Summer Salads

Summer is here and it’s almost the 4th of July. We will be doing a lot of barbecuing and these salads go great on the side. I hardly ever eat mayonnaise, so I don’t mind a little this time of year, however I have heard of substituting the mayo for greek yogurt. The amount would be the same. But I haven’t tried this yet. One of these days, I might. The healthiest salads from the options below would be the quinoa salad, green salad, and italian pasta salad. But it sure is nice to have a creamy salad every now and then! 😉 I used to buy those suddenly salads. They are full of MSG, corn syrup, GMOs, cottonseed oil (which is the worst oil because there are no restrictions on pesticides for cotton), and many other artificial flavors and preservatives. It is so easy to make your own!

 

Potato Salad:

• 4 medium sized potatoes
• 2 eggs
• 1-2 slices of bacon (optional)
• ½ cup onion
• 2 stalks celery
• ½ cup mayonnaise (or greek yogurt)
• 1 TB mustard
• ½ tsp paprika
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 1 TB parsley
• salt & pepper (sprinkle desired amount)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil (fill 3/4 full with water). Peel the potatoes and add to the water. Cook until tender, but still firm. About 15 minutes. Drain, set in the fridge to cool. Make the hard-boiled eggs (bring water to a boil, reduce heat to medium, place eggs in the pan gently-I use a soup ladle, cook for 12 minutes). Cool, peel, and chop the eggs. Cook the bacon. Chop the potatoes, crumble the bacon, chop the onion and celery, mix everything up with the mayo and seasonings in a 1 ½ QT dish. Chill for at least an hour. This is a basic recipe. You could add olives, pickle, other herbs and spices.

 

Quinoa Salad:

• 1 cup dried quinoa
• 2 cups water (or chicken stock)
• 1 can black beans-drained (optional)
• 1 small avocado, or ½ of a large one
• ¼ cup Red Onion (or white, or ½ tsp onion powder)
• 1 tsp Cumin
• ½ tsp Garlic powder
• 1 TB Parsley or cilantro
• Salt & pepper (sprinkle desired amount)
• Options: cucumber, tomatoes, bell peppers, carrots, green onion, whatever veggies you want.
• Lemon or lime juice (a few squirts)
• 1 TB balsamic vinegar
• ¼ cup olive oil
• Red pepper flakes (optional for extra zest)

Bring 2 cups water (or chicken stock) to a boil, stir in the quinoa, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20 minutes. While it’s cooking you can cut up any onion/veggies you want. Add all the other ingredients to a large bowl (or 1 ½ QT dish) and mix it up. When the quinoa is done, rinse with cold water in a strainer and add to the bowl. Mix it up and serve immediately or chill until ready to serve.

 

Italian Pasta Salad:

• 2 cups noodles (any kind but we like the tri-color)
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 tsp italian seasoning
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder (or chopped red onion)
• salt & pepper (sprinkle desired amount)
• ½ cup shredded cheese (or cubed)
• Options: chopped tomatoes, olives, and/or bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cucumber, pepperoni, salami, you can add pesto too! There are so many options.
• 1-2 slices of bacon (optional)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 2 cups of noodles. Cook at medium-high for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook the bacon. Drain and rinse noodles with cold water. Crumble the bacon, shred your cheese and chop up the veggies. Mix everything up in 1 ½ QT dish. Serve immediately or chill until ready to serve.

 

Green Salad:

• Mixed lettuces
• Spinach/kale
• tomatoes, chopped
• cucumbers, chopped
• carrots, shredded or chopped small
• sunflower seeds/pumpkin seeds
• Other options: radishes, red onion, dried berries, sliced almonds, pecans, walnuts, broccoli, cauliflower, endless possibilities.
• Dressing: equal parts olive oil/balsamic vinegar, or one of your organic favorites.

In a large bowl mix up all the ingredients. I don’t measure but it’s probably about 1 cup of each item and maybe ½ cup of the sunflower seeds/pumpkin seeds. And I put pepper on my salad. Maybe a squirt of lemon?

 

Creamy Pasta Salad:

• 2 cups noodles (any kind but we like the tri-color)
• 1-2 slices of bacon (optional)
• ½ cup shredded cheese
• ½ cup mayonnaise (or greek yogurt)
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• 1 TB parsley
• 2 TB milk
• salt & pepper (sprinkle desired amount)
• Options: chopped tomatoes, olives, and/or bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, cucumber, whatever veggies you want.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil (fill 3/4 full with water), add 2 cups of noodles. Cook at medium-high for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cook the bacon. Drain and rinse noodles with cold water. Crumble the bacon, shred your cheese and chop up the veggies you want. Mix everything up with the mayo and seasonings in a 1 ½ QT dish. You can eat right away but it’s best chilled for about an hour.

 

Macaroni Salad:

• 2 cups macaroni noodles
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise (or greek yogurt)
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 TB mustard
• 1 TB apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup diced celery
• 2 TB onion (red, or white)
• 1/4 cup relish (sweet or dill)
• 2 TB parsley (fresh or dried-chopped)
• Salt & Pepper (sprinkle desired amount)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the noodles. Cook at medium-high for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Chop the celery and onion. Drain and rinse the noodles with cold water. Add all the ingredients to a 1 ½ QT dish and mix well. You can eat right away but it’s best chilled for about an hour.

 

This is what we have for chopping up onion/veggies quick! It is very handy to have. And using this to chop onion helps prevent your eyes from watering.  

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