Yummy Cauliflower Salad

This salad is a bit "tangy" and unique. I have only made it once because I misplaced the recipe. Nice thing about the blog is I can always find it now!!! (Unless I lose the web address of the blog!)

Ingredients:
1 Large head of cauliflower (6 cups), broken up into bite-sized pieces
1 cup of coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup of green grapes cut in half

Dressing:
1 cup of mayonnaise or salad dressing (I used Dukes Mayonnaise)
1/3 cup of honey
1 tablespoon prepared mustard

Mix together the first three ingredients.
Mix the mayo, honey and mustard.
Stir together until the cauliflower, grapes and walnut pieces are coated.

Super Sweet Potatoes

This could be a dessert! Thanks to Shirley Showalter who put this recipe in the Frieden's Church Cookbook- the older version. She made these for a covered dish dinner and they were gone in a flash. Now this is what we make every Thanksgiving. She sometimes cuts the brown sugar in half because it is very sweet. That decision is up to you. This is the original recipe:

Shirley's Sweet Potato Casserole

Ingredients:
3 cups of cooked sweet potatoes (I have used canned and they are fine.)
1 stick of margarine
1 teaspoon (or more) vanilla
2 eggs
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup milk

Topping:
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped nuts- walnuts or pecans
1/3 cup of margarine
1/3 cup of flour


Directions: Oven Temperature: 325 degrees
1. Mix the first 6 ingredients with a mixer until fluffy and spread in a 2 quart rectangular dish.
2. In a separate bowl mix the 4 ingredients for the topping together.
3. Sprinkle the topping evenly on the sweet potato mix.
4. Bake for 30 minutes.

Squash Casserole

I only made this once, but it passed a gourmet's test! Like the corn casserole, it is taking a healthy veggie and adding things I should be cutting out of my diet at this age! It also livens up some rather bland veggies and once in a while I think that is OK!

AKA: Summer Vegetable Bake

Ingredients:
3 cups of herbed stuffing mix
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of butter, melted
1 (10 ounce) can of cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup of sour cream
1/2 cup of sharp cheddar cheese shredded
2 cups of shredded yellow squash
2 cups of shredded zucchini
1/4 cup of shredded carrts
1/4 cup of finely chopped onion

Directions: Oven Temperature: 350
1. Combine the stuffing mix and butter in a bowl. Reserve 1/2 cup of this mixture.
2. Place the remaining stuffing/butter mix in a 2 quart casserole dish.
3. Combine the soup, sour cream and cheddar cheese in a large bowl and mix well. Add the squash, zucchini, carrots and onion, stir well.
4. Spread over the stuffing mixture and sprinkle the reserve stuffing on top.
5. Bake for 40 minutes.

Corn Casserole

Take a perfectly healthy food and make it less healty- but yummier! This has become a Thanksgiving Day regular. I made it for my Costa Rican friends and they packed the corn bread mix in their suitcases to take home with them so they could make it for their families when they returned home.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sour cream
1 egg
1 can (16 ounce) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (16 ounce) cream style corn, undrained
1 package (9 ounce) corn muffin mix
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix together butter, sour cream and egg.
3. Stir in cans of corn and corn muffin mix.
4. Spoon mixture into a buttered (or "Pammed") 2-quart casserole dish
5. Bake for 45 minutes.
6. Add cheese and stir into the top of the casserole.
7. Bake an additional 15 minutes or until dish is slightly puffed.

Pungent Tomato, Basil and Pasta Salad

This is another pretty dish! I love this hot or cold! Once my fresh basil, chives and tomatoes are ready to pick I love this side dish. It can be a great vegetarian main dish too! I go heavy on the basil- you can add more chives plus oregano or parsley if you want to mix it up. You could also add some cooked chicken etc. for a full meal.

Pungent Tomato, Basil and Pasta Salad

• 3/4 lbs of pasta- your choice, I like penne or rigatoni.


• 2 lbs of fresh tomatoes, chopped


• 1 Cup Fresh basil, cut using a chiffonade method (roll up the leaves tightly then cut across making slender strips!)


• 1 Tablespoon of fresh Chives chopped


• 1 small tub of feta cheese - if feta is too strong for you, fresh mozzarella (8 oz.) is yummy, or both!


• 2 Tablespoons red wine or balsamic vinegar- I also like pomegranate infused balsamic- potent!


• 2 Tablespoons olive oil


• pinch of Sweet n Low (optional)


• 3 strips of crushed cooked bacon (optional)

Cook the pasta and chill (for summertime!) In a large bowl add chopped tomatoes, basil, chives and cheese (if you use fresh mozzarella, cut into bite size pieces.) and toss together like you would a salad. Whisk together your choice of vinegar and oil. I add a little Sweet n Low to add sweetness without calories. Pour the oil/vinegar mix over the other ingredients and toss again. Your done! Note: 6/23/09 Jerilyn and I had this tonight I didn't have the recipe handy. I omitted the chives and Sweet 'n Low, but added a little bacon. Yummy!