Fun Salad Greens

It's almost summertime and that means it's salad time! And if you are a little weary of the spring salad mix sitting in your fridge, you can always make your salad a little more interesting and fun by adding in some fun salad greens, which are not typical and add so much more personality to a salad. These are nice grown right in the garden, as some of these are perennials or in pots. With fun salad greens, you want to experiment but in most cases, less is more and mix with mild lettuces such as a butter lettuce for the best flavor. In some salads, just a single leaf, minced, adds a nice flavor. And you may want to use some as just a pretty garnish, either way, they will make your salads more exciting! Enjoy and happy salad making!

A few fun salad greens to consider...

Lemon Gem Marigold: The word lemon is in the name but the lemon is not so prominent in flavor. They taste like a mix of bitter grapefruit pith along with a slight citrus freshness-along with that taste of greens. You can separate the flower and just use the petals but I think the most interesting flavor is in the whole flower. And the leaves may be the best part, very nice mixed into a salad. Garnish with a few flowers for a nice touch.

Lemon Balm: As the name states, it's lemony and fresh at first with a strong ending of bitterness. This would be nice used sparingly along with a roasted piece of fish on the side.

Salad Burnet: A little reminiscent of cucumber skin...You want to just use the actual leaves with this one, as the stems are a little tough and you want to use the mature leaves as the little clusters of new growth are bitter. (Not enjoyably so.)

Nasturtium Leaves: These are nice while you are waiting patiently for the flowers to bloom and are craving a little peppery and bitter bite to your salad. They are beautiful and striking in a salad.

Corsican Mint: If you are a mint lover, you will love these ever so tiny leaves, as they are so concentrated in mint flavor. They are so pretty and delicate and would be just gorgeous strewn around the outside of a plate as a garnish.

Lemon Verbena: A great lemon-lime flavored leaf, that's not overwhelming and would be pleasant in a salad with more of it, if you are a fan of lemons and limes.

When experimenting with atypical salad greens such as these, make sure you look at the tags and talk to some knowledgeable people at the plant nursery to be sure that they are edible and start with very small amounts, as they can upset sensitive stomachs.

Basic Chicken Salad

Last week, I didn't have time to make dinner one evening and it was quickly declared a "rotisserie chicken day!" And I made a bee line for the rotisserie chickens coming right out of the oven, piping hot. As my day started getting better, (I had the most perfect cup of iced coffee) I got a little silly and asked the nice guy behind the counter to pick out the "nicest, most juiciest, fattiest looking chicken" and I laughed. Good thing for me, he shared my sense of humor and said, "This is the nicest, chicken I've ever seen." I laughed and it was one of the tastiest, juiciest rotisserie chickens, I've ever had. (I'm serious.) As a young girl, I would cringe and want to hide under my moms skirt, as she would point out with her finger which chicken she wanted or which kielbasa or even stuffed cabbages she wanted to take home but here I was, doing the same, lol. And as always, with a rotisserie chicken dinner, come the leftover chicken breast, sometimes nice over a green salad the next day or in a salad itself, like here. Enjoy!

• leftover chicken breast
• 1/3 cup minced celery, reserve some leaves for garnish
• 1 heaping tablespoon minced red onion
• pear infused white balsamic vinegar or any fruit infused white balsamic vinegar 
• 3 heaping tablespoons mayonnaise, a little more as needed
• sea salt
• ground black pepper

Let the onion sit in the vinegar while you prepare the rest of the salad.  Pull apart the chicken breast and roughly chop. (Makes about 2 cups.) Give your red onion a quick rinse with cold water and add to the chicken along with the other ingredients. Adjust the seasoning as needed. I like to serve the salad with Belgian endive leaves, just perfect to hold a spoonful of creamy salad. Serves about 4.

Lemony Chopped Cauliflower & String Bean Salad

Do you ever look at that bag of frozen cauliflower and inspiration strikes? It doesn't happen often but when it does, you gotta go with it! I thought it would be nice with string beans (another bag that was lurking in the veggie bin) and lemony sorrel leaves. And you want to use Bella Di Cerignola olives because they aren't too strong, yet add a nice flavor. This is quick salad to make that goes great, especially with grilled fish. I added the peppadews last minute and it made all the difference, making it so much more flavorful and colorful. Enjoy!

• 3 cups cauliflower florets, cooked until tender
• 1/4 pound string beans, chopped and blanched
• 4 Bella Di Cerignola olives, pitted and roughly chopped
• 1-2 cloves fresh garlic, smashed and minced
• a few sorrel leaves, minced
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• sea salt
• ground black pepper
• peppadews*

Take your minced garlic and allow it to sit in the vinegar, while your veggies cook and you prepare the rest of the salad. To save time, I cooked the cauliflower and used a hand held strainer to drain it, so I could use the water to cook the string beans. Rinse off your veggies with cold water and drain well. Into the vinegar, stir in the olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt and ground black pepper. Combine all of the ingredients and adjust the seasoning as needed. Serves 2-3.

*not pictured

Creamy Cannellini Bean Salad

Macaroni salad lovers, you won't miss the pasta once you have this cannellini bean salad! It's nice and creamy, a little tangy and then you get a bite with a little bacon and you say, "What macaroni salad?" and the glutenous macaroni that you once pined for is a distant memory. That's right, a distant memory. I didn't think it was possible, but it is! Enjoy!

• 3 1/2 cups cannellini beans soaked overnight or about 6 cups cooked
• 1 Kirby cucumber, finely shredded and squeezed dry
• 1/2 cup minced sorrel leaves
• 2 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
• 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons white balsamic pear infused vinegar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• squeeze of about half a lemon
• a pinch or two of chili flakes
• sea salt
• ground black pepper

Combine all of the ingredients and mix well. Adjust the seasoning as needed. (If you can't find sorrel leaves, just add a little lemon zest.) Garnish with a little shredded sorrel leaf or chili flakes. Makes a nice big bowl, great for a party and it's even better the next day.

Warm Yucca Salad

It's the beginning of salad season! But not leafy salad season yet, where I'm satisfied with just a few leaves and a good vinaigrette. But a little bit of a heartier salad with maybe some lettuce leaves on the side. And that's where yucca comes in, satisfying like a potato with a little bit of a chestnut flavor to it. It's a great salad to have to celebrate the beginning of salad season! Enjoy and happy weekend!

• about 2 pounds of yucca
• 1 medium size red onion, about 1/4 pound, quartered and sliced
• 1/2 pound mixed tomatoes, quartered if small enough.
• about 8 oil cured olives, pitted and halved
• 4 tablespoons olive oil plus 2 tablespoons
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• a squeeze of lemon
• sea salt
• ground black pepper
• anchovies*
• capers*
• arugula*

Trim your yucca at both ends. (To cut the yucca, I use a big old knife and to peel the outer layer, I use a small paring knife. Please be careful.) The ends are a little tough, so trim a little more than you think. Cut your yucca into manageable pieces and peel the thinner outer layer, sometimes it peels nice and smoothly separates and other times, it's a bit of a chore. Cut into smaller chunks. Rinse well and cover with cold water and sea salt. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to low and simmer for about 20 minutes or so until fork tender. Drain and allow to cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes. You will see a small fibrous thread on some of the chunks that you can remove and then cut into smaller pieces and set aside in a bowl. While the yucca is cooling, in a pan, combine 4 tablespoons of the olive oil and the red onion, saute for about ten minutes, until softened, on low heat. Toss in the tomatoes and olives, until warmed through, about 2 minutes. Toss the onion, tomato and olive mixture into the yucca chunks along with the remaining olive oil, vinegar, the squeeze of lemon and sea salt. I was in a salty mood today, so I tossed in some chopped up anchovy wrapped capers and I think it made the salad! Serve with a little arugula on the side for a nice peppery contrast. Serves 4.

Asian Inspired Wild Rice Salad

I love a nice Asian inspired salad but I'm trying to cut the calories without sacrificing flavor. I would have loved a nice plum sauce to sweeten this dish up but instead used a pear infused white balsamic vinegar for a little bit of the sweetness and it did not disappoint! Adjust the seasoning of the dressing to your liking. And topping it with a wasabi flavored sheet of seaweed adds an extra bit of flavor, without the added calories. They are so addicting, I just love them and at only three calories per sheet, they pack a lot of flavor. Serve with grilled salmon on the side for a nice meal. Enjoy and have a great weekend, it looks like it's going to be a beauty!

• 1 cup wild rice, cooked and cooled
• 1 cup shelled edamame, cooked and cooled
• 3 scallions, use the pale part, sliced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons pear infused white balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Gomasio (a mix of black & tan sesame seeds)
• pinch of ground ginger
• pinch of wasabi powder*optional
• sea salt
• ground black pepper
• flavored roasted seaweed, for garnish

In a small separate bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, ginger, wasabi, salt and pepper. Toss the dressing with the rice, edamame and the scallions. Use scissors to cut the seaweed into shreds, to save a little on time. Garnish with the seaweed shreds. Serves 2 as a main meal or 4 as a side dish.

Warm Brown Rice Salad

My mom used to throw cold leftover white rice into salads, like "side salad" type of salads with iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and onions with sweet and tangy French dressing. Those salads would be main meals in the summertime. I loved them as a kid! They were the best on a hot summer day. But it's December and it's cold out, yet I'm craving a salad. And I thought that warm brown rice with bitter arugula, walnuts and tart cranberries would make a nice salad. It was so good! So quick to make, surprisingly satisfying and healthy too. Enjoy!

• 2 cups cooked brown rice 
• 2 cups tightly packed baby arugula, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup walnut pieces
• 2 heaping teaspoon dried cranberries
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar with pear pulp (found in the vinegar aisle)
• 2 teaspoons roasted walnut oil
• 2 teaspoons fresh orange, clementine or tangerine juice
• sea salt
• fresh ground black pepper

To your cooked rice, add in the arugula, walnut pieces and cranberries. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, oil, orange juice. Season with sea salt and ground pepper. Pour over the salad and combine well. Serve nice and warm. Serves 2.

Buckwheat Groats & Yellow Squash Salad

I've been waking up to chilly mornings and this morning in particular, I even got a hot cup of coffee, instead of my usual cup on ice. There are mums out for sale, along with cinnamon scented pinecones. But the afternoons are warm, the sun is blissful and I even got some tan lines over the weekend. There is still summer left but the inevitable is coming.  And I've been in the mood for a hearty salad that still has some summer in it, while having a touch of fall. When I saw these beautiful locally grown yellow squash, I knew they were what I needed. And buckwheat groats are a stick to your ribs, hearty kind of fare. This salad is perfect for a late summer meal. This makes 4 servings.

• 1 pound yellow squash, about 5 small ones, cubed
• 1 cup buckwheat groats (dehulled buckwheat kernels)
• 1 cup scallions, sliced
• 1/3 cup chopped parsley
• 2 oz. pancetta, cubed or cut into small pieces
• 1/3 cup olive oil plus 1 tablespoon
• 2 tablespoons white balsamic pear infused vinegar
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot
• 5 olive cured olives, pitted and minced
• pinch of sugar
• pinch of Vegeta or any all-purpose seasoning
• sea salt
• fresh ground pepper

Cook your buckwheat groats according to the package directions, just keep an eye on them. I ended up cooking them for ten minutes instead of the fifteen and ended up needing to drain the liquid. Cool them off with cold water and set aside. In a pan, heat a tablespoon olive oil on low to medium heat, add in your yellow squash and the scallions, season with sea salt and saute for five minutes until the squash is cooked but not mushy and the scallions are cooked through. Add to your buckwheat groats. Saute your pancetta until it is light brown and add to your buckwheat, squash and scallions. Add in the chopped parsley. Combine the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, olives, shallot, sugar, all purpose seasoning and ground pepper to make your dressing. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well. If you take out the pancetta, it's a super healthy recipe. ;) Serve with grilled shrimp to complete the meal and lemon wedges on the side. Enjoy!

This is also great as a side dish! Just reheat in a pan with a small amount of butter, just delicious!

Grilled Salmon, Portabella Mushroom, Asparagus & Cannellini Beans with Plum Dressing

What a gorgeous day! It's just beautiful out here on the east coast. It's a day that something wonderful in your life should be celebrated. Anything, a job that you love, a wonderful spouse that makes you laugh, a good friend you can count on, your loyal pet, an outfit that makes you feel good, a deep understanding that you were seeking and found, that perfect eyeliner that makes your eyes sparkle...It's a day to celebrate something wonderful, no matter how big or small. And I love celebrating with food and this is a salad that is delicious, light yet truly satisfying. Enjoy and celebrate something wonderful today! ;)

• 2 pieces wild caught salmon, about 6 oz each
• 1 small head of Boston lettuce, ripped up
• 2 portabella mushrooms
• 7 oz. cannellini beans, rinsed
• 1/2 pound asparagus, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons plum sauce
• 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon honey
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pat of unsalted butter
• sea salt
• fresh ground pepper
• five spice powder
• 1/4 cup pear infused vinegar

This dish is easy but once I start explaining the directions, it can sound a little complicated. I used aluminum foil for easy clean up, if not you can cook directly on the flat cast iron pan. If using the foil, make three separate "bowls," (using 2 sheets, cut to size, layered on top of each other, cupped at the edges to hold the juices) one to hold the asparagus, one for the cannellini beans and one for the salmon. The portabella mushrooms can be grilled directly on the grill. Just drizzle them with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper. And grill for about 12 minutes at 500 degrees, just flip halfway through and set aside once done. Once they are cool, you can slice them. I find that they are like a steak and need to rest to collect their juices. For your cannellini beans, combine 1 teaspoon of the plum sauce, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon honey and salt and pepper and mix with the beans, so they are well coated. For your asparagus, just season with salt, pepper and drizzle with a little olive oil. For the salmon, combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon plum sauce, and season with salt, pepper and five spice powder to taste. Pour over the salmon and top with the pat of butter, broken up. Heat up your grill along with the flat cast iron pan. I have a big one that is about 18 inches long, it's great! Once your grill is hot, place your "bowls" containing the salmon, the cannellini beans and the asparagus and grill for about 10 minutes. After about five minutes, the asparagus will be ready, if the stalks are tender. In the meantime, divide the lettuce between two plates. Add the mushrooms and asparagus to the plate. Remove the salmon from the "bowl" and reserve the cooking juices. Break up the salmon into bite size pieces and add to the plate. Top with the grilled cannellini beans. Into the reserved juices add in the vinegar, 2 tablespoons honey and 1 tablespoon plum sauce. Season to taste with salt pepper and the five spice powder. Drizzle over your salads. Serves 2.

Turkey Cutlets over Dandelion Greens & Apple Salad with Warm Vinaigrette

I mowed the lawn yesterday and I tried to ignore the few fallen leaves laying on the grass, a reminder that fall is around the corner. There really is no escaping that summer is slowly slipping away. August is my most favorite month of the year but it's also bittersweet as it marks the end of summer. And as I came up with this salad, I couldn't help but think that it has a little bit of an autumn feel to it. But it's just so good and if you take a walk while the sun is out and close your eyes for a moment, summer is here as long as you want it to be. ;)

• 1 pound turkey cutlets, 4 pieces
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• sea salt
• fresh ground pepper
• 1 bunch dandelion greens, about 2 pounds, chopped 
• 1 golden delicious apple, cored and quartered and sliced thin
• 1/2 seedless cucumber, sliced thin and ripped in half
• 1 cup thinly sliced red cabbage
• 2 cups ripped up pieces of ciabatta bread, or any good stale bread you have on hand
• 1 pat unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 oz pear vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons rinsed capers

In a bowl combine the flour, salt and pepper. Dredge the turkey cutlets into the flour and set aside. Heat the 3 tablespoons of butter until sizzling on low heat. Add in the turkey cutlets, sauteing for 5 minutes on each side. Set aside your turkey cutlets. In the remaining butter, (add more if needed ) saute your ripped up pieces of bread. Saute the croutons on medium heat and stir a few times until golden brown. Once brown, let drain on paper towels and set aside. To make your salad, combine the dandelion greens, cucumber slices, apple slices and cabbage. To make your warm vinaigrette, melt your pat of butter and stir in the olive oil, vinegar, honey, capers and salt and pepper and heat for about 2 minutes. Reserve a few teaspoons to pour over the turkey cutlets, toss the remaining warm vinaigrette with the dandelion greens. This makes 4 servings. Enjoy!

Grilled Eggplant "Steaks" with Cannellini Bean Salad

When I was a vegetarian, there were days when I just wanted to have a juicy steak. "Just take me to a steakhouse and don't judge me." lol But I didn't wane and stuck to my veggies. And the only way I would get that same satisfaction as eating a steak was when I would drizzle a nice amount of olive oil on the eggplant and let it sit for a while and then grill it. You would think that the eggplant would be drenched in oil but it wasn't. The eggplant would embrace the oil and it transformed the purple beauty into a juicy veggie version of a steak. If you want a little more of an indulgence, serve with Gorgonzola cheese and you can always have this with a baked potato on the side! ;)

• 2 eggplants, cut lengthwise, about an inch thick
• garlic powder
• Vegeta seasoning
• olive oil for drizzling
• 1 cup chopped good tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1 15oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup seedless cucumber, chopped
•  a few basil leaves, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon fig preserves
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons A1 steak sauce
• 1 teaspoon agave syrup
• Maldons sea salt
• fresh ground pepper

Take a large pan and drizzle olive oil on each slice and season with garlic powder and Vegeta or any all purpose seasoning you like. It's okay to stack the slices on top of each other. Let them sit at room temperature for an hour. After the hour is up, turn your slices over and drizzle with more olive oil. You'll see where the eggplant needs it, noticing large white spots on them. You don't want to drown the slices in oil, just enough to give the eggplant a nice coating. Let them sit for another hour. While your eggplant is marinating, you can make the salad by combining the tomatoes, beans, cucumbers and basil. Make your vinaigrette by combining the olive oil, vinegar, and fig preserves. Season with a pinch of Vegeta and ground pepper. Once you are ready to eat, you can dress your salad. The eggplant, although meaty is also delicate at the same time and needs a steak sauce that won't overwhelm it and I think this is a good sauce to serve alongside it. Combine the yogurt, steak sauce, agave syrup and the ground pepper. Adjust the seasonings as needed. When you are ready to make your steaks, heat up your grill to about 500 degrees and throw your steaks on. I grilled them for about five minutes on each side, just until you get some good grill marks. Turn the eggplant so you get nice cross hatch marks on them. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn. Pull them off the grill once they are done, you will see your eggplant relaxed, yet still keeping their shape. Let them rest so they collect their juices. Top with Maldons salt, it gives them a nice finish and serve with your cannellini salad and steak sauce. This serves 3. Enjoy!

Farro & Chickpea Salad with Sun Dried Tomato Vinaigrette

I have fallen in love with farro! It's deliciously chewy and nutty and I was eating it right out of the pot, it's just so good! And it's super healthy too! It's jam packed with fiber, protein and iron. I have to admit, I overcooked mine a bit, you want your farro more on the al dente side, giving it more chew factor. So keep an eye on it. Farro is a versatile grain that you can toss into soup, salads. Use farro as a side dish tossed with olive oil, garlic and some herbs. I've had it for breakfast instead of oatmeal, topped with some walnuts, raspberries and a little soy milk and it was delicious! This salad is so satisfying, it can be a complete meal on its' own!

• 1 cup pearled farro
• 1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup good ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup chopped baby lettuces or spring mix
• a few mint leaves *optional
• 3 radishes, chopped
• 1 avocado, chopped
• 1/3 cup grapeseed oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 3 sun dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon of the olive oil that the sun dried tomatoes are packed in
• sea salt
• freshly ground pepper

Cook your farro according to the package instructions. Once al dente, drain and rinse with cold water. Have all of your veggies, chopped to about the size of the chickpeas. Combine the farro, chickpeas and tomatoes. Make your dressing combining the oils, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, sun dried tomatoes, and season with salt and pepper. Toss in the lettuce, avocado and radishes when you are ready to serve your salad. If you want to add a little more sweetness to the salad, just add in more tomatoes. This serves about 4 people. Enjoy!

Homestyle Red, White & Blue Salad

Time is just flying by, I can't believe half of the "new" year is already over and we are in July. The fourth is just a few days away! Time for barbecues, dips in the lake, fireworks and good times to celebrate Americas' independence. When I was a little kid, I went through a "food separation stage," lol, you know what I talking about, where all your food had to be separate on the plate. My mashed potatoes could not touch the corn and the corn could not touch the meatloaf and gravy. That meeting on the plate equalled getting the cooties, lol. As I got a little older, I got over that stage and secretly loved when my potato salad and my macaroni salad met. A little potato with macaroni creaminess...Mmm. So if you have that little secret love too, this is a great salad to make for your Fourth of July celebration.

• 1 1/2 pounds purple potatoes, cubed (about an inch in size) and cooked
• 1 1/2 pounds red potatoes, skin left on, cubed and cooked
• 1 pound of trottole pasta, or any fun pasta that is about an inch in size, cooked al dente
• 3 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 3/4 cup grated carrots
• 3 soft boiled eggs, finely chopped
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 heaping teaspoon deli style mustard
• 2 heaping tablespoons relish
• a few splashes Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Vegeta or any all purpose seasoning that you like

Combine all of your ingredients well and adjust the seasoning, if needed. This salad is even better when it's left to sit overnight in the fridge, so the flavors get to mingle. Enjoy!

Purple Potato & Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

I LOVE purple potatoes! They are so strikingly beautiful! I'm amazed by nature every time I see them! If you love potatoes, beets, goat cheese and sweet glazed pecans, you'll really enjoy this salad. I made a small simple green salad to go with it, and it is a nice contrast in color and in flavor. Roasted chicken would be great with this also. Enjoy the colors and flavors!

• 2 beets, cooked and cooled 1 medium and 1 small
• 2 fingerling potatoes, cooked and cooled, 1 of them purple
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 tablespoon heavy cream
• 1 oz. goat cheese, crumbled
• 1 tablespoon glazed pecans, crushed
• salt & ground pepper
• 1/2 head Boston lettuce, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped dill
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• a squeeze of lemon

Chop the medium sized beet and blend with sour cream and heavy cream. (I used a hand blender.) Season with salt and pepper. Spread on your plate. Roughly chop the small beet and the potatoes and arrange them over the beet dressing. Top with the crumbled goat cheese and the crushed glazed pecans. (I used to make my own using pancake syrup but the ready-made glazed nuts are great and convenient.) Combine the chopped greens, (you don't have to use Boston lettuce, any mild lettuce will do) the dill, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. This makes one serving, so you can double, or triple it as you need.

Creamy Tortellini Salad

Nothing says a barbecue like a creamy pasta salad. This salad is nice because it has tortellini in it and it's combined with corn, green peppers, bacon and basil. It would be great to complement spicy grilled chicken or ribs. This salad is very easy to make, so if you were invited to a barbecue this weekend and were asked to make something, this will please the crowd, without you spending too much time in the kitchen!

• 13 oz bag of meat tortellini
• 2 ears of corn
• 4 slices bacon, cut into thin strips
• 1/2 medium red onion, minced
• red wine vinegar
• 7 basil leaves, minced
• 1 small tomato, diced
• 1/2 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• Vegeta or an all-purpose seasoning

Cook your tortellini according to the directions, run under cold water and set aside. Cook your corn in boiling water for ten minutes, once done run the corn under cold water and once cool enough to handle, run your knife along the length of the corn to remove the kernels. Be very careful, and big chunks of kernel sections are ok, if you like. Cook the bacon until crisp and dry on paper towels and set aside. In a small bowl, pour your red wine vinegar over your red onion, this is so it takes the edge of the onion. Leave it in the vinegar for 5 minutes then drain. Into a large bowl combine your cooled tortellini, corn, bacon, red onion, basil, tomato, green pepper, mayonnaise, sour cream and your Vegeta or all-purpose seasoning, to taste. Top with some extra basil leaves for decoration and enjoy!

Seared Scallops over Napa Cabbage & Quinoa Salad

Craving something healthy yet tasty, this salad ended up on the dinner table. There are so many flavors going on in this salad, but they all go together nicely. There is a basil pesto vinaigrette, the sweetness of carrots and snow peas intermingling with the napa cabbage and quinoa. Mmm...here's what you need for this healthy, yet filling salad.

• 1 head napa cabbage, medium size, chopped
• a bunch of spinach, roughly chopped, about a packed cup
• 1 sweet carrot, grated
• a few snow peas, chopped for the garnish
• 1 bunch of basil, about a packed cup
• 1/2 cup raw walnut pieces
• 1/2 cup walnut oil, (olive oil is more than ok)
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• about a cup & 1/2 of cooked black or red quinoa 
• about 12 scallops, 3-4 per person

Begin by making your basil pesto. In a blender, combine the basil, walnut pieces & oil. This makes about a cup, (reserve 1/2 a cup for another use, it's great mixed with mayo & used on sandwiches) Into your 1/2 cup of remaining pesto whisk in the lemon juice, vinegar and honey and season with salt & pepper. Add your pesto vinaigrette to your cabbage, spinach & carrots and mix well. Now you can make your scallops. Searing scallops always intimidated me for some reason, lol I've come to find that it is not complicated as I once thought. In a non-stick pan heat up a tablespoon each of butter & canola oil. Once the pan is hot & sizzling, add your dry lightly salted scallops and I know it's tempting because they look so juicy, but don't touch them until you see them brown on the edges, about 2 minutes, you want them nice & crusty. Flip them and cook about another 2 minutes, and they are ready. And you are ready to assemble your salad, layering the napa cabbage mixture on your pretty plate, followed by the quinoa and then the scallops. Garnish with the chopped snow peas & enjoy! This salad makes about 3 servings.