World's Best Potato Salad

This one is definitely one of my favorite recipes. It is simple, and doesn't have a lot of funky ingredients (unless you hate eggs in your potato salad, as my mother does.) Handed down from a Bishop's wife in our Salt Lake City ward, it always gets compliments.

8-10 medium red new potatoes
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. chives
1 tsp. celery seed
1 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1/2 cup onion, chopped
2/3 cup miracle whip
2/3 cup mayonnaise
3-4 eggs, hard boiled


Cook potatoes about 45 minutes. Cool completely. Scrape off skin and chop into bite-sized pieces. Combine the rest of the ingredients and then add to chopped potatoes. Best flavor when you make this the day ahead.

BBQ Chicken Salad with Cilantro Ranch Dressing

This is a recipe from my sister Kate.  Low-carb, delicious and great for the summer!

3 Cups thinly sliced Green Leaf Lettuce 


¼ Cup corn 


¼ Cup black beans 


8 grape tomatoes, halved 


1 cooked grilled chicken breast 


¼ Cup favorite BBQ Sauce 


¼ Cup shredded mozzarella cheese

 ¼ Cup prepared ranch dressing 


1 heaping Tablespoon fresh chopped cilantro leaves

1. Place lettuce into a salad bowl. Layer with corn, black beans and tomatoes. Dice cooked chicken breast and mix with BBQ sauce. Top over salad and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

2. Place ranch dressing and cilantro leaves into a small bowl to combine. Drizzle over salad and serve.

**This recipe is for 1 large serving, double accordingly**

Greek Salad

My sister Kate's recipe:

2 TBS red wine vinegar

4 garlic cloves minced

1 t dijon mustard

1/2 t sea salt

1/2 t pepper

1/4 cup e.v.o.o.

2 tom, cut into 3/4 inch dice

1 cucumber peeled and halved lengthsie and cut into 1/4 inch slices

1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives

1/4 red onion thinly sliced

3 cups marinated tofu “feta”

Salad greens

In a small bowl, whisk together the red wine vinegar, garlic, mustard, salt, and pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil; set the dressing aside.

In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, cucumber, olives, and onion. Gently toss in the marinated tofu “feta” and dressing to taste. Serves as is for a side, or on top of salad greens for an entree.

Spinach Pasta Salad

I had this at a church activity in my old ward and ate about 4 plates of it. It is definitely a "girl's salad", great for bridal or baby showers, bookclubs, or any other activities where guys aren't in attendance. This recipe is halved, which feeds about 6-8 people, but for bigger crowds, double it for 12-16 people.

1 bag (10 oz) spinach
1/2 bunch green onions, sliced
1/4 C. fresh parsley
3 oz. craisins (1/3 C.)
3 oz. honey roasted peanuts (about 1/3 c.--I used honey roasted cashews)
1-2 cans mandarin oranges, drained
2 C. cooked, cut-up chicken (about 2 large breasts)
1/2 box (12-16 oz) bow tie pasta (about 4 cups cooked pasta)

Dressing:
1/2 C. vegetable oil
1/3 C. Teriyaki Sauce
1/3 C. Rice Vinegar (Nakano original seasonal brand)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Prepare dressing ahead of time and refrigerate overnight. Mix all salad ingredients together and add dressing just before serving.

Amazing Coconut Refrigerator Cake

This is for a couple of friends who requested the recipe. We made it for Easter dinner this year and joked that it was a "true" Easter cake because it's best if you leave it in the fridge up to 3 days. But the longer the better!

Cake:
1 package white cake mix
1 1/3 cups water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 large eggs

Coconut frosting:
2 cups sugar
2 cups sour cream (16-oz. container)
3 1/2 cups grated coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour two 9-in. round cake pans. Place the cake mix, water, oil and eggs in mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low for 1 minute; stop and scrape the bowl and then mix on medium speed 2 minutes more. The batter should look well-blended. Divide the batter between the two pans. Bake the cakes until they are golden brown, about 27 to 29 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by combining the sugar, sour cream and coconut in a bowl, and let the mixture rest in the refrigerator until the sugar dissolves, about 1 hour. Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool 10 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edges and invert onto a rack and let cool another 30 minutes. When the cake is cooled, carefully slice the cake layers in half horizontally using a long serrated bread knife or a long piece of unflavored dental floss. You will have four layers. Assemble the cake by spreading some frosting on the bottom half, topping with another half, and so on until the four layers are assembled. Frost the top and sides with remaining frosting. Chill the cake, uncovered, until the frosting is firm, about 1 hour.

You can store the cake, covered with wax paper in the fridge for up to one week. The whole eggs in the batter and the sour cream frosting soaks down into the cake, making it improve as the cake chills. The coconut flavor also increases daily.

Martha's Poppy Seed Salad

I think this is a great summer recipe for salads! I got it from my sis-in-law Martha, and whenever I make it I always get compliments.

Dressing (makes quite a bit!)
Combine in a processor:1 slice red onion
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 cup oil
1 Tbs. poppy seeds.

Salad
Spring mix, or red leaf lettuce
3/4 cup caramelized slivered almonds. (put in a small pan on medium low heat, add a few spoonfuls of sugar, and stir frequently until sugar melts and almonds are toasted.)
1 cup craisins
1 apple diced, or pears, or you could use bananas.
Dress salad and enjoy!

Chicken Wild Rice Salad

This is one of my favorite cold summer salads. And in posting this, I am hoping you all will post some good summer recipes of your's seeing that I am in a rut and want to eat good cold things! It sounds weird when you read the ingredients, but trust me, it is so good. I love it really cold with maybe some watermelon or other fruit for an easy meal.

4 cooked chicken breasts (I usually grill mine, but you can cook them any way you want)
2 boxes Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice (it calls for original, but I use the fast cook to save time)
1 green pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 cup snow peas, cut in smaller pieces
1 bottle Brianna's Blush Wine Vinaigrette dressing
Cook rice and chicken. Cut up chicken and vegetables. Combine in a bowl. And whole bottle of salad dressing. Toss and enjoy!

Pasta Salad with Asparagus and White Beans

This post is mainly for my sister, who is a new-found vegetarian. This is a great pasta salad, wonderful for lunch and for the upcoming warm months. It is so flavorful and packed full of fiber, calcium and other great nutrients!

1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt
1/2 cup low-fat mayo
1/4 cup 1% milk (I used skim)
1/2 cup (2 oz.) crumbled feta cheese
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. dried dill weed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 cups (2 in) diagonally cut asparagus spears
6 ounces (about 2 cups) uncooked radiatore or rotini pasta (can use whole grain or whole wheat too)
1 cup canned Great Northern, Cannellini, or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup finely diced celery
3 Tbsp. finely diced red onion
3 Tbsp. finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

In medium bowl, whisk together yogurt, mayo, milk, feta, lemon juice, dill, salt and pepper until evenly blended. Steam asparagus on steamer rack over boiling water or in a covered microwave-safe bowl with a little water for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, or until bright green and crisp tender (do not overcook or they will be mushy). Cool under cold running water, drain well and pat dry with paper towels.
Cook pasta according to package directions until just al dente. Drain pasta, then rinse under cold running water to stop the cooking process and drain again thoroughly. In a large bowl, combine the pasta, asparagus, beans, celery and onion. Add dressing and parsley and mix to combine. Keep in refrigerator. Makes 4 servings.

UNCLE TYLER'S BAKED BEANS

*UNCLE TYLER’S BAKED BEANS
These are really good

2 15 oz. Pork and Beans
2 small cans kidney beans (rinsed and drained)
2 small cans butter beans (rinsed and drained)
1 lb hamburger (cooked)
1 lb bacon (cooked)
1 cup chopped onion browned
1 cup ketchup
1 cup brown sugar
1 TBLS Liquid smoke
2 TBLS vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Double recipe to fill crock pot

Roast Chicken with Grape and Blue Cheese Salad

Another favorite from "Real Simple". This no-cook meal takes only about 10-15 minutes to prepare, is low fat, filling and delicious!

Serves 4-6

2 Small heads boston or bibb lettuce, torn into pieces
4 stalks celery, sliced on the diagonal
1/2 red onion finely chopped
2 cups (about 1/2 lb) green grapes halved
3 oz blue cheese, crumbled
2 tbs fresh lemon juice
2 tbs white wine vinegar
1/3 cup e.v.o.o.
Kosher salt and pepper
Rotisserie chicken meat thickly sliced

In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, celery, onion, grapes, and blue cheese. In a small bowlwhisk together the lemon juice, vinegar, oil, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Divide the salad and chicken among individual plates. Serve with the vinaigrette.

Lettuce Cups

Feel like going carb-less tonight?  These lettuce cups are low fat, delicious, filling, and take only about 20 minutes to make!

1/2 lb ground turkey 

3 green onion sliced

1 package broccoli slaw

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

2 tbs oyster sauce

1/2 cup water

1 heaping tbs sugar

1 can water chestnuts drained

iceberg lettuce or green cabbage (I prefer the cabbage)

cook meat in skillet.  Chop green onions and add with meat.  When meat is cooked, add broccoli slaw and cook for about 3 minutes.  Add sauces and sugar in bowl and stir.  put in pan and simmer on low for about 15 minutes.  Serve in pieces of iceberg lettuce or cabbage

Beef, watercress, and peach salad with lime vinaigrette

I love recipes from "Real Simple".  Here's one I tried last week. It's definitely a keeper!

 Hands on time:25 min total time:25 min serves 4-6

2 bunches watercress, thick stems removed

2 kirby cucumbers roughly chopped

4 ripe peaches cut into wedges

1 1 pound piece roast beef, cubed

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

Kosher salt and pepper

1 small clove garlic finely chopped

2 teaasoons finely grated ginger

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 large shallots thinly sliced

In a large bowl, combine the watercress, cucumbers, peaches, and beef.  Pour the lime juice into a small bowl and whisk in the sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt until dissolved.  Add the garlic, ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Slowly add the oil in a steady stream whisking constantly until emulsified.  Stir in the shallots.  Transfer the salad into a serving bowl or platter and drizzle the vinaigrette over the top.

Tip: for cooked roast beef, look no further than the deli counter.  Ask the server to forgo the slicer and cut a 1 pound slab by hand

Fresh Peach Dessert

Layer a 9x13 pan with Lorna Doone square cookies

Filling
1 can eagle sweetened condensed milk
1/4 c. Lemon juice
8oz. Coolwhip
mix together and put on top of cookies

topping-
one small pkg peach jello
3tsp cornstarch
1 c. sugar
1 pinch salt
2 c. water
boil until clear, then add four or five fresh peaches sliced, pour over filling and let set in fridge overnight.

Raspberry Creme Pie

This is a great frozen pie for hot summer days. The recipe calls for lite or fat free ingredients, but you can always substitute them for the full-fat versions for a richer pie. Even Jeff (who hates fruit desserts) will eat this!

1 (6 oz.) reduced-fat graham cracker crust
1 (14-oz.) can regular or fat-free sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup frozen raspberry lemonade concentrate
1 (8 oz.) container lite cool whip topping, thawed
1 cup fresh or frozen whole raspberries
In a large bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk and juice concentrate; mix well. Fold in whipped topping. Spoon 1/2 cup raspberries into bottom of crust; top with filling. Freeze six hours. Top with remaining raspberries just before serving. Refrigerate or freeze leftovers.

CHICKEN CAESAR PASTA

16 oz. box rotini
2 boneless chicken breasts
1 bottle Cardini’s original Caesar dressing
1 Tbsp. crushed garlic
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 pint cherry tomatoes
2 Tbsp. Mrs. Dash seasoning
1/3 red onion, choppedCook pasta and drain.

Cut chicken into bite-size pieces and stir-fry in garlic & oil. Mix chicken in with the pasta. Add dressing, onion, and Mrs. Dash. Garnish with cherry tomatoes (optional: cut them in half).

I found this on another site.. but love it nonetheless...