Picnic Pasta Salad

This was my daughter's request for our picnic with her friend from school.  It's fresh and pretty!  It can be eaten as a side dish, or as a main dish, as we did today.  Feel free to add chopped grilled chicken.  It's also good with well-rinsed black beans tossed in!

Picnic Pasta Salad

1 lb. pasta (any shape will do)
1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered
1 cucumber, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1/2 c frozen sweet corn
1 handful black olives, halved
Salad dressing  (I like Italian, my daughter prefers Ranch.)

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain, and rinse under cold water.  Drain well.
Mix vegetables and pasta together, then drizzle dressing over top.  Stir to combine.  Chill at least two hours.

*Before serving, stir the pasta salad.  If the pasta isn't wet enough, add more dressing.
*I like to add a handful or two of raisins or dried cranberries as well.  Trust me, it's yummy!

Swiss Vegetable Medley

We had this as a side dish with dinner last night.  Yummy!

Swiss Vegetable Medley

(Serves 6-8 as a side dish)

16 oz. bag frozen mixed vegetables, thawed  (We used broccoli, cauliflower and carrots)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c sour cream
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 c shredded Swiss cheese, divided
1 (2.8 oz) can fried onions, divided

Preheat oven to 350°.  Combine the vegetables, soup, sour cream, pepper, and 3/4 c of the cheese in a bowl.  Stir in 3/4 of the fried onions.  Pour into an ungreased 1 qt. casserole dish.  Cover.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, until bubbly around the edges.  Uncover;  sprinkle with remaining cheese and onions.  Bake for an additional 5 minutes. 

Livening up canned green beans

We eat a lot of canned green beans, because it's something that ALL of us like.  Take advantage where you can, right?  Dumping a can of green beans into a pan doesn't result in much flavor.  I grew up with my Mom and Grandma "livening up" the beans.  Of course it's not extremely healthy, but it's good nonetheless, and really it's not that bad when compared to, say, a piece of cake!

2 slices of bacon
2 cans green beans
2 tbsp butter

Place bacon in a saucepan over med-high heat until sizzling.  Add in green beans and butter.  Heat until boiling, then simmer for at least 10 minutes.

Cranberry Sauce

One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving!

1 bag fresh cranberries
1 c sugar
1/2 c water
1/2 of an orange, juiced

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan.  Cook over medium heat, stirring ocassionally, until the cranberries burst, about 20 minutes.  Cool for at least two hours.

Scalloped Potatoes

My daughter is not a potato lover by any means.  She does gobble these up, though!  I'm thinking they may make a Thanksgiving appearance this year!

This is not a healthy dish.  It's cheesy, gooey, and good, but not healthy.

You can easily adjust this recipe for the amount of people you'll be serving.  For that reason, there are no exact measurements.  You'll need a lot more for 10 people than you will for one!

Scalloped Potatoes

Russet potatoes, one per person
Salt
Pepper
All-purpose flour
Butter, diced
Cheddar cheese, sliced
Milk

Butter a baking dish.  Preheat oven to 350°.

Peel potato(es), then slice.  Place a single layer of potatoes into the buttered dish.  Season lightly with salt and pepper.  Dot with butter.  Place a single layer of cheese slices over top.  Sprinkle lightly with flour.

Repeat layers until you've used up all of your potatoes, ending with a layer of cheddar slices.  Do not sprinkle flour over the top layer.

Pour milk over the dish, until it comes up just below the top layer of potatoes.

Bake for at least 1 hour, until potatoes are tender.  (A serving for one takes about an hour, a serving for six takes about an hour and a half.)

Let sit 5 minutes before serving.