Watermelon Feta salad!!!!!!

I recently made this for a dinner party and it was a huge it. The perfect salad for hot hot days. The combo of watermelon and mint really cool your jets. 9 cups cubed seedless watermelon 1 cup feta 1/4 raw pepitas 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint 2 limes enough olive oil to go around ( really who measures olive oil?) coarse salt fresh ground pepper in a bowl mix pepitas with a nice shake of salt and pepper and about 1tb of olive oil. toast in oven at 300 for about 10 minn. In a large serving bowl layer the bottom with watermelon, then a sprinkle of feta, a sprinkle of mint, then pepitas, salt and pepper, a juice half a lime, and then a dash of olive oil. Keep repeating till ingredients have run out. Layering helps evenly distribute all the ingredients of the salad. Chill for a hour at least then enjoy!

summer salad

hmmm well summer is almost over, but I still wanted to share this salad before it goes.
It's sooo delicious and easy. 

• 3 small avocados, cubed
• 3 small oranges, sectioned
• 2 cups radishes, diced (radishes and avocado are pretty much a match made in heaven)
• 1 package of arugula (or romain, or whatever you have)
• 6 green onions, finely chopped (1 cup)
• 3 Tbs. lime juice
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro

If you want to be real fancy sure you can put it back in the avocado shell, but lets be real, that is not a big enough serving size...just sayin

mango caprese

This is a more summery interpretation of the classic caprese salad of: basil, olive oil, mozzarella, tomato.
So easy, delicious, and fast.

Mozarella, mango (not too ripe) mint, sea salt, olive oil.

I totally stole it from Pinterest, and Casey and I have been eating it ever since.

Mashed Chickpea and Avocado Sandwich

Recipes similar to this have been on my radar for almost 2 years and I am just getting around to making this! I have been craving avocados this summer. I swear, I put them in almost anything and it tastes better! This is a really simple recipe and perfect for a summer picnic. I think it would make a great dip too or even something you could just eat alone. I wanted to add curry powder too but I was out!

Ingredients: 

• 1 1/2 cups cooked Chickpeas (I prefer any canned brand from the middle-eastern store!)
• 1 small-medium sized avocado
• 1-2 green onions 
• a handful of fresh cilantro 
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• Dash of cayenne pepper
• Dash of garlic powder
• Bread (if desired, I used gluten free-Udis)
• Juice of 1 small lime
• Salt to taste 
• Lettuce 
• Tomatoes (fresh from the garden!)

Place chickpeas in a bowl and smash with a fork until most of the chickpeas are soft . Add avocado and smash into the chickpeas until combined. Chop green onion(s) and cilantro and add to mixture. Add spices and lime juice, mix throughly. Toast bread, add cheddar cheese and mustard if desired. Top with lettuce and tomatoes. It is a bit messy so you'll need some napkins!! 

Shaved Fennel & Arugula Salad

Another 95+ degree day = another delicious salad success story from 101 cookbooks. :) I made this Sunday night, and it lasted for 4-5 lunch size salads, and everything stayed delicious even after dressing it all the first night. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 medium zucchini, sliced into paper thin coins
• 2 small fennel bulbs, trimmed and shaved paper-thin
• 2/3 cup loosely chopped fresh dill
• The juice of 2 lemons
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more if needed
• fine grain sea salt
• 4 or 5 generous handfuls arugula (I jus tused the whole basket/bag from the store)
• Honey, if needed
• 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted (I used toasted almonds)
• 1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Directions

Note: If you're using a knife to prep here, do your best to slice things very, very thinly

1. Combine the zucchini, fennel and dill in a bowl and toss with the lemon juice, olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Set aside and marinate for 20 minutes, or up to an hour.
2. When you are ready to serve the salad, put the arugula in a large bowl. 
3. Scoop all of the zucchini and fennel onto the arugula, and pour most/all of the lemon juice dressing on top of that. Toss gently but thoroughly. Taste and adjust with more of the dressing, olive oil, lemon juice, or salt if needed. If the lemons were particularly tart, you may need to counter the pucker-factor by adding a tiny drizzle of honey into the salad at this point. Let your taste buds guide you. 
4. Serve topped with pine nuts and feta.

Serves 4 to 6

Carrot, Dill & White Bean Salad

So... after a week of 90 degree days, it's definitely summer salad weather! And after enjoying all the delicious salads the Detroit ladies made last weekend (Colleen and MB, I'm looking at you...), I decided to try a few recipes out this week. 


101 Cookbooks has been my go-to lately, and she didn't disappoint with this recipe for a Carrot, Dill & White Bean salad. I made this last night for the first time after a day at the beach. And it was awesome! Super easy to prepare, filling, and had some different flavors than the salads I usually make (I never think about warm carrots). I let this stand unit it came down to room temperature, which was perfect. 


Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• The juice from 1 large lemon

• 1/4 teaspoon fine grain salt

• 1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots (I used a bit more)

• more olive oil for cooking

• 2 cups sliced carrots, cut 1/4-inch thick on deep bias

• 3 cups cooked white beans

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

• 2 tablespoons honey (or brown sugar) (start small and add to taste)

• 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions

1. Combine the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and shallots in a small bowl. Stir and set aside. 
2. In a large skillet over medium high heat, toss the carrots with a splash of olive oil. Let them cook in a single layer — they'll give off a bit of water at first. Keep cooking, tossing gently every 3 to 4 minutes until the carrots are deeply browned. About 12 minutes total. 
3. Add the beans and dill to the skillet and cook for another 5 minutes, or until the beans have heated through. You may need to add a bit more olive oil to the pan. 
4. Place the contents of the skillet in a large mixing bowl, add a bit of honey. I started small and tasted as I went since I didn't want it to be too sweet. 
5. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, shallot mix. Toss gently. Let sit for 10 minutes. 
6. Toss once again, taste and adjust with more salt, honey or lemon juice to taste/balance flavors. 
7. Finish by sprinkling toasted almonds just before serving. (I forgot to do this and was sad, it would have been good with them for sure.) 
8. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Summer Quinoa Salad

I have made up quite a few quinoa salads this spring. This one was one of my favorites and really easy to make. 

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups quinoa
• A few cucumber slices, cut into quarters
• Half of an orange (or red) pepper-diced
• 10 grape tomatoes -sliced in half length wise 
• 2 green onions-diced
• Half a can of white beans
• Half a can of palm hearts-sliced length wise
• 10+ fresh mint leaves-cut into strips
• Feta cheese 
• Juice of a medium sized lemon
• Avocado oil
• White balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper 

Directions:

1. Cook 1 1/2 cups quinoa according to package. Let cool. 
2. Chop all veggies and place in a large bowl. 
3. Once quinoa is cool add to the bowl. 
4. Add mint, beans and hearts of palm and crumble some feta cheese on top.
5. Comine lemon juice, a few splashes of vinegar and avocado oil. Toss salad with dressing, add salt & pepper to taste. 

I think salads like this are best if they can sit for an hour or so. If you don't have avocado oil, olive oil would work just fine. I also think you can substitute any type of bean. Add more or less veggies as you see fit.   

Enjoy!

Salad makes 7-10 side dish servings.