Greek Pasta Salad

I'm always trying to think of new ideas for lunches I can take to work.  If I can make it on Sunday and then portion out into 4-5 lunch serving, even better.   Lately, I've really been trying harder to get more vegetables and whole grains into my diet, which is how I came up with this recipe.  The salad dressing is modified from one I found in an old Food Network magazine.  This lunch gets in quite a few servings of vegetables, as well as whole grains from the pasta and healthy oils from the dressing.  It is also very filling and stays with me throughout my work day. 

Greek Pasta Salad
Serves: 5-6

Salad:
6 ounces whole wheat pasta
1 red pepper, diced
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 (4 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup yellow pepper rings, diced
1 pint grape tomatoes
1/4 cup feta cheese
1 bunch spinach, chopped
1/4 cup dressing, recipe below

Dressing:
2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Make dressing: Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar with a lid and shake until combined. 
Store left over dressing in the refrigerator for about a week.

Cook pasta according to package instructions.  Once finished cooking, drain and rinse under cold water

Dice the pepper and add to drained garbanzo beans, olives, garlic, yellow pepper, tomatoes and feta cheese in a large bowl.  Pour dressing over mixture and stir to combine.   Add in cooled pasta and stir to combine.  Chop spinach and add to pasta salad.  

*Note: If not eating the pasta salad right away, wait to add the spinach.  Otherwise the spinach will wilt.  For take-to-work lunches, I put some pasta salad at the bottom of a Tupperware container and then put some chopped spinach on top. At lunchtime I can toss the mixture together and spinach doesn't get wilted beforehand by only sitting on top of the pasta.

xoxo Melissa

Baked Cinnamon Apples

When I was little, I loved the restaurant Boston Market.  My family used to go there when we were on vacation in Florida and sometimes when we were on a special shopping trip in Columbus. Since we didn't have a Boston Market in my town, it always seemed like a treat when we got to go.  One of my favorite side dishes were their cinnamon apples.  I came across a copy-cat recipe in Top Secret Recipes Unlocked (by Todd Wilbur).  Since I haven't been to a Boston Market in years I thought I might give it a try.  Wow!  They are good and just like I remembered!  I literally could have drank the caramel sauce this recipe makes with the apples... good thing I had a little self restraint!  You could eat them on their own or add a scoop of ice cream, like I did, turning this side dish into dessert! 

Baked Cinnamon Apples
Serves: 5

4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and each cut into 9 slices
3/4 cup water
1 Tbs flour
1 Tbs cornstarch
1 Tbs butter, melted
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp kosher salt
Vanilla Ice Cream, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange sliced apples in an 8x8 inch or similar sized baking dish.

Whisk together the water, flour and cornstarch.  Then stir in remaining ingredients.

Pour sugar mixture evenly over the apples and stir to coat.  Cover dish with foil and bake for about 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.  How easy was that!  Enjoy!

 

Clearly everyone loved it... no leftovers tonight!

xoxo Melissa

Summertime Pasta Salad

This is my husband's favorite quick summertime potluck dish.  It's easy to put together, everyone loves it and works great for left-over work lunches.   Funny pasta salad story - We went down to my parents for a cookout last summer and my mom was serving a pasta salad as one of the side dishes.  I really enjoyed it, but there were these little "crunch" pieces in it that I wasn't sure what they were. When I asked her what was in the pasta salad, she got a funny smile on her face and said "oh, just some spices."  When I inquired further, she fessed up to using a box pasta salad mix! Mom!  When pasta salad is so easy to make, no one should be using a box mix!  She now likes to make this pasta salad in place of her former box mix and we always kid her when we ask what is in a certain dish... spices??  I hope you and your family enjoy this pasta salad as much as ours does.

Summertime Pasta Salad
Makes 6-8 servings

1 (16 oz) box spiral pasta
1 Green Pepper, diced
1 Broccoli head, cut into small florets
1 pint Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, diced
1/2 cup Pepperoni, cut in half (feel free to subsitute turkey pepperoni)
1/2 cup Wishbone Italian Dressing

*feel free to add any other veggies you might like: olives, artichoke hearts, red onion, etc.

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box.  While the pasta is cooking, cut up the veggies, cheese and pepperoni.  Once the pasta is done cooking, drain and run under cold water.  Toss the pasta, veggies, cheese and pepperoni in a large bowl.  Pour dressing on top and mix until everything is coated.  I like to chill the salad for at least and hour in the refrigerator before serving.  Enjoy!

xoxo Melissa

Anytime Potatoes

I discovered this potato recipe many years ago.  I unfortunately have no idea where it came from.  However, I do remember making them before a home-coming dance in high school.  Two of my girl friends came over and we made dinner for our dates. How cute, right?  At the time I just baked them in a 9x13 inch dish.  However, since getting our cast iron skillet I always make them in there.  I suppose you could use another type of dish if you do not have a cast iron skillet.  I call them "anytime potatoes" because you could really make them "anytime." They work great at breakfast with eggs or at dinner with fish, chicken or anther main dish.  They are super easy to whip up and are great when you have a couple of left over potatoes around the house.  They're great for company too because they are so low maintenance.  One time Kevin bought a 5 lb. bag of potatoes at the grocery for one recipe, which only needed a few potatoes.  Needless to say we had many many potatoes left over.  These "anytime potatoes" were great at using up the potatoes we had left over.  I hope you find many uses for these potatoes just as I have! 

Anytime Potatoes
Serves: 3-4

Ingredients:
1.5 lb Potatoes*
2 Tbs Olive Oil
2 tsp Kosher Salt

* A note on the type of potatoes for this recipe. I used Yukon potatoes this time because I happened to have a some extra on hand.  I have to say that the typical "baking potato" or Russet potato works a little better. 

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Wash and then cut up the potatoes.  Try to make them some what uniform in size to insure uniform cooking. I make mine in about a 1" dice. 

 

Put them in a the cast iron skillet and drizzle the olive oil and salt over them.  Stir to combine. Put the skillet in the oven.  Bake for about 30 minutes total, stirring every 10-15 mintues so all the sides get crispy.

 

xoxo Melissa

Perfect Baked Rice

I like to think of myself as a decent cook, but there's one thing that always gets me: rice!  For some reason when I make it on the stove it sticks to the pan, doesn't fully cook in the allotted time or is very sticky.  It wasn't until one of my husbands co-workers gave us this recipe a few years ago, that I've been able to master it.  I know the method seems unconventional at first, but give it a try, you won't be disappointed.  The must-have for this recipe is a cast iron skillet.  Ours holds special meaning for me because we bought it on our way home from Gatlinburg, TN, after Kevin proposed.  However, you can easily find one at your local Target or department store.

Perfect Baked Rice
Serves: about 4

Ingredients:
1 cup long grain white rice
14.5 ounces broth (chicken, vegetable or beef) I used vegetable here

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.  Pour the rice and chicken broth into the cast iron skillet and stir until combined.  Cover the skillet with aluminum foil and tightly pinch the seems to keep the steam and heat in while it cooks.

Place the skillet in the oven and bake for about 25 minutes.  I usually lift the foil a bit after 25 minutes to make sure it's done, remove it from the oven and then let it sit for about 5 more minutes before serving.  Enjoy!



xoxo Melissa