Spinach Salad with Oranges, Pomegranate, and Almonds

Tomorrow is the big day! Is everyone ready? I sure hope so. We are still without plans, but don't worry about us, we are excited to have a relaxing day. I am sure we will cook up something tasty, it just won't be the traditional feast.

If you need a last minute salad idea, I have a great one to share. I made this Spinach Salad with Oranges, Pomegranate, and Almonds for our Thanksgiving meal and it went over really well. I bought a big tub of fresh spinach from Costco. I added orange slices, pomegranate arils, and almonds. For the dressing, I whisked together olive oil, POM juice, red wine vinegar, fresh orange juice, a little agave, salt, and pepper.

The salad was gorgeous! I love the color the pomegranate and orange slices add. The almonds provided a nice little crunch too. The dressing was light and added just enough sweetness to the mix. Wow your family and friends with this salad tomorrow!

If you are still looking for Thanksgiving recipes, here are a few of my favorites:
My dad's famous Potato Rolls
Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing
Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Orange Zest
Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Yams, and Brussel Sprouts with Rosemary
Pumpkin Blondies
Apple Cinnamon Galette
Pumpkin Cake Roll

**And some good news-our blog was featured in the Salt Lake City Tribune today. Check out the article here! Thanks for mentioning us!**

Have a very happy and safe Thanksgiving!

Spinach Salad with Oranges, Pomegranate, and Almonds

(Printable Recipe)

Fresh spinach (I use the fresh spinach from Costco)
2 oranges, peeled and sliced
1 pomegranate, peeled and seeded
Almonds

Dressing:
1/2 cup POM juice
1 T red wine vinegar
Juice of one orange
2 T agave nectar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper-to taste

1. Add fresh spinach to a large salad bowl. Add the oranges, pomegranate arils, and almonds.
2. To make the dressing-in a small bowl add the POM juice, vinegar, orange juice, and agave nectar. Whisk in the olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
3. Toss the salad with the dressing and serve.

Spinach Salad with Tortellini, Dried Cranberries, Apples, Almonds, and Feta

I love browsing Foodgawker and TasteSpotting for cooking and baking inspiration. The only problem is I usually end up hungry:) Last week I saw Picky Cook's tortellini salad and immediately bookmarked it.

On Sunday I was feeling lazy, but still wanted a tasty meal. This salad popped into my mind. I didn't have the exact ingredients, but that didn't stop me. I just switched things up a bit. I used frozen cheese tortellini and spinach as the base of the salad. I also added in dried cranberries, Granny Smith apple slices, almonds, and feta cheese. I drizzled the salad with balsamic dressing and voila-a masterpiece in minutes.

The dried cranberries and apples gave the salad a nice sweetness. The almonds also added a nice crunch. This salad is very filling because of the tortellini and all of the goodies involved. Enjoy it as a meal or serve a little bit on the side of your favorite fall soup.

Spinach Salad with Tortellini, Dried Cranberries, Apples, Almonds, and Feta

Inspired by Picky Cook

(Printable Recipe)

Fresh spinach leaves

Cheese tortellini, cooked, drained, and chilled

Dried cranberries

Granny Smith apple, cut into thin slices

Almonds

Feta cheese

Balsamic dressing

1. Cook the tortellini according to package instructions. I used frozen tortellini. Drain and rinse with cold water.

2. Place a bed of spinach on a plate.

3. Add tortellini, dried cranberries, apple slices, almonds, feta cheese, and dressing.

4. Eat and enjoy.

You might also like:
Greek Style Tortellini Salad from RecipeGirl
Pesto Tortellini with Sauteed Vegetables and Parmesan Cheese from For the Love of Cooking
Tortellini Skewers from Dana Treat

Tortellini Vegetable Soup from Two Peas and Their Pod

Illinois and Nectarine Raspberry Salad

We went to Illinois for Labor Day weekend to visit my family. We had a great time, but of course the trip went too quickly. I am sorry I haven't updated the blog, we were busy playing and my dad's internet connection is so slow! We live in the boonies and the connection isn't that great:)

One of the highlights of our trip was meeting our five month old niece, Ramona. She is such a doll. My brother and his wife spent most of the weekend with us so I had time to become the favorite auntie:)

We also played tennis, had a bbq, met up with some friends, did some baking, and relaxed. Josh's highlight was probably flying a plane! Our good family friends own a plane and Josh went up for a ride-I was too scared to go, but Josh LOVED it. He took over the controls and even flew the plane for awhile. I am glad he had fun.

Here are some photos from our trip!

My stepmom made this nectarine raspberry salad for our bbq and I loved it. The raspberries and nectarines were ripe and juicy. The dressing was wonderful as well. I am glad she was willing to share the recipe, because I can't wait to make it again! I will post some of our baking adventures soon. My dad makes the best bread!

We had a great trip! I will try to catch up on my blogging this week.

Nectarine Raspberry Salad

(Printable Recipe)

Fresh spinach or spring mix

Raspberries

Nectarines, sliced

Dressing Recipe:

1 nectarine, chopped, pit and skin removed

2 T fresh lemon juice

3 T olive oil

1 T honey

Salt and pepper to taste

For the dressing: In a blender add all of the ingredients. Blend until smooth. Taste. Add more salt and pepper if necessary. Serve over salad greens, nectarines, and raspberries. Will keep in fridge for a couple of weeks.

White Bean Salad with Zucchini, Green Beans, and Tomatoes

We didn't plant a big garden this year, but our friend has been sharing his garden goods with us. He brought over zucchini and green beans the other day. I made zucchini bread and created a new salad.

I love salads anytime of the year, but especially in the summer when it is hot and the produce is at it's peak. For this salad, I sauted zucchini and green beans in a tiny bit of olive oil. I didn't cook them for long because I wanted them to be crisp. I added white beans-a great source of protein, and tomatoes. I gave the veggies a nice splash of fresh lemon juice. To top things off, I threw in some fresh basil and Parmesan cheese too!

This is one of my new favorite salads. It is super simple, tasty, and good for you!

White Bean Salad with Zucchini, Green Beans, and Tomatoes

(Printable Recipe)

1 can cannellini beans (white beans), drained and rinsed
Olive oil
1 zucchini, chopped
1 cup fresh green beans, remove the ends
2-3 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
Juice of one lemon
Parmesan cheese-just guess on the amount
Coarse salt and ground pepper

In a small sauce pan, heat up the olive oil and sauté the zucchini and green beans. Don’t overcook them. You want the vegetables to be crisp.

In a medium bowl, place cannellini beans, zucchini, green beans, tomatoes, basil, lemon juice, and Parmesan cheese; season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine.

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

"Summer time and the living's easy!" It is Friday and I have the day off so I am feeling pretty good today:) We don't have huge weekend plans, but I am still excited it is here!

Fresh, local produce is one of my favorite things about summer. We don't have a garden this year, well we have tomato plants and herbs, but never got around to planting anything else. The sprinkler system project took over. We love going to the farmer's market and supporting our local farmers though!

I made this grilled vegetable pasta salad with some of our favorite summer veggies. Josh grilled zucchini, eggplant, red peppers, and yellow squash. I made a simple balsamic dressing, chopped some tomatoes, fresh basil, and added everything to some pasta. I finished it off with feta cheese.

Pasta salads are perfect for the summer. I like to make a big bowl so we can have leftovers for our lunches. They are also good for bbq's, picnics, and pool parties. Have a great weekend everyone!

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

(Printable Recipe)

Grill the following vegetables, I brush them with a little olive oil and balsamic:

Zucchini

Eggplant

Red pepper

Yellow Squash

Chop up tomatoes and fresh basil.

Cook your favorite pasta and run cold water over it, this is a cold pasta salad.

Make a balsamic dressing or use store bought.

I used balsamic vinegar, a little olive oil, garlic, shallots, Dijon mustard, chopped basil, salt, and pepper. Whisk everything together to your taste. Sorry I didn't measure.

In a big bowl add the pasta, veggies, and basil. Stir. Pour dressing over pasta and veggies. Stir and add more until the pasta is well coated. Add in feta cheese. Serve cold. Will keep for a couple of days.

Grilled Vegetable Salad

We've been putting our grill to work lately. I love cooking and eating outside. This week we grilled eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes. I really wasn't sure what to do with them when I started, but I ended up creating my new favorite salad.

I marinated the vegetables in a balsamic, garlic, basil concoction. Josh grilled them to perfection and then I added the veggies to a bed of fresh spinach. I also added artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, feta cheese, and fresh basil. For fun, I grilled whole wheat pita bread and served little pita triangles on the side.

While we were eating I kept raving about the salad to Josh. I honestly wasn't looking for a pat on the back, I just couldn't believe it tasted so good:) It really took no time to make and we didn't have to heat up the house! This is a quick, healthy, tasty salad for summer. I can't wait to make it again.

Grilled Vegetable Salad
Serves 2-3

(Printable Recipe)

1/3 cup Balsamic vinegar
1 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Fresh basil, chopped-to taste
Water-to taste

1 eggplant, sliced into rounds
1 zucchini, sliced into rounds
2 Roma tomatoes, halved
Artichoke hearts
Roasted red peppers
Feta Cheese
Fresh basil, chopped
Balsamic dressing
Whole wheat pita bread-optional

1. In a small bowl, whisk together balsamic vinegar, garlic, basil, and just a splash of water. The balsamic was too strong so I had to dilute it. You can skip the water if you like it really strong:)
2. Sprinkle the eggplant, zucchini, and tomato halves with salt and pepper. Lay them out in a dish. Pour the balsamic mixture over the vegetables. Make sure each side gets coated. Let veggies sit for 10 minutes or so.
2. Heat up the grill. Place eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes on the grill. Cook each side for a couple of minutes, until the veggies are tender with grill marks.
3. Place fresh spinach on a plate. Top with the grilled veggies, artichoke hearts, red peppers, feta cheese, and fresh basil. You can add extra balsamic dressing if you wish.
4. If you want, you can grill whole wheat pita bread and serve it on the side. I cut the bread into little triangles.

Recipe for Tortellini Spinach Salad

Happy Friday! Any fun weekend plans? We are working at the Viking Cooking School on Saturday night. We are doing a French Dinner Party Class, I can't wait. We also have some plans with friends. I am thinking it will be a great weekend!

I am always up for a good salad. This Tortellini Spinach Salad is one of my favorites. It is so easy and you can mix it up with whatever you have on hand. I use frozen cheese tortellini and I always buy the colorful kind. It makes the salad more fun:) I cook the tortellini and then rinse it with cold water. This is a cold pasta salad.

I mix in whatever vegetables I have on hand. Some of my favorites are: artichokes, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, olives, etc. I then toss everything with a fat free Italian dressing and Italian seasoning. The salad is best if the flavors have time to simmer, so I usually chill it for a couple of hours and then serve it over a bed of fresh spinach. I usually top it off with fresh Parmesan too!

I love this salad because you can make it in advance, it's easy, colorful, tasty, healthy, makes great leftovers, versatile, and again TASTY!

Tortellini Spinach Salad

(Printable Recipe)

-1 bag of frozen cheese tortellini (in Utah, I find it at Harmon's or Ream's)
-Vegetables of your choice-chopped (This time I used tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, yellow squash, and peppers, but use anything you like)
-Italian dressing (or similar variety, use your favorite)
-Italian seasoning
--Salt/Pepper
Fresh spinach

1. Cook the tortellini in a big pot of salted water. When cooked, rinse with cold water.
2.Add in veggies and stir.
3. Cover with dressing and seasonings. Stir until well-coated.
4. Chill and serve over a bed of spinach.
5. Enjoy!

Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing

I love salads, especially in the summer when it is hot and you don't feel like cooking! I am sharing my favorite salad dressing of all time. It is so delicious! I could almost drink it...ok, maybe not but you get the point!

I usually serve this dressing on mixed greens with candied nuts and fruit. Almonds are my nut of choice but pecans and walnuts are good too. Any fruit will work, but I like using pears or apples, red grapes, and of course Craisins! They make the salad pretty and add a nice sweetness. Go crazy and add some feta cheese too! It makes it really good!



Maple Mustard Dressing

makes 2 cups

4 cloves garlic

1T Dijon mustard

1T Grainy mustard

1/3c real maple syrup

1/3c imitation maple syrup

1/3c apple cider vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

1c canola oil

Process garlic, mustards, syrups, vinegar, salt and pepper in a blender or food processor.
With the machine running, pour in oil in a slow steady stream to emulsify.  Serve over salad greens, etc.
Store extra dressing in the fridge. It makes a lot!