Potato and Green Bean Salad

So the green beans are ready to be picked in the garden, and I even prematurely dug up a few potatoes. Got some fresh basil at the farmer's market..ready for a nice potato salad to go with the brats we were barbequeing tonight. I got this recipe several years ago from Bon Apetite magazine. This is a great salad to have at a picnic because you don't have to worry about the mayo in the potato salad. Enjoy!

New Potato and Green Bean Salad

dressing:
1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
2 T. Dijon mustard
2 T. lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
dash of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c. olive oil

Salad:
1 1/2# potatoes, cooked peeled and sliced
3/4-1# green beans, steamed and cut in pieces
1/4 c. red onion, chopped
1/4 c. chopped fresh basil

Mix all dressing ingredients together. Put salad ingredients in a large bowl. Add dressing and mix well.

Spanakopita

This recipe may seem a little more difficult but it is actually very simple. The only unusual ingredient is the phyllo dough--and I was able to get mine at Safeway. It may be slightly spendy, but you can freeze the unused portion and save it for another recipe!

Spanakopita Pie with Taziki sauce
1 pkg. phyllo dough, defrosted
1 package frozen chopped spinach
1 15 oz. pkg. of either ricotta or cottage cheese
1/2 c. feta cheese
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 c. chopped onion ( I used some green onions)
2 T. butter, melted

Defrost the spinach and squeeze out all the water. Mix spinach, ricotta, feta, nutmeg and onion. This is the filling for your pie.

Spray a pie pan with cooking spray. Unroll phyllo dough and place one sheet in the pie plate. Coat with a little melted butter. Add another sheet, so that the pie plate is covered. Let extra hang over the rim. Brush with butter. Do this again with one more sheet. Put spinach filling in the pan. Cover with several more sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each sheet with butter. Take extra that has been hanging over the rim and fold in towards the center. Brush with butter. Bake at 350 for abou 25 minutes or until golden brown and heated through.

This is best served with Tazaki sauce:

For this you will need
1/2 cucumber, peeled and cut into cubes
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 t. dill
1 c. plain yogurt
Put all ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth

Lanchi Salad

This is one of those recipes that is better if you make it the day ahead and just let everything meld together for a bit. It can be eaten as is as a salad entree, rolled into rice spring rolls, served on a tostada or even eaten with tortilla chips. It makes lots..so maybe you can try it several ways!

Lanchi Salad

1 pkg. angel hair coleslaw
2 lemons or limes, juiced
1 jalapeno, chopped
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
2 c. cooked chicken cut into bite size pieces
1 thinly sliced red pepper
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 c. shredded carrot
Mix all ingredients together and let sit for 24 hours.

If you want to wrap in rice wrappers: Put warm water in a container the wrapper will fit it. Drop a wrapper into the water for about 45 seconds. It will be limp and soft.
Lay the wrapper flat, put about 3T. salad in a line on the wrapper and wrap like a burrito.

Beef Carnita Burrritos

This is one of those recipes I found on another site(Tasty Home) but just had to simplify and make my own.
It makes quite a bit so if you are feeding a crowd or just want leftovers..this is a great recipe for you!

You will need:
a 2-3 pound chuck roast
1 can diced green chilies
2 c. chicken broth
1 T. ground cumin
2 T. chili powder
1 t. oregano
4 whole cloves of garlic
1 onion, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 lime, cut in wedges
3 T. olive oil

Method one: Heat the oil in a dutch oven (the kind that can go into the oven). Sprinkle the meat with 1/2 of the cumin and salt and pepper. Sear both sides of the meat and then add the chilies, chili powder, oregano, garlic, and chicken broth. Cover and bake at 400 for 1 and 1/2 hours.
OR just put it into the oven at a low temperature (like 250) and bake all day....great method for those working people. OR just do all of this in a crockpot...easier yet for working folks.
By the time you get home this delicious aroma will be waiting in your house. Cook up the onions and red peppers in a little olive oil.
Serve with some sour cream and cilantro...Yummy:)

If you really want to get it all together...put this in the oven and make refried beans in your crockpot:
Put 4c. broth (your choice type), 1 chopped onion, 1/2 jalapeno, 1-2 T. garlic, 1/8 t. cumin, and one bag pinto beans into your crockpot. Cook on high 8 hours. Instant side dish!

Mahi Mahi with Roasted Potatoes and Vegetables

I had a package of pre-seasoned Mahi Mahi in the freezer from Trader Joe's. I decided to add a little chopped macadamia nuts on top..instant entree!
Next I chopped 3 potatoes into large cubes, 1 zucchini into large cubes, and crushed 4 garlic cloves.
Mix the vegetables with some olive oil, enough to coat, and sprinkle with paprika.

I baked both at 375 for about 3o minutes. Serve with salad and instant healthy dinner:)

So here's our first meal:
Thai Mango Chicken with Coconut Rice

To make the rice: Put 1 cup of water and 1 cup of coconut milk in a microwaveable bowl with 1 cup of jasmine rice. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 5 minutes on high, and then 15 minutes more on medium heat (about a level 4).
When the rice is down sprinkle with fresh cilantro.

Next you need to make the Mango sauce to go over your chicken:

You will need: 1 cup of cubed mango
1/2 t. crushed dried red chili
1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
1 and 1/2 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon fish sauce
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
zest of 1 lime
Put all these ingredients in a food processor or blender until mixed.

Now for the chicken:
2-3 chicken breasts, sliced thin
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin and into 2" pieces
1 package frozen stir fry vegetables: with broccoli, water chestnuts and snap peas
Put about 1/4 cup of vegetable oil in a fry pan. Cook chicken just until pink. Add red pepper and package of stir fry vegetables. Cook til chicken is cooked thru and vegetables are heated. Pour on mango sauce and serve with rice.

Welcome to my blog! I am a busy working wife who manages to get a healthy dinner on the table most nights. Not only that but I find cooking both relaxing and calming after a long day:) I love to try new recipes all the time and hope to share the great ones with you! Many of my co-workers and friends seem to really struggle with this and so...here I am sharing those dinners I make each night. Some will be simple, some will require a few more skills...but that's what cooking is about...trying new things while having fun in the kitchen.