like to use my pasta sauce recipe you will find it posted on 2/20/2015. Blessings...

Recipe:

1 recipe pasta sauce or 6 cups purchased sauce
12 sheets Barilla no-boil lasagna (don't use the whole pkg.)
1 lb. mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Spread 1 cup of the sauce in a 9 x 13-inch baking pan.
2. Layer 4 sheets of uncooked pasta, some sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers ending with sauce and cheese.
3. Bake lasagna covered tightly with foil for 50 - 60 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Uncover and bake an additional 5 minutes. Let rest for 5 - 10 minutes before cutting.

Serves:  12

Note: If meatless sauce is purchased, cook, crumble and drain 1 pound of ground beef or Italian sausage to add to the sauce.
The no-boil pasta works great, just make sure that each layer of pasta is covered with sauce so the pasta cooks through. Covering tightly with foil causes steam to aid in the cooking. I will never use the old kind of lasagna noodles again.

Avocado and Tomato Salad

On our recent vacation to visit family, our niece made this wonderful salad for a family barbecue hosted by our son and daughter-in-law. The salad has the wonderful full flavor of fresh tomatoes and avocado that the San Joaquin Valley is known for in the summer. We enjoyed the salad along with hot dogs, beans, watermelon, chips and a wonderful birthday cake Mom made for our great-niece. This wonderful gathering of our family will be a time I will always remember fondly. Blessings...

Recipe:   

6 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
2 tbsps. vegetable oil
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
3 drops red pepper sauce
2 medium avocados, cubed
2 medium tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small onion, chopped or 3 green onions, thinly sliced

1. Mix oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and red pepper sauce; pour over avocados. Toss.
2. Stir in bacon, tomatoes and onion.
3. Cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours.

Serves:  4 to 6