Tomato Feta Salad

Someone brought this salad to our ward Christmas party, and I tried going back for thirds but unfortunately, everyone else had discovered it's deliciousness as well and there was nothing left in the bowl. I knew I should have taken more the second time I went back, but I was trying to be polite.

I tracked down who brought the salad so I could get the recipe, because it's a recipe that I'd love to have on hand. Come to find out, it's just from Ina Garten of the Food Network. You can find the link here.




Ingredients
4 pints grape tomatoes, red or mixed colors
1 1/2 cups small-diced red onion (2 onions)
1/4 cup good white wine vinegar
6 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 1/2 pounds feta cheese

Directions
Cut the tomatoes in half and place them in a large bowl. Add the onion, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, basil, and parsley and toss well. Dice the feta in 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes, crumbling it as little as possible. Gently fold it into the salad and serve at room temperature. 

Asian Noodle Salad

I could have sworn I had posted this recipe a long time ago, but when I went to search for it today nothing came up. Tragic I've kept this recipe from being in your lives for so long. It is delicious and every time I have made it people have asked for the recipe. Not only is it delicious, but for those who are health-minded, it is also healthy. Furthermore, for those who are into aesthetically pleasing food, it is also very colorful. Without further adieu, here is the Asian Noodle Salad...  Mmmm...

Asian Noodle Salad

I got this recipe from the Pioneer Woman blog, if I mustn't claim it for myself.

Serves: 6-8  (can also add chicken for extra protein, or to make it a meal)

SALAD INGREDIENTS:

1 package Linguine Noodles, Cooked, Rinsed, And Cooled

½ heads Sliced Napa Cabbage, Or More To Taste

½ heads Sliced Purple Cabbage, Or More To Taste

½ bags Baby Spinach, Or More To Taste

1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin

1 whole Yellow Bell Pepper, Sliced Thin

1 whole Orange Bell Pepper, Thinly Sliced

1 bag Bean Sprouts (also Called Mung Bean Sprouts)

Chopped Cilantro, Up To 1 Bunch, To Taste

3 whole Scallions, Sliced

3 whole Cucumbers Peeled And Sliced

1 can (about 10 Oz.) Whole Cashews, Lightly Toasted In Skillet

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FOR THE DRESSING:

1 whole Lime, Juiced

8 Tablespoons Olive Oil

8 Tablespoons Soy Sauce

2 Tablespoons (up To 3 Tablespoons) Sesame Oil

⅓ cups Brown Sugar

3 Tablespoons Fresh Ginger Chopped

2 cloves Garlic, Chopped

2 whole Hot Peppers Or Jalapenos, Chopped

Chopped Cilantro

Preparation Instructions:

Mix salad ingredients together. Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Mix with tongs or hands and serve on a platter.

Note: dressing keeps for up to three days before serving, without cilantro.

Spinach Apple Bacon Salad

Dressing: whisk the following ingredients together
1/4 c. water
3 T. vinegar
2 T. olive oil
2 T. honey
4 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 Royal Gala or Granny Smith apple, cut lengthwise into small slices
8 cups baby spinach
sliced red onion - to taste
sliced mushrooms
2 slices of bacon, cooked until crisp & broken into little pieces
1-2 tablespoons of feta cheese (to taste)

Place apple slices in a large bowl and toss with 2 tablespoons of the dressing.  Add spinach, onions, mushrooms and remaining dressing; toss to coat.

Sprinkle crumbled bacon over the top of the salad.

Makes 4 servings
*From Smith's Grocery Store

Summer Salad

This salad tastes of all thing summer. It's healthy, flavorful, and incredibly delicious.

Image and recipe from here

Combine:
1 cup nectarine
1 cup avocado
1 mango
1/2 cup blueberries
1 cup sweet corn off the cob, raw
1 cucumber
1 tomato, I used a lemon boy
3-4 slices of bacon, I used turkey bacon
or cubes of grilled chicken
(I even think black beans would be good added, but I didn't do that)

Mix together:
3 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 1/2 TBS Balsamic Vinigar
Squeeze of honey or apricot nectar
Dash of black pepper and garlic salt

Pour over top of salad and eat to your hearts content.

Curried Scallop-Apple Salad

A girl in my ward made this for a group of people on Sunday and it was one of the best salads I have had in a long time. I think most of you will enjoy this.  The dressing is especially amazing!

4 servings | Active Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 6 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced shallot
• 3/4 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 1 pound dry sea scallops, (see Shopping Tip), tough muscle removed
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 8 cups mixed salad greens
• 1 tart apple, such as Granny Smith, diced
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted (see Tip)

Preparation   

1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shallot and curry powder and cook, stirring, until the shallot is beginning to soften, about 3 minutes. Add cider and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 3/4 cup, about 4 minutes. Pour into a large bowl and whisk in 2 teaspoons oil and vinegar. Reserve 1/4 cup dressing in a small bowl. Wipe out the pan.
2. Pat scallops dry and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil to the pan and heat over medium-high. Add the scallops and cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
3. Add salad greens, apple, cranberries and almonds to the large bowl; toss to coat. Top with the scallops and drizzle with the reserved 1/4 cup dressing.

Nutrition

Per serving : 291 Calories; 11 g Fat; 1 g Sat; 7 g Mono; 37 mg Cholesterol; 28 g Carbohydrates; 21 g Protein; 3 g Fiber; 483 mg Sodium; 612 mg Potassium

2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 1/2 fruit, 1 vegetable, 2 1/2 lean meat, 1 1/2 fat

Tips & Notes

• Shopping tip: Be sure to buy “dry” sea scallops. “Wet” scallops, which have been treated with sodium tripolyphosphate (STP), are not only mushy and less flavorful, but will not brown properly.
• Tip: Place sliced almonds in a small dry skillet and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.

Warm Goat Cheese Salad

I just saw this on a girl for my BYU days, blog. It looks really good, and just the kind of salad that should accompany these cold wintery days. She used goat cheese, but if you're not the goat cheese loving kind, brie would be the next recommendation. Yum!

Warm Goat Cheese Salad

Image from Steamy Kitchen

• mixed baby greens
• craisins
• candied nuts (i used almonds)- and i'm not putting a recipe up on how to do this because i kind of botched it, but it still tasted good.
• sliced pears (if you don't like pears, I bet strawberries would be really good, too)
• Goat Cheese, cut a few slices from the log- they usually come in logs at your grocer- and put them on a pan and bake them at 350 for about 5 minutes or until they are super soft. Quickly move them from the pan to the top of your salad and top with the Lemon Vinaigrette dressing.

Lemon Vinaigrette

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar

Recipe found on this blog.