An Ode to the Cold Salad
Oh cold salads. How I love you in the summers. How do I love you all? Let me count the ways.
1. You make summer parties a snap. Like a few weeks ago when The Narrator requested a family lunch after the triathlon on his birthday. I assembled you all a day or two ahead of time. All packed neatly in bowls in the fridge, you made the race day party completely hassle free. We cheered on the sidelines, then rushed home to greet everyone for lunch. I pulled all of you out of the fridge and set you on the counter. Hungry triathletes and spectators hungry from watching racers work so hard devoured you in good form. Then I packed you all up and put you away. No oven, no stovetop, just pure cold refreshment assembled with leisure the day before. And everyone raved over the refreshing food on the warm sweaty day.
2. You make picnics in the woods taste gourmet. Mr Mighty bean salad all full of protein swimming in vinegar and spices, and you Pretty Pasta Salad with chunks of cheese and onion and peas swathed in white low-fat mayo, you made that picnic in the woods by Lake Michigan taste exceptionally delicious. Paired with the turkey burgers toasted over charcoal, this was no ordinary picnic of burgers and chips. Waiting for us in a cooler so patiently, you did your job of finishing off a day full of sun and sand with memorable gusto. Ravenous from a day full of play, you were the star of our dinner under the canopy of green.
3. I can eat you for weeks. Leftover in my fridge, you keep for a week, and some of you for two! And most of you give us the pleasure of tasting better after each day you marinate in your dressings of choice. I loved you the first time, and even more the second.
4. At impromptu gatherings you make my life easy. Like the time I ran 14 miles with my training partner, and we came home ravenous and empty of fuel, we paired your mighty leftovers from the picnic the day before with a takeout pizza. You hit the spot, taking pizza and making it into a full, well-rounded meal with your veggies and protein to supplement and soak up the grease and the bread.
5. You keep me cool and refreshed. What summer cook doesn’t hate to be stuck in the kitchen slaving over 450 degrees of heat? That’s why you, Mighty Bean Salad, dumped from cans and whisked together in healthy oil and vinegar are one of my favorites. Even you, Chilled Chicken Salad, after a quick stovetop visit for the chicken are rather easy to assemble. And you marinated veggies, chopped and dumped into a pool of vinegar – you all help me leave my shiny new oven feeling rather blue and alone. Never fear, she’s just on summer vacation and will be put to good use this fall, when this cook doesn’t mind the heat so much.
Filed under Funnies, motherhood, recipes | Tags: cooking, motherhood, picnics, salads, summer | Comments (3)
Rhubarb = Summer
Too bad the weather doesn’t feel like summer!
The kids picked the first of some of Great-Grandma’s rhubarb this past week, and tonight I turned it into a Rhubarb Pudding Cake that is out of this world. It went so fast, I didn’t even get a picture of it! The tangy, sweet dish was a hit with everyone. This recipe came from Meals For You, and I found it several years ago.
Rhubarb Pudding Cake
3 cups rhubarb, cut into 1 inch pieces, thawed if frozen.
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1-2/3 cups sugar
1/2 cup skim milk
3 Tbs unsalted butter or margarine, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbs cornstarch
1 cup boiling water
Preheat oven to 350 F. Place rhubarb in the bottom of a buttered 9 inch square or 10 inch round cake pan or baking dish. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and half the sugar in a mixing bowl. Add milk, butter and vanilla. Using an electric mixer, beat until smooth. Spread batter over rhubarb. Combine remaining sugar and cornstarch and sprinkle over batter. Pour boiling water over mixture. Bake 45 minutes or until tester comes out clean when inserted in center.
Serves 8. Really good with whip cream on top. Or ice cream.
Strawberry Spritz Cookies
Just in time for Valentines Day – my favorite cookies with a strawberry twist. These are the best cookies in the world to make with kids because the dough does not need to chill, and you shape the cookies with a cookie press (which everyone needs!) – no rolling, no floury messes! AND the cookies are bite-size, so the kids can have 2 and think they really got a treat. And did I mention that one batch makes about 84 cookies??? It’s strawberry season in Florida, so I experimented with my recipe today, and it turned out soooo yummy!!
Basic Spritz Cookie (from Better Homes & Garden Cookbook)
1 1/2 cups butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1. Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed 30 seconds. Add sugar and baking powder. Beat till combined, scraping bowl. Beat in egg, vanilla, and if desired, almont extract til combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can. Stir in remaining flour.
2. Force unchilled dough through a cookie press onto ungreased cookie sheet. Add sprinkles or colored sugar if desired. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 8-10 minutes or till edges are firm, but not brown. Transfer cookies to a wire rack cool.
Makes about 84 cookies.
STRAWBERRY GOODNESS VARIATION: I added a handful (1/2 cup maybe?) of chopped strawberries in with the egg and beat until combined. This made the dough a bit stickier, so I also added a bit more flour, not quite 1/2 cup until the dough had a good consistency to put into the cookie press. I bet if you had strawberry extract and used that instead of almond it would add to the strawberry goodness!!
CHOCOLATE LOVERS: reduce flour to 3 1/4 cups and add 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder with the sugar.
Happy Valentines Baking!!
Filed under craftiness, motherhood, recipes | Comment (0)Loving Lentils
I’ve been getting in the soup mood lately. It’s been a bit chilly here in Florida. In fact, while we were in Michigan a few weeks ago, Little Miss Sunshine started insisting, “I WANT TO GO BACK TO FLORIDA WHERE IT’S WARMER!!” When we arrived back in Florida, we had some 55 degree days and were dressing the same as we were in Michigan (and Little Miss kept telling me – TOO MANY CLOTHES!!) Little Miss was rather unhappy with this situation and kept asking me “WHY IS IT COLD IN FLORIDA???? IT’S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE COLD IN FLORIDA!! ONLY MICHIGAN!!!!!”
Trust me, I don’t mind the cool spells. So the other night I was in the mood for soup and pulled out a bag of lentils. If you haven’t ever tried lentils, you really should. Unlike beans, they don’t require soaking or hours of cooking. In a little over a half hour, you can have a delicious, hearty, healthy soup. T-Rex and Little Miss devoured this soup and asked for leftovers at lunch the next day. Enjoy!
from Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook
Lentil Soup
1 cup dry lentils, rinsed and drained
1 cup chopped green sweet pepper
1 cup sliced carrots (2 medium)
1/2 cup chopped onion (1 medium)
2 teaspoons instant chicken bouillon granules
2 teaspoons snipped fresh sage or 1/2 teaspoon dried sage, crushed
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper (I didn’t use this)
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 ounces fully cooked smoked sausage links, quartered lengthwise and sliced (I used fully cooked turkey ham diced)
In a large pot mix lentils, sweet pepper, carrots, onion, boullion granules, sage, ground red pepper, garlic, and 5 cups water. Bring to a boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until vegetables and lentils are tender. Stir in sausage and heat through. Makes about 7 cups (5 main dish servings).
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