Salsa Verde Pepperjack Chicken Salad

Every salad should be like this with perfectly marinated chicken and lots of veggies with a fresh mango dressing - a little spicy and a little sweet!

I adore a salad for dinner and I have been enamored with many of the recipes I've tried lately including this one. It checks the salsa verde box for my husband (who wants all the salsa verde all the time) and it has spicy pepper jack cheese cubes throughout it, avocado, corn, bell peppers, and mandarin oranges. I cannot even with how awesome the combo from veggies with oranges was! We don't eat a lot of oranges because my oldest is allergic, but this was fine because I didn't have to put oranges with his salad. I really loved the mango dressing - it's yogurt based and fabulous!

Cuban Chicken & Black Bean Quinoa Bowls

Quinoa and black beans topped with spicy, tangy chicken, mango, and fried chili bananas!

I cannot speak to the authenticity of this dish that is dubbed Cuban, but I can speak to how delicious it is. I know that not everyone thinks fruit goes with savory dishes, but I feel like those people haven't tried the right dish. I personally love fruit in savory dishes, but I have to admit that I wasn't sure about bananas in a savory dish because I don't really like bananas a ton. However, my skepticism was met with surprise and I enjoyed every component of this dish: the seasoning on the chicken, the quinoa and black beans, and the bananas and mango. It was amazing! I did make a slight adaptation with subbing lemon juice in for the orange juice because my oldest is allergic to oranges.

Bacon BBQ and Mango Pizza #SundaySupper

Spicy barbecue sauce serves as a base for this bacon and mango pizza deliciousness.

Did y'all know that October is National Pizza Month?! I didn't either until this week's Sunday Supper Movement event theme was announced. We are celebrating with our NATIONAL PIZZA MONTH event hosted by Coleen of The Redheaded Baker.

I chose to share this pizza that was probably my first recipe I've ever made with fresh mango. I personally love pineapple on pizza and I knew I would love mango on pizza too. I thought pairing mango with barbecue sauce and bacon was a genius idea. I saved it while looking for a recipe to make for a Secret Recipe Club assignment from one of my favorite bloggers, The Spiffy Cookie. Erin has another spicy fruit pizza on her blog that I love, so I knew this one would be a keeper. It was incredible. Everything worked together so well.

Mango Coconut Smoothie

It just got cold in New York and I'm dreaming of warm summer days already. Some of our local grocery stores have some great frozen fruit mixes - this particular one is a favorite: mango, papaya, and pineapple.

This is just the most perfectly tropical, delicious, refreshing smoothie ever. I think it was the first thing I made in my Ninja blender when I first got it. If you use a blender/food processor a lot or have gone through too many, invest in a Ninja. They aren't sponsoring me or compensating me to say that, I'm just saying it from purchasing my own Ninja Kitchen System and using it :)

Drinks Week: Red Smoothie

I love a good smoothie and it's one of the only ways I'll eat fresh fruit (or in this case frozen). My 6 year old is the same way - he likes the taste, not the texture of most fruits. Mangoes and strawberries are actually two fruits I will eat fresh and love, but it's hard to pass up a recipe like this. I am horrible at cutting mangoes, so I opted to use frozen mango. This is probably my most favorite smoothie I've ever had.

I've gotten super lazy with photos, so excuse the lovely ledge my smoothie is sitting on :)

Pineapple Mango Salsa

I tried a fruit salsa recipe a few weeks ago and fell in love with it. I've been hankering for some more and especially with the weather being warm - it's the perfect time to grill something to serve up with it! So I grilled up some thick pork chops that had been marinated in Italian dressing. The salsa went perfectly with it.

I still need to practice on my mango-cutting skills though. I also got my first pineapple splinter. It was not fun.