Summertime Salad

This salad is light, delicious, and fresh. Perfect for a Saturday lunch or a side dish to an outdoor summer dinner. I say it serves two to four because 2 people can easily polish off the entire dish even though it is meant to serve 4. The bacon adds a nice saltiness to compliment the sweet vegetables. The dressing is light and doesn't overwhelm the fresh flavors that you want to shine though. (Photo from Taste of Home magazine)


Serves: 2-4
Start-to-Finish: 35 minutes
Recipe By: Betty Fulks

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked spiral pasta (I like to use rainbow spiral pasta)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 cup sliced green onions
6-8 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
1 cup fresh sugar snap peas, trimmed and halved
1 cup fresh cauliflower, chopped
1 cup fresh broccoli, chopped
1 large sweet red bell pepper, chopped

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, lemon juice, sugar and garlic powder; set aside.
3. Wash and chop green onions, romaine lettuce, sugar snap peas, cauliflower, broccoli,  and red bell pepper.
3. Drain pasta and rinse in cold water.
4. In a large salad bowl combine pasta, mayonnaise dressing, crumbled bacon, green onions, romaine lettuce, peas, cauliflower, broccoli, and red bell pepper.
5. Toss to mix.
6. Cover and refrigerate until serving.

Chinese Chicken Salad

Here is another fantastic option for a make-ahead dinner. This meal can be prepared early in the day or even the night before, and then assembled for a quick dinner. I am sure everyone has tried this salad in some version or another. I particularly like this recipe because I grew up eating it at all the ward potlucks. Kim Fortuna would bring her famous salad every time there was a ward dinner or picnic. She got many requests for the recipe and the bowl was always empty by the time the event was over. It is tried and true.

Serves: 5 Servings
Start to Finish: Prep time: 30 minutes/Refrigeration time: 3+ hours
Recipe By: Kim Fortuna

Ingredients:

SALAD
1 head of cabbage, chopped (Personally, I don't like the rubbery texture of cabbage so I use romaine lettuce as a substitute)
Sugar snap peas, halved
1 pkg. chicken flavored Ramen Noodles, broken up (seasoning packet will be added to sauce)
Sliced almonds
DRESSING
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (You can use canned chicken which is already cooked and shredded, it will cut down the number of steps in the recipe but you lose some flavor)
2-3 green onions, chopped
2 tsp. sesame seeds
3 TBSP rice vinegar
1 TBSP sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp pepper
Seasoning packet from Ramen Noodles

Directions:

1. Cut chicken breasts into chunks for quick cooking.
2. Over medium heat, cook chicken until juices run clear.
3. Remove from heat allow time for chicken to cool so it can be safely handled.
4. Shred chicken into small pieces using a fork and knife.
5. Chop cabbage, chop chives, and half sugar snap peas.
6. In a Tupperware container combine: sesame seeds, rice vinegar, sugar, olive oil, salt, sesame oil, soy sauce, pepper, seasoning packet from Ramen Noodles, green onions, and shredded chicken.
7. In a separate Tupperware container combine cabbage and sugar snap peas.
8. Place both Tupperware containers in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours (or overnight).
9. To serve toss salad, dressing, broken up Ramen Noodles, and almonds.

Taco Salad

Unfortunately, Van refuses to nap on a schedule. He usually takes one 2-hour nap a day but it is entirely up to him when he will take it. This means I have to be creative when making dinner. Some days the only free time I have is from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm so I need a meal that I can prepare ahead (during his nap). Taco salad is one of those meals. You can chop the vegetables, grate the cheese, and cook the meat then store it all in the refrigerator until dinnertime, when you assemble everything. Another reason I love taco salad is because it is a delicious way to sneak veggies into your diet. I listed all the veggies Michael and I like in our taco salad but you can omit or include anything your family will eat: olives, squash, onion, shredded carrots, etc...

Serves: 4 large servings
Start to Finish: 30 minutes
Recipe By: Amber Brunson

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey you can use ground beef, but turkey is a little healthier for you
1 pkt taco seasoning
1 (16-oz) can kidney beans
1 bag Frito's Chips
1/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated
3 hearts of romaine lettuce or 1 head of iceberg lettuce
1 (8-oz) can corn
1 cucumber, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
Catalina salad dressing

Directions:

1. In a skillet cook your meat over medium heat until browned. Many times I will cook up twice as much ground turkey (enough for two meals instead of just one) and refrigerate to other half to use later in the week. It saves time and I don't have to heat up my kitchen again later. Cooked ground beef/turkey can be safely refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen for up to 4 months.
2. Add taco seasoning to your skillet according to package directions.
3. Add kidney beans to your skillet heat through
4. Chop your lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, red bell pepper, and any other vegetables you are adding.
5. Grate cheese
6. Here you can refrigerate each of your items for assembly later in the day
7. To assemble your salad: add Frito's Chips, meat mixture, lettuce, vegetables, top with Catalina dressing, and sprinkle with cheese.

Summer Pasta Salad

While I was pregnant with Van I craved fresh vegetables. However, I was usually too sick to prepare real meals, so I ate a lot of TV dinners and sandwiches. It was a treat for me to have someone else cook a meal and bring it by. One of my good friends, Crystal, was always quick to invite me over for dinner if she knew Mike was out of town on business. On one such occasion she made this pasta salad. It was heavenly! Maybe it was all the freshness and simplicity of it or maybe it was because I hadn't eaten anything besides dry cereal, crackers, and a lean cuisine. Whatever the reason. I still remember it as one of my favorite dinners during that time.

Serves: 4
Start to Finish: 20 minutes
Recipe By: Crystal Ross

Ingredients:

1/2 box bow-tie pasta noodles
1 (6 oz) can tuna I prefer solid, white albacore tuna packed in water
1 head romaine lettuce, finely chopped a head of romaine lettuce is smaller than a head of iceberg lettuce. So if you are going to substitute, you will probably only need 1/2 a head of iceberg. Note: romaine lettuce has significantly more vitamins than iceberg lettuce and there is hardly a taste difference.
1 large tomato, diced
2 TBSP low-fat mayonnaise or ranch dressing I don't like mayonnaise, so I substitute it for the ranch dressing but you can really add any kind of salad dressing, Thousand Island, French, Bleu Cheese, etc ... as long as it is thick enough to hold the salad together.

Directions:

In in a large stock pot, boil water for the noodles. Meanwhile, wash and chop the lettuce and tomato. When water begins boiling, cook the noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside to cool. Drain tuna. You can run a knife inside the tuna can to break up the chucks and cut down the larger pieces. In a gallon-sized Ziploc bag combine all ingredients: cooked noodles, tuna, chopped lettuce and tomato, and dressing. Close and shake. Can be served immediately or refrigerated for later.