Tag Archives: Salad

Blackened Salmon Salad

Main Course, Seafood/ Fish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , , ,

Salmon is my go to meal whenever we go out to eat and there is nothing that truly peaks my interest on the menu. Salad is one of my family’s favorite foods so put salmon and salad together and you have one of my top 10 meals. Blacken the salmon and you can forget about it!

The reason I am bragging about my Blackened Salmon Salad is because once hubby tasted it he said “Babe, you must have done something different with the salmon”. I braced myself because I wasn’t sure if the next sentence would be good or bad so I just stared at him. The next sentence was “because you’ve never fixed salmon like this and it is delicious. Let’s have more of this!”.

It has taken me a minute to learn how to make a really good blackened salmon fillet. Hubby didn’t realize I have tried making blackened salmon in the past but never quite got the seasonings right. Plus, I didn’t pair it with a great salad. I know most folks might say how hard can it be to make salad. My answer is not hard but not every salad tastes the same or is wonderful. Each salad is different depending on the combination of ingredients. Basic ice berg lettuce, hot house tomatoes and cucumber salads are for bland palates. Mixed greens, plum tomatoes, various cheeses, avocado and spices create a more exciting and flavorful salad. Mixed greens are also more nutritious than ice berg lettuce which is really just green water. If you have a choice, choose mixed greens, baby leaf spinach or even romaine lettuce for your salads.

Bottom-line… The blackened salmon will be the center piece of your meal and will keep folks asking for more.

Blackened Salmon Salad

Ingredients:

2 – 4 salmon fillets

6slices bacon cooked crisp and crumbled

2 – 3 boiled eggs chopped

1 ripe avocado sliced thin (squeeze juice from ½ a lime over avocado)

1 large plum tomato sliced thin

1 package mixed greens

¼ cup shaved fresh Parmesan cheese

¼ cup sliced red onion

¼ cup water

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp olive oil

salt

lemon pepper

paprika

Cajun seasoning

Gazebo Room Greek Salad Dressing and Marinade

cilantro (optional)

red pepper flakes (optional)

seasoned croutons (optional)

Heat frying pan over medium high heat. Add butter and olive oil. Rinse salmon and pat dry. Season salmon with a little salt, lemon pepper, cilantro, Cajun seasoning and paprika. Once butter begins to brown slightly add salmon skin side up. Sprinkle skin with a little salt, lemon pepper, and paprika. Cook for 5 minutes until fillet begins to darken but does not burn (gently lift salmon to check color after 3 minutes). Flip the salmon fillet and cook for another 5 minutes until the skin begins to crisp up then add water and cover with a lid. Turn down heat to medium low and cook and additional 2 – 3 minutes.

Remove from heat and let salmon rest while building the salad.

Salad:

Place mixed greens in a large bowl. Add eggs, bacon, tomato and cheese. Toss with salad dressing. For each salad bowl lay slices of avocado over the salad then place a salmon fillet in the middle of the salad. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Advertisement

No Bun Needed Bacon Cheese Burger

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, , , , , ,

Part of my new journey and change in eating habits is to minimize the amount of carbs we eat on a daily basis. Instead of eating bread for breakfast and having a sandwich for lunch then pasta for dinner, we have fruit smoothies or oats for breakfast. Lunch may be a variety of homemade soups that are quick and easy to make. Dinner is the usual chicken or fish with beef or pork thrown in a couple of times a month to break up the monotony of eating chicken. We also changed from eating white rice to mainly eating brown rice. Brown rice can be bland but I kick up the taste with teriyaki sauce and scallions.

Okay, back to my No Bun Needed Bacon Cheese Burger. Since we are doing our best to eliminate carbs as much as possible I tossed the bun on our turkey cheese burgers ad put the burgers on a bed of mixed greens then topped them off with a fried egg. If you are like my hubby, you will enjoy a soft fried egg so that when you dig into it the yolk runs over the burger and makes the meal even more delicious.

Who needs bread when you can create a delicious No Bun Needed Burger!

No Bun Needed Bacon Cheese Burger

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey meat

6 slices of bacon cooked, cut in half

4 eggs (fried to your liking)

4 slices pepper jack cheese

2 plum tomatoes sliced

1 pkg mixed greens

½ small onion diced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black ground pepper

½ tsp onion powder

Saute onions in 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat until softened. Set aside.

Place ground turkey in a large bowl. Add onions, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings. Mix together well then form 4 turkey patties.

Add remaining olive oil to the same pan used to saute the onions and turn heat to medium high. Cook turkey patties for 2-3 minutes on each side until burgers are nicely browned and cooked all the way through. Remove from the heat and top each with a slice of pepper jack cheese. Cover the burgers then fry the eggs to your liking.

Place mixed greens into four bowls. Place a turkey burger in the middle of each bed of greens then top it with a fried egg. Add bacon and tomatoes around the bowl and dress the greens with your favorite salad dressing. I recommend Gazebo Room Greek Salad Dressing and Marinade. You cannot go wrong with this fantastic dressing.

Enjoy!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Salad with Crispy Prosciutto

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Side Dish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, , , , ,

My hubby and I have started on a new journey to eat a little healthier than we have in recent months. Because I enjoy cooking and love to build on flavors I used butter, sugar and bacon as a great source of flavor. Fast forward to a few weeks ago which is when our journey began and that all changed.

I really wanted to lose weight and find ways of cutting out the things I knew added loads of calories but tasted so doggone good. I finally got my mind, body and spirit in sync to commit to a different lifestyle of eating. To do this I (we) had to jump in feet first and do it in “cold turkey” fashion. I did my research and found a plan that eliminated my usual fare and replaced it with other flavors that are just as tasty and still doggone good.

One substitute I made on my journey is to use prosciutto instead of bacon as a topping for salads. We eat salads year round and making a BIG SALAD for dinner is our favorite on hot summer days. Rather than crisping up a few slices of bacon and crumbling them over the salad, I now heat up a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil (my new substitute for butter) and crisp up prosciutto. Just chop up those crispy pieces then sprinkle them over a nice salad and you will be in salad heaven.

Okay, I can hear a few critics say wait a minute. Doesn’t prosciutto have more salt than bacon? The answer is yes. Prosciutto is saltier than bacon but has less calories and saturated fat. Of course, like everything else, prosciutto should be eaten in moderation. A few slices won’t hurt you and it will add a nice flavor to your salad without adding extra calories and fat like bacon.

Give it a try and see for yourself that prosciutto can be your new source of flavor.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Refreshing Tomato Salad

Side Dish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , ,

Let me say right off the bat that if you don’t like the taste of mint you can leave it out to this salad. My friend Doll does not like anything with mint so before she makes the “ewww” sound after reading the recipe I want her and all mint haters to know the mint is optional. Doll claims to be a southern girl but how can she really be southern if she doesn’t like the taste of mint. Come on! Mint julpes are a southern staple. At least where my family comes from and they are southern.

Hubby and I both like the flavor of mint in salads. I think it adds a refreshing taste to quite a few dishes. My favorite ice cream is mint chocolate chip and I love an ice cold peppermint patty. The creation of my Refreshing Tomato Salad was my welcome spring and summer gift to the family. It is packed with olives, feta cheese, cucumbers, artichokes and of course Tomatoes!

I was fortunate this year to have a good crop of tomatoes so I was able to add our homegrown tomatoes to this salad. I have not tried growing cucumbers yet but maybe next year I will. I prefer English cucumbers because regular cucumbers have too many hard seeds. But, that is just my preference. Use whatever type of cucumber you like or have handy.

During these last days of summer I have been making this recipe a little more frequently. It is always sad to see the warm weather turn a little cooler because it means the end of short sleeves, sandals and shorts. I for one will miss the warm days but I also look forward to the beauty of fall weather. Good thing for me my Refreshing Tomato Salad is delicious no matter what the weather may be.

Refreshing Tomato Salad

Ingredients:

4 – 6 small tomatoes large dice cut

1 English cucumber diced

1 jar marinated artichokes drained and slightly chopped

½ cup crumbled feta cheese

½ cup Italian black olives

¼ cup olive oil

juice from ½ lemon

½ tbsp red onion diced small

½ tsp chopped fresh mint (optional)

½ tsp dried dill

½ tsp dried basil

½ tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and toss gently. Refrigerate for 1 hour to allow the flavors to marry. Remove from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes. Serve as a side dish or add a little bow tie pasta to make it a meal.

 

 

 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Asian Bowl with Lollipop Lamb Chops

Dressing/ Sauce/ Dip, Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Pasta and Grains, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , ,

Recently, I received a wonderful surprise in the mail. New bottles of Gazebo Room Salad Dressing and Marinade. I immediately started thinking about the kinds of recipes I could create that incorporated the dressings. I didn’t want to just use them as a dressing on top of one of my regular salads. I wanted something new and exciting!

Bingo! I finally decided to make an Asian Bowl with Lollipop Lamb Chops. I topped the Asian bowl with Gazebo Room Asian Vinaigrette Salad Dressing and Marinade. Yes, that is a mouthful to say and a delicious mouthful to taste. If you like tangy salad dressings, I think you will like this Asian dressing. I just would not put a lot of this dressing on a salad. A little goes a long way with this dressing because it is so flavorful.

Now back to my Asian Bowl with Lollipop Lamb Chops. In my mind, this is a very simple dish to make and the Asian bowl is both colorful and nutritious. I kept it simple by combining just a few veggies, thin lo mein noodles and of course the lamb chops. I have to admit I developed this recipe based on the lamb chops. As I usually do on the weekends, I was perusing the meat aisle looking for something other than chicken. Remember, I have nothing against chicken. We just eat it often so I try to break up the week with another meat if possible so that we don’t grow feathers. I spied a lone package of lollipop lamb chops among the packages of bigger lamb chops and grabbed them before anyone else could. It is rare for me to find these little jewels so I was quite happy with this trip to the grocery store.

When I pulled the recipe together I wasn’t totally convinced hubby would be on board since I had never prepared a “bowl”. I wasn’t even sure he had heard of an Asian bowl but he surprised me and said “Sure, go for it”, which meant he was on board. Hubby did come into the kitchen a couple of times to see what I was doing and guided me on how he wanted me to “create” his bowl. Yeah, let’s just call him my assistant on this recipe. Anyway, we both enjoyed the final product. Hubby really enjoyed it because he ate the whole thing. Normally, he leaves a little food on his plate but not this time. All I saw were two chopsticks and lamb chop bones sitting at the bottom of his bowl. That is what I call a successful dish!

Asian Bowl with Lollipop Lamb Chops

Ingredients:

2 Roma tomatoes diced

2 scallions sliced

2 bunches romaine lettuce shredded or small Napa cabbage shredded

1 package (6 – 8) lollipop lamb chops

1 package thin lo mein noodles

1 small can water chestnuts drained

1 cup snow peas

1 cup shredded carrots

¼ cup crispy rice noodles

¼ cup Gazebo Room Asian Vinaigrette Salad Dressing and Marinade

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp minced fresh ginger

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp salt

½ tbsp black pepper

paprika

Season lamb chops with Worcestershire sauce, salt, black pepper and paprika. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a medium sized frying pan over medium high heat. Brown lamb chops on both sides approximately 3 – 5 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and place on paper towels to drain.

Add snow peas, carrots and scallions to frying pan and saute until slightly softened but still has some crispness. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Build Salad:

Place lettuce in the bottom of the bowl. Arrange veggies around the bowl. Add lo mein noodles, water chestnuts and diced tomatoes. Place three lamb chops on one side of the bowl. Drizzle with dressing then sprinkle with rice noodles.

Enjoy!

 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Simple Slaw

Dressing/ Sauce/ Dip, Side Dish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , , , , ,

With the warm weather rolling in to say for a while, I thought it was time for me to create a few light dishes for the blog. Simple Slaw is just that …. simple. No fuss. No cooking over a hot stove. This recipe is as I said, just simple to prepare.

Summertime is my second favorite time of the year. My favorite time of year is fall because I love wearing sweaters and fall weather allows me to do that. Summertime, is the other favorite because I don’t have to wear a coat and I can wear sandals instead of shoes. I am a southern girl at heart so wearing shoes is the last thing I want to do in the summer. Plus, summertime forces me to paint my toenails to add that cute factor to the sandals. In the winter, what’s the point of painting your toenails if nobody can see how cute they are. Some may say “well why not paint them for hubby”? To that I say, he barely sees my toes in the house since we all wear socks to walk on the hardwood floors. Besides, winter is cold and you need to wear socks. But, I digress. Back to summertime and recipes.

Simple Slaw pairs well with just about any entree. I have prepared it with steak and potatoes as well as with hot dogs and baked beans. I think this would be a great dish to take to a picnic or barbeque because it travels well. There is no concern about mayo in the dressing so the slaw will keep much longer if sitting out. I know I have said this on a few occasions and I will say it again, colorful dishes are important to me. Besides the wonderful smell of food, the appearance of food helps to make a meal taste delicious. We first eat with our eyes then with our tongues. So the beautiful bright orange of the carrots and the deep purple of the cabbage will entice you to want to dig in. Go on. Try it! I am sure you will enjoy this light summertime dish.

Simple Slaw

Ingredients:

1 8oz pkg red cabbage shredded

1 8oz pkg carrots shredded

¼ cup golden raisins

½ tsp salt

½ tsp ground black pepper

¼ tsp parsley chopped or dried

¼ tsp cilantro

Dressing:

¼ cup Gazebo Room Greek Salad Dressing and Marinade

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp sour cream

½ tbsp spicy brown mustard

Whisk together dressing ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Combine red cabbage, carrots, raisins and seasonings into a large bowl. Pour dressing over slaw and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and allow flavors to marinate for 30 minutes. Stir again prior to serving.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Dee’s Egg Salad

Main Course, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , ,

When I was a kid, my mom made egg salad like everyone else did with eggs, mayo and mustard. Of course she added her southern twist by including sweet relish to the mix. Instead of eating the egg salad on sandwiches, we ate it with crackers. My version, Dee’s Egg Salad, is not like your typical egg salad. I like a little color and crunch to my egg salad to make it more interesting.

Basic egg salads are pale yellow and white with sprinkles of dull green sweet relish. Me? I left out the relish and added a vibrant green by putting diced English cucumbers in the egg salad for the crunch and color I enjoy. I love to eat with my eyes so adding more colors to compliment the white and yellow was right up my alley.

Besides being a salad unto itself Dee’s Egg Salad is a great addition to a regular salad or spinach salad. Rather than having eggs and tomatoes as a single ingredient in a spinach salad use it as a topping for the salad. Sprinkle with chopped bacon and you have created a masterpiece. So shake up your plain egg salad and try Dee’s Egg Salad.

Dee’s Egg Salad

Ingredients:

6 large eggs

1 roma tomato diced

2 cups water

¼ English cucumber diced

2 tbsp salt

2 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp parsley

¼ tsp cilantro

In a medium sized pot bring 2 cups of water, eggs and 1 tbsp salt to a boil. Cook for 4 minutes. Remove eggs from heat and let cool. Peel and chop eggs. Add eggs to a large bowl with the remaining ingredients. Gently mix together.

Serve on a bed of mixed greens, with crackers or on a sandwich.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Panzanella Salad

Appetizers, Dressing/ Sauce/ Dip, Main Course, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , , , , ,

I had never heard of a Panzanella Salad until I saw a cooking challenge on television. The amateur chef was Italian and decided to make a Panzanella Salad because ingredients were limited and time was short. After all, it was a challenge.

Salads in general don’t take long to pull together and Panzanella Salad fits that bill. The most time consuming part of making this salad is crisping up the bread cubes. Of course, if you are really short on time you could use prepared toasted bread cubes or even croutons. In a pinch use whatever is quick. I like crisping up my own bread cubes because I like to use different types of bread when making this salad. Ciabatta, sour dough bread or even a french baguette are a few of my favorites. One day I want to try and use cornbread but I am afraid it may come out mushy. I will let you know once I figure it out.

I took a few liberties with my version of Panzanella Salad by adding vegetables not included in the traditional versions (there are many versions of the traditional salad in the universe). The straight forward version does not use peppers or meat. I wanted the salad to be colorful since we often eat with our eyes. My family and I are meat eaters. Plain and simple. We love veggies and can go a few days without eating meat but we always go back to eating fish, fowl, pork and sometimes beef. I offer no apologies to my vegetarian friends. Adding meat is optional.

Like I always say …. make this recipe your own. I did!

Panzanella Salad

Ingredients:

2 – 3 cups cubed ciabatta, sour dough bread or french baguette

3 pearl tomatoes cut into wedges

3 slices prosciutto torn into pieces (optional)

1 pint cherry tomatoes cut in half

1 English cucumber

3 oz fresh mozzarella torn into pieces

3 oz fresh feta cubed

½ red pepper seeded and cut into chunks

½ yellow pepper seeded and cut into chunks

½ orange pepper seeded and cut into chunks

½ cup kalamata olives pitted

¼ cup red onion thinly sliced

¼ cup shaved parmesan cheese (garnish)

4 tbsp olive oil

Dressing:

½ cup olive oil

½ cup red wine vinegar

2 cloves garlic minced

1tsp salt

1 tsp dried oregano

½ tsp dried basil

½ tsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp ground black pepper

pinch red pepper flakes

Place ingredients into a small jar and shake to blend. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add bread cubes and allow to crisp up but not toast. Shake and toss the bread cubes to make sure they do not burn. Let cool and set aside.

Cut cucumber in half and scoop out the center then cut the cucumber into chunks. Place vegetables in a large bowl. Add prosciutto, feta, mozzarella cheese pieces and bread cubes. Shake dressing then pour over salad and gently toss to combine all the ingredients. Set salad aside for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours so that the flavors blend together. Sprinkle with shaved parmesan cheese for garnish.

 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Roasted Tomato Salad

Appetizers, Main Course, Side Dish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , ,

img_5064_1

Fruits and vegetables all have a “season”.  Meaning, there are certain times of the year when fruits and vegetables are at their best and taste fantastic. Living on the east coast, I find tomatoes are at their best during the summer and early fall months. I grow a lot of different types of tomatoes in the summer and miss them when they are gone.

img_5070_1

Of course, just because the seasons change it does not mean you cannot get good tasting vegetables. However, you have to be careful because “out of season” vegetables like tomatoes can lack flavor and may not have a nice texture inside. Even tomatoes imported from warmer climates may not live up to east coast summer tomatoes. For that reason, I sometimes like to roast tomatoes to bring out their natural sweetness. Roasted Tomato Salad is wonderful because the roasted tomatoes add a nice kick of flavor to the salad.

img_5100_1

My Roasted Tomato Salad is nutritious and full of savory and slightly sweet flavors. Salads are a very personal dish because you can combine all of your favorite vegetables, fruits, nuts and meats. Or, you can keep it simple with only lettuce and roasted tomatoes.

img_5090_1

Roasted Tomato Salad

Ingredients:

2 bunches romaine lettuce chopped

6 -8 plum tomatoes cut into wedges

3 slices prosciutto chopped (optional)

½ red onion sliced thinly

¼ cup black olives

¼ cup shaved parmesan cheese

¼ cup Gazebo Room Greek Salad Dressing and Marinade

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp oregano

1 tsp salt

1 black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Toss tomatoes with red onion slices and season with olive oil, salt, black pepper and oregano. Spray a rimmed cookie sheet with cooking spray and then spread tomatoes and onions on the cookie sheet. Roast for 30 – 45 minutes until browned and/or slightly charred (based on your preference). Let cool for 10 minutes.

Toss cooled roasted tomatoes with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Serve as a main dish or nice appetizer.

 

 

 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad

Side Dish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , ,

IMG_4395_1

Lately, I have been eating a lot of cauliflower which means I have to come up with different ways to fix it so that we don’t get bored with cauliflower. I really like broccoli salad so I thought I would add cauliflower and a few other ingredients to my standard recipe to create a new fresh salad.

IMG_4403_1

The spring and summer seasons call for light flavorful dishes. Cauliflower is big, pretty and plentiful during this time of year. As the seasons progress, cauliflower becomes less expensive so it usually ends up in my shopping cart.

IMG_4416_1

My biggest surprise after making my Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad was that my youngest son really liked it. He can be picky when it comes to eating raw vegetables so I was taken aback when he dipped his fork into the bowl and scooped out some of the salad. His reaction surprised me even more and I suddenly realized I may not have any Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad left to take to work for lunch. No worries. I would rather see T enjoy eating raw veggies than worry about lunch the next day. Besides, I quickly put aside a little salad in a container then put it way back in the frig before hubby and T could polish it off.

IMG_4410_1

This is one recipe I am sure I will be making all summer long. Bring on the BBQ!!! I have a dish I think everyone will love.

IMG_4419_1

Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad

 Ingredients:

1 large broccoli crown cut into small florets

1 large head of cauliflower cut into small florets

6 slices bacon fried and crumbled

1 cup carrots shredded

1 cup red cabbage shredded

½ cup sour cream

½ cup mayo

½ cup golden raisins

¼ cup Colby jack cheese shredded

½ tbsp seasoned salt

½ tsp cracked black pepper

½ tsp sugar

¼ tsp chopped parsley

Combine broccoli, cauliflower and raisins in a large bowl. In a medium bowl blend together sour cream, mayo and seasonings. Pour over veggies and gently mix to coat. Sprinkle with bacon (reserve a little bacon for garnish) and cheese then gently toss.

Chill 30 minutes. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Top with bacon crumbs before serving.

 

Combine broccoli, cauliflower and raisins in a large bowl. In a medium bowl blend together sour cream, mayo and seasonings. Pour over veggies and gently mix to coat. Sprinkle with bacon (reserve a little bacon for garnish) and cheese then gently toss.

Chill 30 minutes. Serve chilled or at room temperature. Top with bacon crumbs before serving.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin