Asian Noodle Salad

Since my oldest recently exclaimed that she wants to try Vegan, I've been searching online for recipes we can all enjoy. I have seen PW's recipe many times before but it came up on pinterest under the vegan tag so I finally thought I'd try it. WHY did I wait so long?? This salad is good!! It reminds me of a soba noodle salad I loved that we sold in the deli back in the day. I made ths recipe to be gluten free friendly too, which was not difficult at all. I have found the new Barilla gluten free pastas to be very good and they held up lovely in this salad. Also be sure to get a very large container so you can easily toss this together.

Asian Noodle Salad

Salad Ingredients:
1 pound package Fettuccine Noodles, Cooked, Rinsed, And Cooled (gluten free spaghetti pasta)
1 small head Sliced Napa Cabbage
1 small head Sliced Purple Cabbage
1/2 bag Baby Spinach
1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin
1 whole Yellow Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin
1 whole Orange Bell Pepper, Thinly Sliced
1 bag Bean Sprouts
Cilantro, Chopped, To Taste
3 whole Scallions, Sliced 3 whole Cucumbers Peeled And Sliced
1 Cup Roasted Peanuts

Dressing:
1 whole Lime, Juiced
8 Tablespoons Olive Oil
8 Tablespoons Soy Sauce (gluten free Tamari)
2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil
1/3 cup Brown Sugar
3 Tablespoons Fresh Ginger Grated
2 cloves Garlic, Chopped
1/2 tsp Sambal Oelek

Combine all the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Combine the dressing ingredients together and toss with the salad. Enjoy this salad cold from the fridge.

 enjoy,

Homemade Ranch Dressing

Homemade ranch dressing! My family is ever so thankful I found this recipe! They LOVE the stuff but I hate buying it all the time. Now I can mix up a bunch of the dry ingredients and make it as I need it. I am not a ranch dressing lover, BUT I like this recipe. Please click over for the larger quantity size recipe, I found a smaller quantity in the comments and I have adapted it here.


Homemade Ranch Dressing
adapted from The Crafty Blog Stalker

Ranch Dry Master Mix
1/2 TBL Black Pepper
2 1/2 TBL Parsley Flakes
3/4 tsp Kosher Salt
2 1/2 TBL Garlic Powder
1 1/2 TBL Onion Powder
3/4 tsp Dill Weed

Combine all, keep in a sealed container. Use with dressing recipe below.

Ranch Dressing
1 TBL dry master mix (see above)
1 cup light mayo
1 cup cultured low fat buttermilk
3/4 cup light sour cream
1/2 tsp lemon juice

Combine all in a bowl and stir well. Chill for a few hours for best flavor. Keep in a covered container/jar in the fridge. Makes about 3 cups.

*note, you can freeze buttermilk, just thaw and use in desired recipe, like this one when it runs out.

the jar of dry master mix, remember to use 1 TBL with the wet ingredients!

ready to eat! mmm!

great as a dip for homemade chicken strips too!

my new fave! oven fries with S&P dipped in this ranch!

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enjoy,

Mediterranean Chicken Kebab Salad with Tzatziki

Oooh, I love Greek salads. I remember seeing this before and decided to make it, besides I love grilling, I think I've grilled almost every night this week. I loved the chicken and Tzatziki, my oldest loved the veggie salad. I made mine as a salad, they had theirs in pita breads. What a great salad, great flavors. This is a keeper.
Note, this recipe needs early prep time and time to marinate.


Mediterranean Chicken Kebab Salad
adapted from Skinny Taste
Calories: 239.6 • Fat: 7.8 g • Protein: 28.3 g • Carb: 8.9 g • Fiber: 2.5 g • Sugar: 2 g

1 lb skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
For the marinade:
2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic, crushed
kosher salt to taste
fresh ground black pepper to taste

For the salad:
1 1/4 cups cucumber, peeled
1 1/4 cups diced tomato
1/4 cup diced bell pepper
2 tbsp red onion, diced
1/4 cup black olives (or kalamata)
1 1/2 tsp vinegar
1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp fresh dill
1 tsp fresh parsley
1/8 tsp dried oregano
salt and black pepper to taste
4 cups shredded lettuce
1/2 cup feta cheese, grated
lemon wedges for serving

Marinate the chicken at least 2-3 hours or overnight (I did mine that morning). If using wooden skewers, soak in water at least 30 minutes if grilling outdoors.

Combine the first 12 salad ingredients (cucumbers through salt and black pepper, not the lettuce) and set aside in the refrigerator to let the flavors set.

Thread chicken on 4 skewers and cook on a hot grill (indoor or outdoor grill) until chicken is cooked though, about 10-12 minutes (I did mine 3-4 mins/side, low heat).

Divide lettuce between four plates, top with tomato-cucumber salad, fresh grated feta cheese and grilled chicken. Serve with lemon wedges.

Tzatziki
slightly adapted from Skinny Taste
Servings: 8 • Serving Size: 1/4 cup • Calories: 17.8 • Fat: 0 g • Protein: 2.6 g • Carb: 1.7 g • Fiber: 0.1 g

8 oz fat free plain greek yogurt
1 small cucumber, peeled and seeded (1 cup grated and drained)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped
kosher salt and fresh pepper, to taste
Strain the yogurt using a coffee filter set in a strainer for a few hours to remove as much liquid as possible. Set aside.

Scoop seeds out of the cucumber with a small spoon. Grate cucumber with a box cheese grater. Drain the liquid from the cucumber in a strainer for a few hours. You may need to squeeze out the excess with your hands before using.

Combine strained cucumber, garlic, yogurt, salt, pepper, lemon juice, dill, chives, salt and pepper and refrigerate for a few hours before serving.

Makes about 2 cups.

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enjoy,

Cranberry Almond Broccoli Salad

For Easter I decided on a vegetable salad instead of a lettuce salad and more veggies for me, the better. I went with a broccoli salad with some mix ins. Going with the other reviewers of this one I found, I too changed it up. I used cranberries and almonds and used Truvia instead of sugar. I blanched the broccoli because I do not like that hard crunch of it. Blanching it came out perfect for me, a little crunch but not really that raw taste, just watch your time, because it can over cook. I really enjoyed this as did my Sister in Law (not sure if anyone else ate any).


Cranberry Almond Broccoli Salad
inspired from Allrecipes

10 slices bacon, cooked, crumbled, set aside
1 head fresh broccoli, cut into bite size pieces

1/4 cup red onion, finely diced

1/2 cup dried cranberries

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar                   

2 packets Truvia (or 2 Tbl sugar)

1 cup light mayonnaise

1 cup sliced almonds

Bring a large pot of water to boil, add cut broccoli and let boil for 3-4 minutes, drain and emerge broccoli in an ice bath, drain. (skip this step if you want a crunchier broccoli salad)
In a medium bowl, combine the broccoli, onion and cranberries. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, sugar and mayonnaise. Pour over broccoli mixture, and toss until well mixed. Refrigerate for at least two hours.            
Before serving, toss salad with crumbled bacon and almonds.

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enjoy,

Applebee's Knock-Off Oriental Chicken Salad

Today's lunch comes from Facebook. Yep! I saw Mandy's Kitchen post this recipe, so I ran to store so I could make it. Of course I changed it up a little, and I think it's great! I bought enough to have a few of these salads all week and I went ahead and doubled the dressing to have on hand when needed.

Oriental Dressing
3 Tbsp. honey
1 1/2 Tbsp. Rice Vinegar
1/4 c. Mayonnaise
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp. Sesame oil

Blend together all ingredients in a small bowl with a whisk or mixer. Refrigerate while you work on the salad.


Salad
2 pieces of Crispy Chicken Strips (frozen or from the deli)
bagged salad with asst. lettuces & veggies
bagged broccoli slaw
1 Tbsp. sliced almonds, toasted
1/4 c. fried won ton strips
1/4 cup mandarin slices, drained

Bake the chicken strips according to the package directions (if you bought frozen ones). At the last few minutes, add the almonds on the pan that the chicken is on so they can get toasted. Remove and cool. Cut up the chicken.
Mix together some of each (a good handfull per person) of the lettuce and coleslaw. Top with cut up chicken, almonds, wontons and madarin slices. Drizzle the dressing on top.

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enjoy,

Strawberry Salad with a Poppy Seed Dressing

One of my favorite blogs posted about this salad, and at the last minute I decided to add it to my Easter Dinner (which we had a day early). It was delicious! I just love fresh fruit/berries in a greens salad (it's only a recent fave). I of course adapted the recipe a little using a greens mix, and then forgot to add the red onions to my salad! The dressing was a little too sweet, so next time I'll cut back on the sugar, otherwise I loved this salad!

Strawberry Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing
adapted from Your Homebased Mom

Mixed greens salad mix
Red onion, chopped (as much as you like)
Strawberries, sliced
Sugared Almonds (1/2 C nuts to 1/4 sugar)
Poppy Seed Dressing (below)

Combine spinach and dressing and top with strawberries, nuts and red onion.

Sugared Nuts:
Combine a 1/2 cup of almonds along with 1/4 cup of sugar in a small frying pan over medium heat and continuously stir. One sugar starts to dissolve, keep a close eye on it so the nuts don't over cook and burn. Once glazed, remove nuts to a plate to cool, then break apart to crumble over salad.


Poppy Seed Dressing:
1/2 canola oil
1/4 C apple cider vinegar
1/3 C sugar (or less)
1 Tbsp poppy seeds
1 1/2 tsp dried minced onion
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp paprika

Mix together ingredients well and pour over salad.


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Polynesian Chicken Salad

I thought this sounded great one night after I saw it in an email. The flavors were great, but the ramen noodles were throwing me off. Next time I'd probably omit them. I added in some purple cabbage as well, but as a word of caution if you do, it turns everything else purple. Purply pineapple is not pretty.  =)

Polynesian Chicken Salad

slightly adapted from Betty Crocker

2 teaspoons sesame seeds
2 cups water
1 package (3 oz) chicken-flavor ramen noodle soup mix (I would omit next time)
1 can (8 oz) pineapple tidbits (or slices -cut up), drained, 2 tablespoons juice reserved
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3 cups shredded cabbage
1 cup cut-up cooked chicken
8 medium green onions, sliced (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup shredded carrot

1.Toast sesame seeds in a dry hot skillet, stirring often until golden. Only takes a few minutes, keep an eye on them. Set aside once done.

2.In 2-quart saucepan, heat water to boiling. Break up ramen noodles before opening pouch. Remove seasoning packet from pouch. Add ramen noodles to boiling water. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until noodles are tender; drain. Rinse in cold water to cool; drain.

3.In small bowl or 1-cup measuring cup, mix reserved pineapple juice, 1/2 teaspoon seasoning from ramen seasoning packet, the vinegar, soy sauce, honey and ginger. Set aside.

4.In large bowl, mix noodles, pineapple, cabbage, chicken, onions and carrot. Stir in dressing and sesame seed.

 

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enjoy,