Salad Sunday...from Europe

Ok so technically I'm in Amsterdam today, but I wanted to share these delicious cold rolls as part of my regularly scheduled blogging.  

What You'll Need

Veggies

    julienned carrots, cucumbers, red peppers

    snap peas

Cilantro

Rice noodles

Shrimp

Rice paper wrappers

Firstly you should make this peanut dipping sauce.  Why?  Because who wants to eat veggies wrapped up in a rice paper?  Well, maybe a few of you, but not this girl.  I literally make the cold rolls so I can enjoy this delicious peanut sauce!  Do it!  Then, boil your noodles.  It should take all of 5 minutes.

Then chop up the veggies.  

Then you're ready to put them all together.  

Get a pie plate and fill with hot tap water.  Quickly soak the rice paper wrapper for 5-10 seconds and lay it out on a large plate.  Fill with the delicious fillings and wrap like a burrito.

To do this, fold one end toward the middle. 

Then starting on the left side of the folded bottom, pull the left edge over the fillings and tuck underneath.  

Then roll to close.  

This will keep the bottom closed and everything in tight!

So when it's too hot to cook, I highly recommend giving these a try!

Salad Sunday

Well it's been hotter than stink here, making me crave salad.  It's a rare thing...craving lettuce.  Ew - I sound like an adult!  But I want to take salads to a whole new level...hence 30 Days of Salad!

Did you know I even have a 30 Days of Salad Pin Board?  It's got some great ideas for new and innovative salads.  Of you feel stuck in a rut, go check it out.  Seriously there are some awesome salads on there, even if I do say so myself!

So get pinning.  Or searching the pins.  Whatever floats your salad boat!  Oh and stay cool, it's hot out there!

Salad Sunday- Not Your Average Chicken Salad

I finally got around to shopping for groceries this past week and was so excited to eat real food.  It's been a busy spring for me with dance competitions, preparing for recital, and then a whole recital weekend, but I'm done teaching...well until July 8th.  So I have time to prepare real food!

Not Your Average Chicken Salad

1 boneless, skinless, chicken breast

salt and pepper

2 stalk of celery, halved length wise and then shopped

1 tbls sun-dried tomatoes, in oil

Miracle Whip (or mayonnaise) to personal preference

So you can grill or fry your chicken breast.  I cut mine in half so that is was thinner and could faster and more evenly.  Season with salt and pepper as you cook and flip the chicken.

While that's cooking, dice up your celery and toss it in a bowl.  Once the chicken is cooked and cool enough to handle, chop it up and throw it in with the celery.  Add in your sun-dried tomatoes and toss with Miracle Whip.  That's the secret ingredient-sundries tomatoes!  So great.  Mix until thoroughly combined.

Serve on a flour tortilla with fresh romaine lettuce and salt and pepper!  YUM!

Make sure to check out our previous 30 Days of Salad posts by yours truly and some other fabulous bloggers

Salad Sunday #1- Caprese Salad

Salad Sunday #2 - Jill from Envirocraftiness

Salad Sunday #3 - Christina from Everyday Tastes

Salad Sunday #4 - Halsey from Spunky Junky

30 Days of Salad Sunday #4

Today I get to share my blog with one of my favourite bloggers.  Too bad I don't live in Southwest Montana because I think we'd be besties.  So without further ado, her she is.

Hello fellow Try to Keep Up Readers! My name is Halsey and I am the fingers typing away at a little blog called Spunky Junky. I started out my blog career doing DIY projects galore but since the arrival of children I spend most my days cleaning up toys and breaking up fights over memory cards. My husband and I are raising our two littles in Southwestern Montana where we enjoy all things outside and late night movie dates without kids in our living room.

Leslie so graciously asked me to tag along on her 30 Days of Salad feature and how could I not resist! About a half-a-year ago I decided to cut back on the amount of carbs and starches in my diet and switch to a more fresh food sort of lifestyle. Salads have become a go-to staple for me and I found that by adding an extra zing to somewhat bland salad that whole experience can change. You know what I mean?

The Strawberry Arugula Salad does just that. A little kick here with an extra punch of sweetness there makes it the perfect salad for summertime!

Ingredients

Mixed organic greens or arugula

Four fresh strawberries

1/4 cup watermelon

Half a mango

Small handful of crumbled feta cheese

Litehouse Pear Gorgonzola Dressing

Dice or mince fruits as to your liking. Mix ingredients together then top with Litehouse dress.  Enjoy!

Awe man, this looks SO good and so doable!  I can't wait to try to this salad soon!  Thanks so much Halsey.

30 Days of Salad Guest Blogger

It's Salad Sunday so you know what that means!  And today we have a super awesome guest post from Christina from Everyday Tastes!  So without further ado, her she is!

Hi there!  I’m Christina from It’s a Keeper, a food and cooking blog where I test recipes to see if they’re (you guessed it…) keepers.  Leslie has graciously let me take over Try to Keep Up and share one of my favorite salad recipes with you. 

I’m from northeastern PA and strawberry season is right around the corner so I thought I would share one of my favorite salad recipes that used strawberries!   I first made this salad last summer during a big family cookout.  Everyone was intrigued by whole grilling lettuce thing. 

This salad is a show stopper!  It’s absolutely gorgeous when it’s assembled -- the bright green and red colors topped with the dark, almost black, syrupy reduction.  It was a piece of art, if I do say so myself.  Even though this picture doesn’t do it any justice!

I particularly like the flavor from the charred lettuce.  It adds an interesting level of flavor.   And, the tangy-sweetness of the balsamic reduction was complimented nicely by the creamy gorgonzola.  Grilled perfection! 

While this recipe is great hot off the grill, it lost a lot of its oomph when refrigerated over night. So my advice is, eat this immediately! Enjoy every last mouthful of this delightful salad.  Finish it all and don’t save it for another meal.

Grilled Salad with Strawberry Balsamic Reduction

Compliments of It’s a Keeper
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1-½ cup Sliced Strawberries
1 cup Balsamic Vinegar
¼ cups Sugar
½ cups Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese

2 heads Romaine Lettuce

Light your grill and set to high. While the grill is heating up, slice the heads of lettuce in half, length wise, leaving the core in.  Drizzle with the olive oil and set aside. Slice the strawberries.

To make the dressing, in a small saucepan, boil the vinegar, sugar and 1/2 cup of the strawberries. Once boiling, turn heat to medium and let it reduce by 1/3.  The consistency should be slightly thick and syrupy.

To grill the lettuce, place it on the hot spots of the grill so that it chars slightly and gets warmed.  Be careful not to wilt the lettuce. Keep turning it so that it’s evenly charred. This will only take a few minutes.

To serve, place lettuce on a platter, drizzle with the dressing and top with the remaining strawberries and the gorgonzola cheese.

About Christina

Christina is the Cook and Bottle Washer at It’s a Keeper, a blog that provides tried and true recipes that are easy to make and, most importantly, taste great!  It’s a Keeper is also about sharing her passion for cooking, recipes, helpful hints and ideas on how to cook more despite busy life.  You can find more delicious recipes like this one on It’s a Keeper.  You can also connect with Christina on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Thanks so much Christina!  I love your blog.  If you're stuck for something to eat just head to Christina's blog, you'll find something new and delicious!  Thanks for being a part of 30 Days of Salad!

You don't make friends with Salad! {Jill}

It's Salad Sunday and today we've got a great post from my little sister Jill from Envirocraftiness.  I should mention that she is headed out to Vancouver on WEDNESDAY! and I can't wait.  We'll be doing SO MUCH CRAFTING-you're gonna be overloaded with amazing goodness.  BUT until then, enjoy!

Hey all you Try to Keep Uppers! This is Leslie's little sister Jill from Envirocraftiness!  I've been on a grain/gluten-free-paleo kind of diet, and this salad was one of my experiments along that path.  Thanks to my big sis for inviting me over here (although I handle the technical stuff for her, so really I can hop over whenever I like!) I'll probably be back with more salads later in the summer! Enjoy! 

This salad is pretty much an original creation.  It all came about because I was at work, thinking, what do I want for supper?  The answer was "a steak and eating an avocado with a spoon."  And then I remembered I'm a grownup, and probably shouldn't eat an avocado with a spoon.  SO I created this salad instead!

What you need:

2                ripe avocados, chopped

1/2             English cucumber, chopped

1                small roma tomato, diced

                  crumbled feta cheese (adjustable to personal preference)

                  balsamic vinegar (adjustable to personal preference)

Toss all your veggies and cheese into a bowl.   Pour balsamic vinegar over all of it, and stir! 

Serve up with a steak done your favorite way! We still had a solid wall of snow blocking the BBQ when I made this, so I settled for pan-fried (is that what you call it?!) with some Montreal steak spice.

There you have it - a quick, easy, and grain free meal!

 Heaven!
Feel free to visit me for more crafts, recipes and fun over at Envirocraftiness!!  

~JILL

Salad Sunday #1 - Caprese Salad

Welcome to the first installment of 30 Days of Salad!!!  If you're new to 30 Days of Salad welcome.  Wanna know how I came up with this weirdo idea?  Here's the history for a quick laugh! 

This is one of my go-to salads during the summer and since it's nice and quick I thought it would be a good kick off to the 30 Days of Salads Bonanza!  Granted, it's a salad that I eat so fast I never manage to get a photo of it :(  That's how good it is!

2 Roma tomatoes

fresh basil

balsamic vinegar

EVOO

fresh mozzarella or boccaccini

Not much to do here.  Cut up your tomatoes into chunks and toss them in a bowl.  Slice up some fresh basil and throw that in too!

I cut my boccaccini in half so it matches the size of my tomato pieces.  Drizzled with balsamic vinegar and just a splash of olive oil.  Finish with some salt and pepper and go to town!

The great thing about this salad is it can feed 1 or 10 just increase all the ingredients!  And you can make it fancy like the incredible Ree Drumond aka The Pioneer Woman.  Doesn't hers look incredible, all layered and drizzled?!?!?! So gorgeous.

Stay tuned for next week's salad...which may or may not be from my little sister Jill from Envirocraftiness!  See you then!

30 Days of Salads IS BACK!

The hottest blog series from last summer is back!  Ok, who am I kidding?  But it's a pretty handy little party to find delicious new salads to try during the summer months when it's just too hot to cook.  I know it seems cold now (for some of you), but the summer is coming.  Fresh produce, fresh fruit and salad season.

Do you have a great salad recipe that you want to share!  Well hop on the 30 Days of Salad bandwagon as a guest blogger!  Send me an email at westcoastleslie@gmail.com if you're interested.  I love reading and taste testing new salads and hope you do too!

30 Days of Salad kicks off on Sunday May 5th and runs until September 1st!  Check back each and every Sunday for a brand new salad.  

Broccoli Salad

While looking around for things to make for Easter Sunday I found some great recipes on Pinterest.  Except that I found out that the temperature was going to be an INCREDIBLE 18* celsius (that's 64* F for the Yanks) and there were going to be 16 people in a townhouse I thought a salad would be a better option.  So I created this yummy broccoli salad from several different recipes.

Salad
broccoli
1 red onion, chopped
1 142g package of Craisins
1 100g package of bacon bits
sunflower seeds (to taste)

Dressing
1 cup mayonnaise 
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbls vinegar

Mix together your mayo, vinegar and sugar with a whisk.  Feel free to add some fresh cracked pepper too!

I used 4 large broccoli heads for my salad.  I trimmed the stalks from the head and cut the crowns into bite sized pieces.  I kept the stalks for Cream of Broccoli Soup!  Toss the broccoli in a large bowl.  Chop up your onion and add it to the bowl.

That's all the tough work.  Now just add your fixin's.  The craisins, bacon bits and sunflower seeds can be adjusted to your person tastes.

Stir in the dressing just before eating. Make sure to really stir it up really well.  

Like I said, I brought this for Easter Sunday dinner and it was demolished.  There was nothing left!  So I have to assume the guests liked it!

  

Salad Sunday

Well folks, we may or may not hit 30 Salads by the end of September, but hey, I know I've been inspired to try a few different recipes and really that's what I was aiming for!  So on this Salad Sunday I'm featuring my Corn, Tomato & Black Bean Pasta Salad.  Actually, this recipe is originally from Nadia Potts, former ballerina with the National Ballet of Canada.  Her recipe is served hot with crumbled feta cheese; I nixed the cheese and turned it into pasta salad.

Nadia Potts' Corn, Tomato and Black Bean Salad

What You'll Need

2 cans of kernel corn

1 large can of black beans

3 tomatoes, diced (You can use cherry tomatoes, halved)

2 green onions, minced

Fresh minced Cilantro (to your liking)

2-3 cloves of garlic, minced

2-3 cups dry pasta

Cook the pasta al dente in salted water.  Chill pasta while you get the rest of the salad ready.

Dice tomatoes

 Add in corn

Add the black beans and stir to combine.

Then add in the cilantro, garlic and green onions. 

I would also recommend adding salt and pepper to your personal preference at this point.  Stir it all up into a lovely blend of colour and flavour!

Let this veggie mixture sit either at room temperature or in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.  Then mix the veggies with the pasta and chill for another 15 minutes. 

Then dig in!  I made a MASSIVE salad.  I think Ty and I had it for at least 3 meals each!  It keeps really well, especially if you don't overcook your pasta!  Let me know if you try this salad and what you think of it.  Bon Appetit.

Another Salad Loving Guest Post

Today I am so thrilled to have the lovely Kim, from Bugaboo, Mini, Mr & Me guest posting as a part of 30 Days of Salad! Kim is one of the kindest bloggers I've ever 'met'...she is also really encouraging when you try to knock off on of her creations.  I know, I was inspired to make her "Farewell to Summer" wreath, but it just didn't turn out the same, and she was still really nice about it!  Anywho, we're not talking about my Modge-Podge mis-adventures, we're hear to check out Kim's awesome salad.

So here's Kim!

____________________________________________________________________________________

Hi all!  I'm so flattered to be guest posting for this "30 Days of Salad" series!  I'm Kimberly, the "me" in bugaboo, mini, mr & me.  Over on my blog, I love to craft, sew, bake, cook, have fun with the kids, photograph and just generally be creative.  I share it all - the mistakes and failures, the triumphs and fun, and just the general craziness of life! 

Two years ago I could barely make a piece of toast without burning it, so I set out to become a grand chef.  Well, not really.  But I did want to try out new recipes and learn a thing or two about the kitchen in general.  This salad recipe was one that I found online and tweaked a little for my family's use.  It's not your average chicken salad!

Spanish-Style Chicken Salad with Roasted Red Pepper Dressing

1/2 C EVOO
3 T balsamic vinegar
10 oz jar of roasted red peppers, drained and diced
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 small shallot, minced
3 T minced parsley
1/2 C green olives, chopped
2 cans of white meat chicken, drained
1/2 C sliced almonds, toasted
1 T butter (for toasting)

Toast the almonds: melt the butter in a skillet and add the almonds.  Sprinkle with a bit of salt.  Stir the almonds and toast them until they are browned - be sure to stir often so they don't burn.  Puree the oil, vinegar, 2/3 C of the red pepper, garlic, salt and black pepper in a blender or food processor until smooth.  Transfer to a bowl.  Add the shallot, parsley, olives, and remaining red peppers to the vinaigrette mixture; stir to combine.  Add the chicken and toss gently to combine.  Let stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes.  Adjust the seasoning if needed.  Serve over romaine and sprinkle with the toasted almonds.

Now, of course you could use cooked chicken and then shred it and season it, but for ease, we just use the canned version.  I've discovered that Spanish cooking uses a lot of olives and vinaigrettes, something we like a lot at our house!  Obviously, you can adjust the amounts per your taste.

I really liked this salad a lot.  It was a welcome change to the normal chicken salad and much  more interesting than lettuce and veggies with ranch!  We served this salad with some Spanish Burgers with Manchego Cheese - it was a whole spanish themed feast! - but the salad can definitely be a stand alone dish in itself.  

Hope you enjoy!  Stop over and say hi sometime!

Thanks for having me, Leslie!

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks Kim! This one looks SO delicious I can't wait to try it!

And don't worry, Kim will be back with another salad before the 30 Days of Salad is over! Now get out there and make some salad!

A Very Special Salad Guest Post

I am so excited to introduce today's 30 Days of Salad Guest!  It's the amazing Christina from "It's a Keeper".  Christina's blog is FULL of awesome recipes.  Every Thursday she has a linky party where you can link up your 'keeper recipes'.  It's such a wealth of information-you'll never search for something to make for dinner again!

 So with a big round of applause, let's welcome Christina!_____________________________________________________________________________________Thank you, Leslie, for inviting me to guest post here at Try to Keep Up! My name is Christina and my blog is It's a Keeper. I love cooking and trying out new recipes. I have a huge pile of random recipes that I've collected over the years, and I'm cooking and baking my way through the pile and reporting back on whether or not the recipes are "keepers". Today, I'm sharing my recipe for Fire Roasted Panzanella. It's a Tuscan summer bread salad and its totally delish -- especially with fresh veggies from the farmer's market!

Fire Roasted Panzanella (Tuscan Summer Bread Salad)

6 slices of bakery Italian bread (I used Wegman's whole grain Pane bread)

1 red bell pepper, seeded

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded

1/2 red onion, sliced

2 large tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1 inch pieces

1 English cucumber (unwaxed), seeded and cut into 1/2 inch pieces 3 Tbsp fresh basil, coarsly chopped

3 Tbsp fresh parsley, coarsely chopped

1 tsp garlic, finely minced

1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

3 Tbsp white wine vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Grill bread, bell peppers and red onion over medium-high heat until bread is brown and toasted on both sides and peppers and onions are slighly charred. Remove items from grill and cut into 1 inch pieces. Put in large bowl.
Meanwhile, chop tomatoes, cucumber, basil and parsley. Add to bowl with bread, peppers and onions.

In a small bowl whisk together vinegar, oil, mustard, salt and pepper. Add garlic.
Pour vinaigrette over salad. Season liberally with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or allow to sit (at room temperature) for flavors to blend.

 
This recipe is definitely a keeper! I highly recommend grilling some up before the cool weather hits! I hope you’ll stop by and visit me as I share recipes, cooking tips and tricks on my blog, It's a Keeper. Thanks again for having me, Leslie. It was a pleasure.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Holy Moley does that look delicious!  And what a great twist on a salad, not to mention it sounds like you could put this bad boy together in 30 minutes which is a total bonus.  I know I say this everytime someone guest posts but I can't WAIT to try this salad! Mmmmmm.  Thanks again Christina.

Quick & Easy Chick Pea Salad

First, I have to start off by apologizing for being MIA.  After my out of town company left I was dragged into the world of the Hunger Games.  I have spent the last week reading these books-up all hours of the night, totally engrossed in them!  I have currently pulled myself away from the third and last installment of the series (not quite as enrapturing as the first two) to write this blog post!

So without further ado, here's my Quick & Easy Chickpea Salad!

What you Need

2 cans of chick peas

1-2 cloves of garlic, minced

1-2 tomatoes, diced

red onion, minced

1/2 an English cucumber sliced and quartered

lemons

parsley

extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

Dump your can(s) of chick peas into a large bowl.  You can rinse your chickpeas if you like.  Next dice your tomato and add it in.

Then cut up your cucumber.  I like to slice it lengthwise, and then again perpendicularly to the first cut, so it's quartered.  Then hold the quarters together and slice as normal.

Ta Da!

Next mince your red onion and juice your lemons.  You can briefly microwave your lemons or roll them on a counter to release more juice.  Add the onion and lemon juice into the vegetable mixture.

Finally mince some parsley and garlic and add to the bowl. 

This is, as usual, to your taste, so experiment with different quantities!  Toss well and add a little bit of EVOO.

The key to this recipe is to let the salad sit in the fridge for a while to let the flavours explode!  It is always better the next day when the flavours have developed, so try to make it at least 1 hour before you want to dig in!

There are a lot of great substitutions you can make to this salad to shake things up

1).  Add orange and green bell peppers, feta cheese and use a Greek inspired vinaigrette for a Mediterranean flare

2).  Swap out the chickpeas for cous cous or quinoa

3). Add in black beans, avocado and corn for a southwest taste

See what I mean?

Lastly stay tuned for some VERY exciting announcements coming your way in the next week.  I'm going to be a very busy blogger and I want YOU to be in on the fun! 

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