One More Fresh Broccoli Salad

True to my word, you can never have too many fresh vegetables and fruits, and here is another take on fresh Broccoli Salad. This one comes from my special friend Thuy who has the greenest gardening thumb. She can plant a stick and turn it into a beautiful fruit tree or flowery bush, her yard lacks no beauty nor health.

Fresh Broccoli Salad

3 Broccoli crowns cut up
1 Cup Raisins
1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
1/2 lb Bacon (fried and crumbled; or use Bacon bits)
1 Red Onion sliced thinly
3/4 Cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 Cup sunflower seeds (salted)

Rinse and cut up broccoli, drain well. Mix all other ingredients, add to broccoli.

Dressing: 1/2 Cup Mayonnaise and 1/4 Cup sugar (or less)

Mix mayonnaise with sugar well, add to the salad.
Mix all ingredients well and then refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

Broccoli Peanut Salad

Well, I thought that I was done with salads, but I can't leave out this one. More and more I am convinced of including more fresh vegetables and fruits in our daily diet. The more color that we have the better. Now, growing up I was not a fan of broccoli. I think that was because we usually had it frozen and cooked. Overcooked broccoli is the worse, even if you try to rescue it with cheese sauce. So instead try this one, I think you'll find it tasty and will give you a new perspective on one of our best nutritious veggies!

1/4 c white or red wine vinegar
3 Tbsp canola oil
3 Tbsp peanut butter
1 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt (which I usually omit)
1 lb broccoli, tops cut into small florets and stems peeled and chopped
1/4 c dried cherries, cranberries or raisins
1/4 c roasted peanuts, chopped

Whisk together vinegar, oil, peanut butter, soy sauce, and salt in large bowl. Toss with broccoli and dried fruit. Serve topped with peanuts. Can be made up to 2 days ahead. Makes 4 servings.

Pasta Salads

Mom made pasta salads usually during the summer time, when it was much too hot to cook. We had our share of hot humid days, and our kitchen came without the benefit of air conditioning. If there was a breeze, there was only a small fan to push it through our home. Mom's salads usually consisted of traditional macaroni salad, in which she sometimes put tuna in order to make a complete meal. But pasta wasn't a big staple in our diet either. So I am tucking in a couple of my favorites. I choose whole grain pasta to get the benefit of extra protein and fiber. And the nice thing about these recipes is that they make a hearty amount that may even get you some leftovers that are even better the next day.

Elbows Pasta With Garlic Shrimp

1 14-16 oz. of Elbow Pasta 1/2 C. olive oil
2 T. Olive Oil 1 clove of garlic, minced
3 cloves of garlic, minced 1/4 C. lemon juice
1 1/2 lb. of shrimp, cleaned 1/2 C. Parmesan Cheese, shredded
1 C. chopped green onions 1 T. parsley, chopped

Cook elbows according to directions, drain, rinse, and set aside. In medium pan, place 2 T. of olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add 3 cloves of garlic and saute for about 1 minute, then add the shrimp and cook until pink. Cool. Then combine the elbows with the cooked shrimp, adding the green onions. In a separate bowl, make the dressing by adding the rest of the ingredients by mixing or whisking well together. Then add the dressing to the elbows mixing well. Refrigerate before serving or it is OK to serve with it all being slightly warm. Serves 6-8.

Tri-Colored Pasta Salad

16 oz. angel hair pasta, cooked al dente according to package directions
2 T. canola oil
3 scallions, sliced
1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 yellow pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 pound snow peas, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1/2 C. soy sauce
1/4 t. ground ginger
1/4 C. sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 C. extra virgin olive oil
1 T. roasted or toasted sesame oil

Place the prepared noodles in a large bowl and set aside. Heat the canola oil in a large skillet or wok on medium high heat. Add the scallions and peppers. Saute until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add the snow peas and saute 1 minute longer. Then add to the noodles.

In a small bowl, whisk the soy sauce, ginger, sugar, garlic, olive oil, and sesame oil. Pour over the vegetables and noodles, toss to combine. Allow flavors to mingle for at least 30 minutes. Toss again, serve at room temperature.

Makes 8-10 servings.

Lettuce Salads

To be honest, lettuce salads weren't favorites in the Strubhar family. Perhaps that is because we usually had iceberg lettuce as our only choice. Tossing it with tomatoes, carrots or celery was the most exciting it got,and the only dressing choices were "Thousand Island" or "French". We certainly did not have all the variety of greens and dressings that one can choose today. But there was one Lettuce Salad that became a favorite of ours, and it can be done ahead of time.

Lettuce Salad

Layer pieces of lettuce in a bowl or container, topping each layer with crisp bacon pieces, and frozen peas. You can make as many layers as you want. When the lettuce is at the top of the bowl, spread mayonnaise on top. Then add shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Cover with a tight lid or saran wrap and let the salad stand in the refrigerator overnight. Just before serving, mix the salad well. (It will shrink a bit when mixed, so make sure you have enough layers for a bowl of salad.)

Cranberry, Feta & Toasted Walnut Salad

1 pkg. mixed salad greens (10 oz.)
1 cup dried cranberries (can also use fresh strawberries, raspberries, blueberries or dried cherries)
1 pkg. crumbled reduced fat feta cheese (6 oz.)
1/2 C. toasted chopped walnuts (or pecans)
Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing

Layer salad greens, cranberries, feta cheese and walnuts in shallow salad bowl or on large serving platter. Pour dressing over salad (to taste). Toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.
Makes 6 servings

To toast nuts: Spread walnuts in single layer on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 5 minutes until lightly toasted, stirring occasionally.

Bean Salad

This was a favorite recipe of my Mom and Aunt Lucille. We often had Bean salad as a side dish. There is something about its vinegary taste that makes it fit in so well with that Midwest meal of meat and potatoes. It also is a good side dish for hearty sandwiches. Actually, beans are a nutritious powerhouse of high fiber and protein.

Bean Salad

1 Can green beans 1 Can black-eyed peas
1 Can of yellow wax beans 1 sliced medium Bermuda onion
1 Can of red kidney beans 1 sliced/chopped medium green pepper
1 Can garbanzo chick peas 1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. basil leaves 2 T. parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. tarragon leaves

Drain beans and peas. Mix 1/2 c. vinegar (I use white vinegar and you can dilute with water if necessary), with 1/2 c. sugar (can use up to 1 cup if you desire a sweeter taste), 1/2 c. Canola oil, and mixing well with the herbs. Stir with all ingredients. Keep overnight in refrigerator, stirring mixture occasionally.

The nice thing about this salad is that it serves at least 10-12, and it lasts for several days. It seems to taste better too as it has more time to blend together.

Avocado with Black Bean Salad

1 T. lime juice or vinegar
1 1/2 T. olive oil
1 Can black beans, drained
1/4 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1/8-1/4 tsp. red pepper (optional)
1 1/2 tsp. cilantro
1 avocado quartered and sliced

Place the lime juice or vinegar in a large bowl, and gradually whisk in the oil. Stir in the beans, bell pepper, garlic, salt, black and red pepper. Taste, and add more lime juice or vinegar if you like. Stir in the cilantro. Makes 4 servings

This is one of my personal favorite recipe that I am adding. Often I end up doubling this and use it for the main course of a meatless meal!

More Tricks With Jello

Jello must be one of the greatest inventions of our times. I can see from Mom's recipe box that she enjoyed collecting jello salads. The nice thing about it was that there seemed to be endless ways to fix it. So here are some very easy things to add to that simple box of jello, in order to turn it into something more! To start off, I will throw in one of my own recipes that I picked up from one of my bosses. Being more conscious of refined sugar, I enjoy this Pomegranate Salad that uses Knox unflavored gelatin.

Pomegranate Salad

I box of unflavored gelatin
Cranberry and/or Pomegranate juice

Mix the gelatin according to directions, using the juice for the cold liquid. Let set until syrupy. Then add at least 1 cup-2 cups of pomegranate seeds. Turn into a glass dish or mold. This looks very festive for Christmas, especially if in a clear dish or on a glass plate.

Cherry Salad

1 pkg. 3 oz. cherry gelatin
1 can of cherry pie filling

Mix the gelatin according to directions. Let set until syrupy, add the cherry pie filling. Chill until set and cover with sour cream (or try non fat Greek yogurt).

Red Jello Combinations

Use any kind of red jello (tropical, raspberry, cherry or strawberry), 1 and 3/4 c. water, add applesauce, and nuts to taste after jello initially chilled.

Another good combination is to use rhubarb, shredded apple and pineapple in red jello.

Lemon Jello

Use crushed pineapple, grated carrot, cabbage, and pimento.


I think the secret to jello is to experiment. These hints were written out very simply by Mom without exact measurements. So be creative, add as little or as much to the base of jello, and enjoy!

Lime Salads

Frosted Lime Walnut Salad

1 3 oz. lime gelatin
1 c. boiling water
1 can (1 lb. 4 oz) crushed pineapple
1 c. small curd cottage cheese
1/2 c. finely sliced celery
1 T. chopped pimento
1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water, cool until syrupy. Stir in remaining ingredients. Mold in 8 inch square pan.

Aunt Lucille's Jello Salad

1 3 oz. lime gelatin (no water)
1 small package of marshmallows
1 small can of crushed pineapple

Heat all ingredients in top of double boiler (or in microwave) until the marshmallows are melted. Let cool and then add:

1/2 c. walnuts
1 small carton (12 oz.) small curd cottage cheese
1 c. whipped cream or Cool Whip

Place 1 3 oz. package raspberry gelatin (made according to directions on box) in bottom of pan, refrigerate until set. Then add the lime mixture on top; chill until set.