Strawberry Basil Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

This is an easy salad adapted from a Cooking Light recipe.  Instead of making your own dressing, use a pre-bottled balsamic vinaigrette.  (My family likes Wishbone).

STRAWBERRY BASIL SALAD WITH BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

Recipe Notes

Basil and strawberries might sound a little strange together, but this salad works well.

Ingredients

• 8 c. torn romaine lettuce
• 2 c. sliced strawberries
• 1/2 c. vertically-sliced Vidalia onion (or other sweet onion)
• 1/4 c. torn fresh basil
• Bottled balsamic vinaigrette to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1.  Combine lettuce, sliced strawberries, onion, and basil in a large salad bowl.

2.  Add a small amount of balsamic vinaigrette, along with salt and pepper, and toss gently to taste.

3.  Be sure to assemble the salad right before your meal, because basil can start turning brown when brought in contact with liquids (particularly water).

Fig & Goat Cheese Bruschetta

This Cooking Light appetizer has been in my recipe folder for years, so I finally decided to try it this weekend.  The fig compote can be made ahead and refrigerated for several days in advance to make day-of prep easier.

FIG & GOAT CHEESE BRUSCHETTA

Recipe Notes

The original recipe calls for chopped walnuts on top.  I am not a huge nut fan, so I left them off.  If you want to include them, sprinkle 5 tsp. finely-chopped walnuts on top of your bruschetta before roasting.

Ingredients

• 1-1/4 c. chopped dried Mission figs
• 1/3 c. sugar
• 1/3 c. coarsely chopped orange sections
• 1 tsp. grated orange rind
• 1/3 c. fresh orange juice (about 1 orange)
• 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper
• 40 half-inch-thick slices of French baguette
• 5 oz. crumbled goat cheese

Instructions

1.  Combine figs, sugar, orange sections, orange rind, orange juice, rosemary, and pepper in a small saucepan.

2.  Bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until figs are tender.  Uncover and cook 5 additional minutes or until mixture thickens.

3.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

4.  Preheat broiler.

5.  Top each baguette slice with 1-1/2 tsp. fig mixture and 1 tsp. goat cheese.  Arrange on a baking sheet covered in foil.  Broil for 3-5 minutes (depending on broiler) until toast and goat cheese begin to brown.

Melon & Crispy Prosciutto Salad

I found this salad in an issue of Southern Living over the summer.  It brings together that salty/sweet combination of melon and prosciutto quite nicely.

MELON & CRISPY PROSCIUTTO SALAD

Recipe Notes

I served this with chicken enchiladas, but it would work well with just about any grilled protein (steak, chicken, pork chops).  The recipe calls for honeydew melon, but you can use just about any melon.  I personally think that the recipe makes too much dressing - I only used about 1/2 to 2/3 of the dressing that the recipe made.

Ingredients

• 4-oz. package of prosciutto
• 6 tbsp. chopped fresh mint
• 4 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 tbsp. white wine vinegar
• 3 tbsp. honey
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper
• 10 c. loosely-packed arugula
• 1/2 small honeydew melon, peeled, seeded, and cubed or coarsely chopped
• 4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 c. pistachios, coarsely chopped

Instructions

1.  Arrange prosciutto on a foil-lined baking pan.  Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 15 minutes or until crispy.

2.  Whisk together mint, olive oil, white wine vinegar, honey, salt, and pepper.

3.  Toss greens and chopped melon with vinaigrette.  Top with crumbled prosciutto, crumbled feta, and chopped pistachios.  Serve immediately.

Cotija & Corn Tacos with Mango & Lime

This Martha Stewart Living recipe is fast, vegetarian, and no cook. What could be better during the long, hot summer?! These were totally refreshing and even my meat-loving husband has enjoyed these twice since the thermostat started rising without complaining once.

COTIJA & CORN TACOS WITH LIME & MANGO


Recipe Notes
If you can't find cotija cheese, which is a mild Mexican cheese, you can substitute good-quality feta.

Ingredients

• Fresh corn kernels (from 4 ears of corn)
• 3 oz. cotija or mild feta cheese, crumbled (about 2/3 cup)
• 2 tsp. finely-grated lime zest
• 2-1/2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1/4 c. chopped cilantro leaves
• 1/4 c. thinly-sliced scallions (green onions)
• Coarse salt
• 12 corn tortillas
• 2 ripe mangos, peeled and sliced into long, thin strips
• Lime wedges for serving

Instructions

1. Combine corn, cheese, lime zest, lime juice, olive oil, cayenne pepper, cilantro, and scallion in a bowl. Mix well to combine.

2.  Warm tortillas over a gas burner until slightly blistered and charred.  Fill with mango slices and corn filling and garnish with limes. 

Strawberry Icebox Pie

This Cooking Light recipe is supposed to be made into a tart. I made it into a pie instead. If you want to make it into a tart, here is the original recipe from Cooking Light.

STRAWBERRY PIE

Recipe Notes

According to Cooking Light, you can assemble the crust and filling up to two days ahead and then top with the strawberry mixture on the morning of your event.

Nutritional Information (per serving - serves 10)

289 calories - 8.9 g. fat - 4.5 g. protein - 3 g. fiber - 48.7 g. carbs

Ingredients

For the crust

• 36 honey graham crackers


• 2 tbsp. sugar


• 2 tbsp. butter, melted


• 4 tsp. water
  

For the filling

• 2/3 c. light cream cheese


• 1/4 c. sugar


• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract


• 1/4 tsp. almond extract

For the topping

• 6 c. fresh strawberries, divided


• 2/3 c. sugar


• 1 tbsp. cornstarch


• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice


• 2 tbsp. sliced almonds, toasted

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Prepare crust: place graham crackers in food processor and process until crumbly. Add butter, sugar, and water from crust ingredient list above. Pulse until moist.

3. Place graham cracker mixture in a 10-inch glass pie plate, pressing into the bottom and up the sides. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack.

4. Prepare filling: combine cream cheese (softened), sugar, and extracts. Stir until smooth. Spread mixture evenly over the bottom of the graham cracker crust.

5. Prepare topping: place two c. strawberries in a food processor and process until pureed.

6. Combine puree, sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low and stir for one additional minute. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

7. Combine remaining 4 c. strawberries with lemon juice, toss to coat. Arrange berries over filling and spoon half of the glaze over the strawberries. (I used more than half because the recipe otherwise does not use all of the glaze).

8. Sprinkle toasted almonds around the edge of the pie. Cover and chill for three hours before serving.

Ruby Fruit Salad

This Martha Stewart Everyday Food recipe is gorgeous when fruit is a bit more in-season during the summer time. It's still tasty even in the fall, just not quite as vibrant and pretty.

RUBY FRUIT SALAD

Recipe Notes

This recipe calls for plums, grapes, blackberries, and blueberries, but you can really use ANY stone fruits (peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, etc.) and any kind of berries.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp. light brown sugar
• 2 tbsp. fresh lime juice (juice of one lime)
• 3 purple or red plums, halved, pitted, and cubed
• 2 c. seedless red grapes
• 1 pint blackberries
• 1/2 pint blueberries
• 2 tbsp. chopped fresh mint (or more for garnish or to taste)

Instructions

1. Stir together brown sugar and lime juice. Let stand 10 minutes so that brown sugar may dissolve.

2. Add fruit and mint, toss to combine. Serve immediately or refrigerate up to one day.

Blueberry Peach Cobbler

This Cooking Light recipe makes good use of the summer's bounty: fresh peaches and blueberries. This is great with Blue Bell homemade vanilla ice cream!

Recipe Notes

I essentially halved this recipe and made it in an 8x8 inch glass dish. Halving the recipe easily serves 6-8 people. If you don't have turbinado sugar, you can use regular sugar (I did!).

Nutritional Information (per serving - serves 12 BIG servings)
303 calories - 9.8 g. fat - 5.1 g. protein - 3.5 g. fiber

Ingredients

• 5 lbs. peaches (peeled, pitted, and sliced)
• 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 c. granulated sugar
• 3/8 tsp. salt, divided
• 1-1/2 c. flour, plus two tbsp. flour, divided
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 c. butter (one stick), softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 c. buttermilk
• 2 c. blueberries
• 2 tbsp. turbinado sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 glass baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Place peaches in a large bowl with lemon juice, 3/4 c. sugar, 1/8 tsp. salt, and 2 tbsp. flour. Toss to coat and arrange in glass baking dish.

3. Combine 1-1/2 c. flour, 1/4 tsp. salt, and baking powder in a bowl.

4. Using an electric mixer, combine softened butter and 1/4 c. sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract, flour mixture, and buttermilk, alternating flour mixture and buttermilk when combining.

5. Turn off mixer and fold in blueberries.

6. Spread batter evenly over peaches and sprinkle with sugar. Place baking dish on a foil-lined baking sheet (to avoid spills in the oven). Bake at 375 degrees for one hour, or until topping is golden and filling is bubbly.

7. Enjoy with vanilla ice cream!

Mango Parfaits

This Martha Stewart Everyday Food recipe would be much prettier in a tall glass, but I wanted to have one for breakfast and what I had on hand was a tea cup, so here we are. Each mango parfait has just 124 calories!

Before you can make a parfait, you will have to make some mango puree: add two ripe mangoes (peeled and cubed), 1/3 c. sugar, and 2 tbsp. water to a blender. Pulse until well-blended. (The mixture will vaguely remind you of baby food.)

MANGO PARFAITS

Ingredients

• 1/2 c. fat-free Fage Greek yogurt
• 4 tbsp. mango puree (from above)
• 1 tsp. sweetened coconut flakes or toasted coconut flakes

Instructions

1. Layer 1/4 c. Fage yogurt in the bottom of a glass. Add 2 tbsp. mango puree.

2. Repeat layers, topping with coconut flakes.

Grilled Vanilla Peaches

We ended up serving Grilled Vanilla Peaches with our Raspberry Ice Cream Cake for our dinner party on Friday night, and they were delicious. Costco had a good price on peaches, and I was trying to figure out something to do with them before they were overripened. Then, I came across this recipe in Martha Stewart Living and I thought that it might pair well with the cake. And boy it did! We love these!

Recipe Notes
These can be served alone or with vanilla ice cream. We put ours on the grill while we were waiting for it to heat up for the chicken that we were grilling. I separated them into two separate foil packets to make them easier to handle. 15 minutes on the grill and they were perfect, and I just left them in the foil packet in a pie pan until it was time for dessert!

Ingredients

• Eight freestone peaches, peeled and quartered
• Juice of one lemon
• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1-1/2 tbsp. packed light-brown sugar
• 2 tsp. water
• 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract (not the imitation stuff!)
• 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp. coarse salt
• Vanilla ice cream (optional, for serving)

Instructions
1. Add peeled, quartered peaches to the lemon juice and vegetable oil. Toss to coat.
2. Stir together light-brown sugar, water, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Toss to coat with peaches.
3. Ladle peaches and sauce onto one or two large foil packets. Fold foil to form a packet, crimping edges to seal.
4. Grill, covered, for 15 minutes.
5. Serve peaches with vanilla ice cream (Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla is wonderful with these!) if desired.