Avocado Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

1 chicken breast
¼ cup corn
¼ cup black beans
¼ cup green onions, chopped
¼ cup tomatoes, diced
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
¼ cup corn chips, crushed
2 tablespoons white vinegar
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup shredded sharp cheese
2-4 avocados, sliced in half with pits discarded

Method:

1.  Roast the chicken in 375 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until well done.  Cool and shred with a fork.

2.  Drain and rinse black beans.

3.   Dice the  tomatoes and chop the cilantro and the green onions.

4.  Crush the corn chips.

5.  Slice the avocados and discard the pits.

6.  In a medium bowl, put the shredded chicken, corn, black beans, green onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and corn chips together. Add the vinegar and mayonnaise and stir.  Sal and peppert to taste.  Spoon salad into halved avocados and top with cheese.

7.  Serve.

Tip:

1.  Leftover chicken can be used, which speeds up the prep process.

2.  Instead of serving in the avocado, you can dice up the avocado and mix with other ingredients and serve in a pita pocket.

Chicken Caesar Salad

Difficulty: **

Ingredients:
10 ounces uncooked penne pasta (3 cups)
2 cups chopped cooked chicken, or 2 chicken breasts, diced and cooked
1/2 cup diced red or green bell pepper
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons snipped fresh parsely, optional
1 bottle creamy Caesar salad dressing
6 cups thinly sliced romaine lettuce

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water using a colander. Leave pasta in colander and set aside.

2. If you have not cooked your chicken, slice into small 1 inch cubes and cook in EVOO on a medium-high skillet until no longer pink.

3. Chop eggs, bell pepper, onion. Grate Parmesan cheese.

4. Pour pasta into a bowl. Add chopped eggs, bell pepper, onion and grated cheese. Add salad dressing and mix well. Cover and refrigerate 2-3 hours to allow the flavors to blend.

5. Serve on a bed of lettuce.

Tips: Serve with a crusty bread or bread sticks.

Crispy Tuna Salad

Difficulty: *

Ingredients:
2 (6 1/2 oz.) cans tuna, drained and flaked
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup green grapes, halved
1 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
1 3/4 oz. can potato sticks
Shredded lettuce

In medium bowl, combine tuna, carrots, grapes and salad dressing. Refrigerate. Just before serving add potato sticks. Serve on bed of shredded lettuce.

BLT Salad

Difficulty: **

Ingredients:
6-8 slices of bacon, fried and crumbled
2 eggs, hardboiled and then diced
1 head of lettuce, chopped
2 tomatoes, diced
1 small can of peas (or 1 cup of cooked frozen peas)
1 cup shredded sharp cheese
1/2 cup chopped red onion (optional)
1 cup raw carrots, diced (optional)
1/2 a cucumber peeled and diced (optional)

Instructions:
1. Put 2 eggs in a pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 5 minutes. Put in sink and cover with cold water to cool.
2. Fry bacon and leave to cool on paper towel.
3. Chop lettuce and put into serving bowl.
4. Crumble bacon on top.
5. Add tomatoes, peas, onions, carrots, and cucumber.
6. Peel and dice eggs and add to mixture.
7. Put cheese on top and toss the salad.
8. Serve with favorite dressing.

Layered Salad

Difficulty: *

Ingredients and Instructions:

Layer in a tightly covered container in this order:
1 head lettuce, shredded
1/2 cup diced celery
1 green pepper, chopped
1 small package frozen peas
1/2 cup thinly sliced onions
1 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled
4 hard boiled eggs, chopped

Frost with 1 cup mayo to which 1 tablespoons of sugar has been added.
Top with 1/2 cup grated cheese

Macaroni Shrimp Salad

Difficulty: **

Ingredients:
2 cups macaroni, cooked
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup green pepper, finely chopped
1 can broken shrimp
1/4 cup pimiento, finely chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, diced
1 cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
3 Tbsp. French Dressing

Mix all ingredients together except mayonnaise and french dressing. Mix french dressing and mayonnaise together and blend into macaroni-shrimp mixture. Refrigerate until serving.

Tip: The longer this sits before serving the more pronounced the flavor. Try to make at least six hours before serving.

Blueberry and Orange Spinach Salad

Difficulty: *

Ingredients:
1/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans
2 teaspoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable oil
2 teaspoons sugar
4 cups torn fresh spinach leaves
1 cup fresh blueberries
2 medium oranges, peeled and cut into sections

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil. In small bowl, mix pecans and syrup until well coated. Spread pecans on foil. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon sugar. Bake 7 to 9 minutes, stirring occasionally until pecans are lightly toasted. Cool for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in small bowl, beat orange juice, vinegar, oil and 2 teaspoons of sugar with wire whisk until well blended.

3. In large bowl, toss spinach, blueberries, and oranges pieces. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Sprinkle with pecans and serve immediately.

Texas Coleslaw

Difficulty: *

Ingredients:
1 bag coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots) - 16 oz.
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 cans (11 oz each) Green Giant Mexicorn whole kernal corn with red and green peppers, drained
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons lime or lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1. In a very large bowl (4 qt.), toss coleslaw mix, cilantro and corn.
2. In container with tight-fitting cover, place oil, lime juice, salt and cumin. Shake well. Pour over coleslaw mixture, toss.
3. Cover; refrigerate 1 to 2 hours to blend flavors before serving.

Primavera Pasta Salad

Difficulty: *

3 1/2 cups uncooked bow-tie pasta (9 oz.)
2 cups fresh snow pea pods (12 oz.)
2 large red bell peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 medium carrots, sliced (1 cup)
1/2 cup choppped fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (2 oz)
1 cup creamy Parmesan dressing
2 tablespoons milk

1. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package. Add snow peas for last minute of cooking. Rinse with cold water and drain.

2. In a very large (4-qt) bowl, mix bell peppers, carrots, basil and cheese. In small bowl, mix dressing and milk with a wire whisk. Add dressing mixture, past and pea pods to bell pepper mixture; toss to coat.

Tips: Can substitute creamy Italian dressing if you can't find Parmesan or prefer another flavor. Any medium-sized pasta shape can be subsituted for the bow-tie.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

Difficulty: **

Dressing:
1 lemon
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon poppy seeds (optional)

Salad
1/4 cup of sliced natural almonds, toasted
8 ounces (1 1/2 cups) strawberries, hulled and quartered
1/2 medium cucumber
1/4 small red onion, sliced thinly
1 package baby spinach (6 oz)

1. For dressing, use a scorer or a small holed grater to rub some of the rind off the lemon to measure 1/2 teaspoon. Then, squeeze the lemon to measure 2 tablespoons juice. Combine zest, juice, vinegar, sagar, oil and poppy seeds in a small bowl. Whisk until well blended. Cover; refrigerate until ready to use.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. For salad, spread the almonds in single layer over bottom of small pan. Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly toasted. Remove from oven and cool.

3. Hull strawberres and cut into quarters. Peel cucumber, slice, and then half slices. Slice onion into thin wedges.

5. Place spinach in large serving bowl. Add strawberries, cucumber and onion. Whisk dressing; pour over salad; gently tossing to coat. Sprinkle with almonds. Serve immediately. Yield: 10 servings.

Comments: The combination of these ingredients sounds strange, but results in a flavorful, fun salad.