Avocado-Corn Salad

Avocados are one of my favorite summertime foods.  They have such a smooth, cool taste that’s perfect for warm weather months and—if you’re anything like me—the limited amount of actual “cooking” you’re willing to do when the temperature maxes out over about 85.

I’ve been staying with my mom for the last few weeks while I transition to Chicago (next week! omg, so excited!), and I was ecstatic to see avocados in her fridge when I got home!  I eyed them up for about a week before I figured she didn’t have any specific plans for them and I could do whatever my heart desired with them!

Now, my heart usually desires guacamole when I see avocados.  I’m fairly addicted to tortilla chips, so making guacamole is usually the perfect excuse for me to legitimize buying—and consuming—an entire bag of tortilla chips in a couple of days.  In fact, I was planning to make guacamole the day I ended up making this salad instead.  You just have to learn to be flexible when you can’t get the ingredients you originally want (cilantro, in the case of my guac) for a meal, and sometimes that flexibility really pays off!

This salad is a great alternative to your run-of-the-mill lettuce, cucumber, and tomato salad.  I usually refuse to make salads most of the time, and especially not for dinner, because I just find them so boring.  Maybe for my lunch at work or something, but for dinner?  No way, a salad is usually SO lame and boring.  With avocados and an interesting blended dressing, however, this salad is anything  but boring.  I’d happily make this salad just for myself and my roommates, or to serve to guests.  It’s so different that you’re bound to get asked about the recipe, I did!  I served it on the side with a light chicken dish, but the avocado and corn really add enough weight to make this a great main course salad for dinner on those days when you think you’d rather starve than adding to the heat by turning on your stove.

Ingredients (serves 4 as main dish, 8 as side):

2 heads of lettuce (I use romaine, but that’s really just a personal preference)

1 red pepper, chopped

2 (14.5 oz) cans of corn, drained

2 avocados, peeled, pitted, and cubed

For dressing:

3 tbsp blue cheese salad dressing (ranch would probably also work if you’re really anti-blue cheese)

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tbsp honey

Directions:

1. Combine lettuce, pepper, corn, and avocado in a large bowl, stir carefully to avoid smashing the avocado.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the blue cheese dressing, red wine vinegar, olive oil, and honey.
3. Pour the dressing mixture over the salad immediately before serving and toss to coat.

Black Beans and Rice

The flavors of cumin and turmeric come together fabulously in this black beans and rice.  Use this easily as a side dish for a Mexican night or as a meatless main dish.  This recipe is quick, easy, and full of ingredients you probably have lying around your kitchen; perfect for those days when you want to make dinner, but just haven’t had time to get to the store.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 C uncooked rice

1 1/2 C chicken broth (or water)

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp turmeric

dash of cayenne pepper

1 (14.5 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (14.5 oz) can corn, drained

1 (10.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chillies

1/4 c cilantro, chopped (optional)

Directions:

1. In a medium sized pot, saute onions and garlic in olive oil.  Add rice, chicken broth, and spices; bring to a boil.  Cover, lower the heat, and cook for 20-25 minutes, until all the broth has been absorbed.  Stir in beans, corn, tomatoes, and serve.  Top with cilantro if desired.

Southwest Red Potato Salad

With Memorial Day and the summer fast approaching, the season for cookouts is at hand.  Potlucks and cookouts can be a source of anxiety for a lot of people.  Figuring out what to bring, that people will actually like, and that you can actually cook can be a pretty trying experience.  I’ve noticed that most twenty-somethings opt for the ever popular random-store-bought-item option.  While this is always an option, and if you’re pressed for time it’s clearly your best option, I always encourage people to shy away from it.  Think back to all the cookouts you’ve been to, usually there are way too many bags of chips and loads of plastic containers of cookies.  But what is everyone raving about and gobbling up at the speed of light?  It’s not the chips and dip you picked up on your way over, it’s that homemade 7-layer dip your friend’s mom always makes or Aunt Betty’s famous baked beans.

But you can do that too!  You don’t have to be someone’s mom or aunt to make awesome potluck and cookout contributions that everyone will be begging to have the recipe for.  Try this Southwest Red Potato Salad.  It’s got a lot more interesting ingredients than regular potato salad and isn’t just a mass of potatoes slathered in mayonnaise (so unhealthy!), so it’s something different that people will be intrigued by.  It’s light and the flavors, especially the cilantro, corn, and red pepper combo, are perfect for summer and cookout-type foods.  I’ve made this potato salad for multiple potlucks (including a cookout today) and it’s been a great success at all of them; I rarely take home leftovers and almost always have at least one person ask for the recipe!

Ingredients:

2 lbs red potatoes, cubed

1/4 C olive oil

3/4 tsp salt, divided

1/2 tsp pepper, divided

2 oz cream cheese, softened

1/3 C sour cream

1 (4 oz) can diced green chilies

1 tsp paprika

1 clove garlic, minced

1 (15 1/2 oz) can corn, drained

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1/2 red pepper, finely chopped

1/3 C cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  On a cookie sheet, toss potatoes with oil, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper; bake for 30-35 minutes and then allow to cool slightly.

2. In a small bowl, stir cream cheese and sour cream until smooth.  Stir in the chilies, paprika, garlic, and the remaining salt and pepper.

3. In a large bowl, combine the corn, onion, red pepper, and potatoes.  Toss with dressing and cilantro and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.

Lemon-Garlic Green Beans

 

Green beans are probably among my favorite vegetables, and definitely have been for as long as I can remember.  They go with everything!  We ate a lot of green beans growing up.  Not fresh green beans, though.  Actually, I refused to eat fresh green beans for the longest time.  They were too crispy, and I thought that was weird.  Besides, they tasted too green.  No, with all the culinary sensibilities of a kid, I refused to eat green beans unless they came from a can (don’t even try to give me that weak frozen crap).  They were the best, especially if they were the french cut kind, and they were my mom’s go to.  Open a can of green beans and a can of corn, throw them in a bowl, and microwave for 3 minutes and you had vegetables all three kids would willingly eat (I refused to eat corn, while I think my brother didn’t like green beans).

I don’t know if I my kid self would have willingly eaten these, but adult me loves them!  With only about 10 minutes more effort than my childhood canned beans, these lemon and garlic beans pack a lot more flavorful and delicious punch.

 

Ingredients (serves 4):

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb green beans, trimmed

1/2 onion, cut into thin slices

1 tbsp lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cook garlic in olive oil over medium heat until fragrant.  Add the beans and onions, saute for 10-15 minutes, until beans are tender, but still crisp.  Stir in lemon juice, salt, and pepper before serving.

Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus is one of my favorite vegetables, and I’m always looking for new ways to prepare it.  This oven-roasted asparagus with just a hint of lemon is a perfect light and flavorful side dish.

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 lb asparagus, trimmed

3 tbsp olive oil

1 1/2 tbps Parmesan cheese

1 clove garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp lemon juice

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Place asparagus in a bowl, combine with olive oil, Parmesan, garlic, salt, and pepper; toss to coat.  Arrange asparagus in a single layer on a baking sheet.

3. Bake until tender, about 10-15 minutes.  Sprinkle with lemon juice before serving.

Rosemary Parmesan Rice

I’m a big fan of rice, I would probably eat it with every meal if it wouldn’t cause me to gain 20 lbs…damn you carbs.  I used to buy a lot of boxed rice.  I mean A LOT.  So much that I probably should have bought stock in rice-a-roni.  But now, I’ve discovered that it’s pretty easy (and cheaper) to make deliciously flavored rice myself.  But don’t worry, I still make an exception for rice-a-roni every so often for old times sake.  Making flavored rice yourself is a cinch though, especially with a rice cooker.  I’m not saying you need a rice cooker in order to do this, it’s perfectly possible to make rice on the stove top (I suppose…can’t say I’ve ever done it though), but a rice cooker makes everything SOOO easy.  No worrying about the cook-time and potentially under-cooking  or burning your rice, because the rice cooker just turns itself to warm as soon as it’s done.  Fabulous.

Ingredients (serves 5-6):

1 c medium grain rice (I use brown rice, but feel free to use white if that’s what you prefer)

2 c water

2 tbsp chicken bouillon

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp rosemary

1/4 c Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Combine rice, water, bouillon, garlic, and rosemary in a saucepan or rice cooker.  Bring to a boil and then allow to simmer until all water has been absorbed, approximately 20-30 minutes.

2. When rice is fully cooked, stir in Parmesan cheese and serve.

Stir Fried Carrots and Garlic

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 tbsp olive oil

2 c baby carrots, sliced into quarters

2 cloves garlic, sliced lengthwise

2/3 c water

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat and stir-fry carrots until they begin to turn golden.  Add garlic and stir-fry for another minute.

2. Add water and butter, simmer covered until carrots and tender, about 3 minutes.  Boil carrots, uncovered, until most of the liquid has evaporated.  Stir in lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.

Sweet Potato Fries

I usually suck at making fries.  I have this problem with making them way too thin, and then they end up being fry-chips.  They don’t taste bad…they’re just weird.  My friends make fun of me for it, that’s how bad it is.  I tried to make a really conscious effort to cut these into properly big wedges, and it totally paid off, they were so delicious and not awkward at all.  They made a perfect side for black bean cakes, and for snacking on while watching the Oscars.  I basically just made up this dip, but it turned out quite well.  If you’re not going to use this dip, I’d recommend eating sweet potato fries with honey.

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 tbsp olive oil

2 yams, peeled and cut into wedges

1/2 tsp salt

5 tbsp fat-free sour cream

1 tsp mayonnaise

1/8 tsp chili powder

1/8 tsp cumin

1/8 tsp paprika

 salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the olive oil over a baking sheet.

2. Arrange the yams on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer; season with salt.

3. Bake the yams in the preheated oven until soft, about 25 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, stir the sour cream, mayonnaise, and seasoning together in a small bowl. Serve as a dip for the yams.

Soy-Garlic Asparagus

Asparagus is one of my absolute favorite vegetables.  The flavor combinations in this recipe seem a bit weird, but they really do go together!  Don’t question it, just go along for the ride.

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 tbsp olive oil

3 c asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 c onion, sliced

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. In a skillet or wok, heat oil and stir-fry the asparagus, onion and garlic over medium-high heat until tender. Add the lemon juice and soy sauce; toss gently to coat. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

 

Italian Spinach and Chickpeas

I sort of made up this recipe a while back when I was making dinner for a vegetarian friend.  It’s vaguely based on a recipe for Italian Chicken and Chickpeas from allrecipes.com.  The original recipe is delicious (I made it about a year ago), but I realized it was so flavorful that it really didn’t even need the chicken!  So I decided to experiment by scrapping the chicken and adding LOTS more veggies.  The result is a great vegetarian dish that totally works as a main dish if you want, but would also be a great side dish to any Italian inspired main dish.  If you want the meat I’d recommend keeping everything about this dish the same (the added veggies really make it so much better) and cube a few breasts of chicken and saute them in olive oil with the rosemary before adding the rest of the ingredients.

Ingredients (Serves 6)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 can tomato sauce

1 (15 oz) can Italian-style diced tomatoes

1 tsp Italian seasoining

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp sugar

1 bay leaf

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

2 cups zucchini, halved and sliced

1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 (15 oz) bag frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

Directions:

1. Saute onions and garlic in oil until onions are translucent. Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, cayenne pepper, sugar, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes to the skillet; stir. Add mushrooms and zucchini and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until zucchini are tender, 10 to 12 minutes.

2. Stir the garbanzo beans and spinach into the skillet; continue cooking until the beans are heated, 2 to 3 minutes more.