BLT Salad

When hubby isn't around and I am cleaning up or whatever, I turn the T.V. to those "Music Choice" stations.
Well, in the interest of full disclosure, it's just one station...the 80's station.
I am hooked. I love it. I miss the 80's with a passion!

He walked in the other day and Janet Jackson's "Nasty Boys" was on.
He then proceeded to tell me how much he didn't like that song.

I even tried to justify it by adding that even Disney had used it for some special...couldn't think of the name though. (funny how I think that if I had remembered the name it would have helped my argument. Like he would have been all "ohhhh...Totally Minnie,...why didn't you just say so?")

Is there a check box on divorce paperwork for not liking this song? There should be!

"No, my name ain't Baby, it's Janet, Ms. Jackson if you nasty"

I love that he loves me even when I am way dorky.
What better way to show him how much I appreciate him than BACON

Ingredients:

½ Head chopped iceberg lettuce

½ Pint cherry tomatoes

3-4 Slices of bacon

Onion (chopped)

2 Tbsp mayonnaise

Salt/Pepper to taste

2 Tbsp milk

Directions:

1. Cook and drain bacon

2. Toss lettuce, tomato, and onion (optional) in a bowl

3. Mix mayo, salt/pepper, and milk

4. Crumble bacon over salad

5. Pour dressing

Print

Onions on the side, because, well, because.

And how about my old school Tupperware shaker! 

Come party with me here

French Macaroni Salad

Are you sick of our Lennon story yet?

When we left off, Lennon had broken out of the couch cushion fort and made a bee-line for the girl child.

She and him have been inseparable ever since! He, literally, pouts when she is gone for a weekend!

Anyhoo...we were in need of a vet for Mr. Kitty Sir, and thought it would be good to keep him at the same vet that we received him from.
Oh what a great decision that was!

They L-O-V-E him there! Seriously, people come in who are not even scheduled that day in order to see him.

They all have millions of pictures of him on their phones. Yeah, I meant it when I said L-O-V-E.

He loves his fan club, and they truely love having him come in.
We are complete with him in our home, and feel that he is getting above par veterinary care.

His brother still goes to this vet, and the Doctor was like a kid at Christmas the day they got to "meet" after so long apart!

Our handsome boy all grown up!

Now, onto the salad!

Ingredients:

1 Lb macaroni

1 Green pepper (chopped fine)

1 Bermuda onion (chop fine)

1-2 Tbsp Miracle Whip

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 (8 oz) bottle French dressing

Directions:

1. Cook macaroni as directed, drain and rinse.

2. Stir in Miracle Whip

3. Add remaining ingredients, mix well

4. Chill for 30 minutes

5. Stir well before serving.

Print

I did not forget the onion....I just don't care for raw onion

This recipe was shared with:
Flour me with Love, Tumbleweed Contessa, Grace Langdon, A Southern Fairytale, A Pinch of Joy, Modest Mom Blog, Huckleberry Love, I Should be Mopping the Floor, Uncommon Designs, Jambellish, A Mama's Story, All Things Fee, The Chicken Chick, Boogieboard Cottage, Enchanted Homeschooling Mom, Skip to my Lou, April J Harris, Sew Can Do, Moms the Word, Pint Sized Baker, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Cornerstone Confessions, Lou Lou Girls, My Joy Filled Life, Yesterfood, Timewarp Wife, Mandy's Recipe Box, The New Mrs Adventures, Hope Studios, Kathe with an E, Hope in Every Season, Stone Gable Blog, Dizzy Busy and Hungry, Milk and Cuddles, My Girlish Whims, Raising Homemakers, Buns in my Oven, A Peek Into my Paradise, Gingersnap Crafts, Crafty Allie, The Newlywed Pilgrimage, Lemoine Family Kitchen, Ivy and Elephants, Feeding Big, Grace and Good Eats, What's Cooking Love, Saving 4 Six, Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Lambert's Lately, Embracing Change, Katherine's Corner, A Delightsome Life, The Pin Junkie, The Grits Blog, Play Party Pin, Lady Behind the Curtain, Daily Dish, The New Mrs Adventures, The Better Baker, Love Bakes Good Cakes, Craft Dictator, Thirty Handmade Days, City of Creative Dreams, Diary of a Real Housewife, The Girl Creative, Morsels of Life, Coffee with us 3, Simple Nature Decor Blog, Sweet Haute, Cooking with Ruthie, A Peek into my Paradise, Denise Designed

Cucumber Dill Salad

This is made all the freaking time in my house.
It's so simple, and so insanely delicious.
It's probably not even a "real" recipe, but that's OK by me.

I call it cucumber dill for obvious reason, but sometimes I mix in some tomato and lettuce and call it a dill salad.

One year, on Thanksgiving, I was just craving it....so I made it to bring to my aunt and uncles.
My second oldest cousin happened to be sitting at the same table as me that year. He is out of the loop enough not to know who brought what (meaning: he is a guy, he just shows up to eat) .
He took a big bite, sat there for a second.,.then went in for another bite. Then, out of nowhere, I got one of the biggest compliments he could have given.

"This tastes like something Gram would have made"
Oh did my heart just flutter!!

Our great grandmother was the queen of comfort food! Nothing fancy, everything simple and perfect.

Thanks cousin. You made my year!

Ingredients:

1 Cucumber (diced)

¼ Cup sour cream

Salt

Dill

Optional: Lettuce, tomato

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients

2. Season with salt and dill to taste

Print

This recipe was shared with:
Monday: Flour me with Love, Homemaking with Style, Pioneer Momma, Kitchen Table Art, Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms, A Southern Fairytale, A Pinch of Joy, The Modest Mom Blog, Huckleberry Love, I Should be Mopping the Floor , Uncommon Designs, Jambellish, A Mama's Story, The Chicken Chick , Boogieboard Cottage, Enchanted Homeschooling Mom , Skip to my Lou, Sew Can Do, Mom's the Word, Mom's Test Kitchen, All Things Fee , Mom Favorites, 21st Century Houseife, My Joy Filled Life
Tuesday: Pint Sized Baker , A Bowl Full of Lemons, Cornerstone Confessions, Inside Bru Crew Life, Lou Lou Girls, Hot Momma's Kitchen Chaos , Yesterfood, Minivan Dreams, Mandy's Recipe Box, The New Mrs Adventures, Hope Studios, Kathe with an E, Hope in Every Season
Wednesday: Buns in my Oven, Gooseberry Patch, Lemoine Family Kitchen, The Newlywed Pilgrimage, Crafty Allie, Dizzy Busy and Hungry, Someday Crafts, Milk and Cuddles, Mostly Homemade Mom, Ivy and Elephants
Thursday: Katharine's Corner, Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Sweet Bella Roos, Lambert's Lately, Sweet Haute, What's Cooking Love, Saving 4 Six, Embracing Change, The Nourishing Gourmet, A Delightsome Life, The Pin Junkie
Friday: AKA Design, Happy and Blessed Home, Craft Dictator, Lady Behind the Curtain, Morsels of Life, The Grits Blog, The New Mrs Adventures, The Better Baker, Endlessly Inspired, Love Bakes Good Cakes, Thirty Handmade Days, City of Creative Dreams, The Diary of a Real Housewife, Craft O Maniac, The Girl Creative, Coffee with us 3, Pure Grace Farms
Saturday: Melanie Makes, Belle of the Kitchen, Cooking with Ruthie, Beauty Through Imperfection, Raising Memories, Six Sister's Stuff
Sunday: A Peek into my Paradise, 3 Little Greenwoods, Denise Designed, Three Mango Seeds

Macaroni Salad

I have a soft spot for side dishes.

They complete a meal, they brighten a plate, they tantalize your taste buds.

You can serve the same side with different meals and it seems brand new.

This macaroni salad was made to go with some grilled chicken. The next day, as we were visiting friends, I brought the leftovers to have with the pizza I knew we were ordering.

Two completely different meals, yet this salad paired perfectly. Love, love, love side dishes!

Ingredients:

½ Lb elbow macaroni (cooked and drained)

⅓  Cup green pepper (chopped)

½ Cup celery (chopped)

8 oz roasted red peppers (chopped)

¼ Cup parsley (chopped)

1 Small carrot (grated)

1 Small onion (chopped)

2 Hard boiled eggs (chopped)

1 Tsp sweet relish

Dressing Mixture:

½ Pint Miracle Whip dressing

½ Tsp Gulden’s mustard

Directions:

1. Mix dressing mixture

2. Add chopped vegetables to dressing mixture

3. Gradually add cooked elbow macaroni

Print

Yeah, I didn't have a small carrot. I got to grate baby carrots. It was awesome. 

This recipe was shared with:
Monday:  Flour me with Love , Pioneer Momma, Homemaking with Style, Kitchen Table Art  , Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms, A Southern Fairytale, A Pinch of Joy, The Modest Mom Blog, Huckleberry Love, I Should be Mopping the Floor, Uncommon Designs, Jambellish, A Mama's Story, All Things Fee, The Chicken Chick, Boogieboard Cottage, Say Not Sweet Anne, Skip to my Lou, Mom Favorites, Sew Can Do, Mom's the Word, Feeding Big
Tuesday: Memories by the Mile , Pint Sized Baker, A Bowl Full of Lemons, The New Mrs Adventures, Cornerstone Confessions. Inside Bru Crew Life, Hot Momma's Kitchen Chaos, Our Table for Seven, The Time Warp Wife, Minivan Dreams, Mandy's Recipe Box, Kathe with an E, Sweet Silly Sara, Hope Studios
Wednesday: Dizzy Busy and Hungry, Recipes for our Daily Bread, Crafty Allie, Buns in my Oven , The Newlywed Pilgrimage , Milk and Cuddles, Wine and Glue, Raising Homemakers, White Lights on Wednesday, A Peek into my Paradise, Gingersnap Crafts, Mom's Test Kitchen, Lady Behind the Curtain, Mostly Homemade Mom, Lemoine Family Kitchen, Gooseberry Patch
Thursday: Lambert's Lately, Sweet Haute, Sweet Bella Roos, What's Cooking Love, Saving 4 Six
Friday: O Taste and See Blog, Play Party Pin, A Little Claireification, The Better Baker, Endlessly Inspired, Love Bakes Good Cakes, City of Creative Dreams, Hungry Harps, Craft Dictator, Thirty Handmade Days, The Diary of a Real Housewife, Craft O Maniac, The Girl Creative, Morsels of Life, Tales of a Kansas Farm Mom, Blissful and Domestic
Saturday: Coffee with us 3, What's Cooking with Ruthie, The Weary Chef, Six Sister's Stuff
Sunday: Denise Designed, Three Mango Seeds

Grilled Chicken and Pasta Salad

I spent some quality time with the family this past weekend. Hubby and the girl of course, but also a couple of aunties, an uncle, and a cousin.

As if I didn't already know how fortunate I am to have a fantastic family, I am constantly reminded.

We all have a very easy, no demands, relationship. We all have (for the most part) the same ideas of "fun" and enjoy doing those things together.

This time we all visited an place that we all spent so much of our lives at. We played tourist, ate too much, and spent a lot of time reminiscing about times past.

This cousin is just over a decade younger than I. He brought a friend with him.
It made my heart happy to hear him giving his friend "the tour" and bringing up memories specific to him.
I love that we all shared this together.

Ingredients:

1 Lb skinless boneless chicken breasts (grilled/broiled and sliced)

2 Cups torn lettuce

2 Cups shell shaped pasta

2 Med tomatoes (chopped)

4 oz crumbled feta cheese

8 oz Italian salad dressing

Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cook pasta per package directions

2. In large bowl, combine all ingredients except chicken and lettuce.

3. Cover, chill thoroughly

4. Just before serving, stir in lettuce

5. Arrange chicken on top

6. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese

Print

This recipe was shared with:
Monday:  Pioneer Momma , The Chicken Chick, Homemaking with Style, Flour me with Love, Kitchen Table Art , Jam Hands , Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms  , A Southern Fairytale , A Pinch of Joy, The Modest Mom Blog, Huckleberry Love ,  I Should be Mopping the Floor, Uncommon Designs, Jambellish, A Mama's Story, Boogieboard Cottage, Say Not Sweet Anne, Skip to my Lou, Sew Can Do, Feeding Big, Mom's the Word, Mom Favorites
Tuesday: Memories by the Mile, Cornerstone Confessions, Inside Bru Crew Life, Pint Sized Baker, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Hot Momma's Kitchen Chaos, My Joy Filled Life, Our Table for Seven, Time Warp Wife, The New Mrs Adventures, Mandy's Recipe Box, Kathe with an E, Sweet Silly Sara
Wednesday: Dizzy Busy and Hungry, Recipes for our Daily Bread, The Newlywed Pilgrimage, Buns in my Oven, Lemoine Family Kitchen, Milk and Cuddles, Wine and Glue, Raising Homemakers, White Lights on Wednesday, A Peek into my Paradise, Gingersnap Crafts, Mom's Test Kitchen, Lady Behind the Curtain, Crafty Allie, Mostly Homemade Mom
Thursday:  Sweet Haute, Sweet Bella Roos, What's Cooking Love, Saving 4 Six, Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Lambert's Lately, Embracing Change, The Nourishing Gourmet
Friday: Coffee with us 3, Hungry Harps, Craft Dictator, The Grits Blog, O Taste and See, Play Party Pin, A Little Claireification, The Better Baker, Endlessly Inspired, Love Bakes Good Cakes, Thirty Handmade Days, Angel's Homestead, Craft O Maniac, The Girl Creative, Morsels of Life, Tales of a Kansas Farm Mom
Saturday: The Weary Chef, What's Cooking with Ruthie, Six Sister's Stuff, Simply Gloria, Sewlicious Home Decor, Raising Memories
Sunday: Denise Designed, Three Mango Seeds





Recipe adapted from here

Cheesy Mac (Salad)

When I was growing up, my father worked for Digital Equipment Corporation

In the dinosaur age of 1986 they came out with a cookbook. A nice combination of employee loved recipes.

Many a meal at my house came from that book.

It entered my mind the other day, for some reason, and I asked my mother if I could borrow her copy. She wasn't sure where hers was (in a box somewhere) but my aunt had hers handy.

I borrowed it and copied all the ones I thought we might enjoy.

This is one of those recipes.

Ingredients:

1 Lb elbow macaroni

8 oz sour cream

1 Cup parmesan cheese

1 Tsp salt

1 Tbsp pepper

1 Tsp garlic powder

1 Tsp celery powder

Directions:

1. In a large pan, boil macaroni based on package directions

2. Drain pasta and run under cold water

3. Mix sour cream, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and celery powder in a large bowl

4. Add cooled pasta and mix well

5. When pasta is coated with sour cream mixture, add parmesan and mix well

6. Refrigerate or 2 hours before serving.

Print

For some reason I actually was OUT of elbows! Shells came to the rescue though.

This recipe was shared with:
Monday: Pioneer Momma, New Mama Diaries, Kitchen Table Art, The Chicken Chick, Jam Hands, Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms, Inside Bru Crew Life, Feeding Big, A Southern Fairytale, A Pinch of Joy, Uncommon Designs, Jambellish, All Things Fee, Boogieboard Cottage, Mom's the Word
Tuesday: Diamonds in the Rough, Cornerstone Confessions, Pint Sized Baker, Memories by the Mile, A Peek into my Paradise, Hot Momma's Kitchen Chaos, My Joy Filled Life, Mandy's Recipe Box, Kathe with an E, Sweet Silly Sara, The New Mrs Adventures
Wednesday: Dizzy Busy and Hungry, Recipes for our Daily Bread, Wine and Glue, White Lights on Wednesday, Buns in my Oven, Gingersnap Crafts, Crafty Allie, Sew Crafty Angel, Lady Behind the Curtain, Mom's Test Kitchen, The Newlywed Pilgrimage, Lemoine Family Kitchen, Gooseberry Patch
Thursday: Sweet Haute, Lambert's Lately, Sweet Bella Roos, What's Cooking Love, Saving 4 Six, The Nourishing Gourmet, Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Embracing Change
Friday: The Grits Blog, Craft Dictator, Play Party Pin, Hungry Harps, Coffee with us 3, O Taste and See Blog, Daily Dish, The Better Baker, Endlessly Inspired, Love Bakes Good Cakes, Thirty Handmade Days, Angel's Homestead, Craft O Maniac, Morsels of Life, Tales of a Kansas Farm Mom, Cooking with Curls
Saturday: What's Cooking with Ruthie, Six Sisters Stuff, Simply Gloria, Sewlicious Home Decor, Raising Memories, Northeast Bloggers, Weary Chef
Sunday: Denise Designed, The Girl Creative, Three Mango Seeds