Fruit Salsas

Credit: Taste of Home

Strawberry Salsa

Combine:
1 pt chopped strawberries
4 seeded and chopped plum tomatoes
1 finely chopped small red onion
1-2 minced peppers
 2 TBS lime juice
1 TBS olive oil
2 minced garlic cloves
Refrigerate 2 hours

Gingered Mango Salsa:

Combine:
1 cup chopped mango
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup cilantro chopped
1/4 cup lime juice
2 TBS minced fresh mint
1 TBS minced fresh ginger
1/2 tsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
Stand for 30 min

Broccoli Salad

Broccoli Salad

*Stolen from Kristin L.'s facebook page. Dunno who she stole it from :-)*

Salad Ingredients

• 3 cups broccoli florets
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese
• 1/3 cup raisins, craisins, or dried cherries
• 1/4 cup chopped red onion

Dressing Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup Mayo
• 2 TBS Sugar
• 2 TBS Lemon Juice

Toppings 

• 8 slices bacon fried crisp & crumbled
• Sunflower seeds

Mix salad ingredients in large bowl. Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl and then stir into the salad. Top with bacon & seeds when served.

Cowboy Caviar (Salsa type dip)

Cowboy Caviar

We used to have a friend that made this every time we'd go down to the beach and it was awesome! I could eat the whole bowl with a spoon! We were always served tortilla style dippers with it. Best if chilled overnight. Beautiful in a glass bowl!

Chop everything pretty fine. You want to be able to get a little of everything on your chip!

1

can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed 

1

can (14.5 oz) black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed

1

can (7 oz) white shoepeg corn (or extra sweet yellow), drained and rinsed

4

Roma tomatoes, seeds removed and diced small

3

ripe but firm avocados, diced small

4

green onions, sliced thin and/or half of a purple onion, diced)

1/2

cup wish bone zesty Italian dressing

1/2

bunch cilantro, chopped finely

Juice of 1-2 limes +  Salt and Pepper to Taste                                            

Cajun Sweet Potato Salad

Cajun Sweet Potato Salad

This recipe was a total accident and a HUGE hit! I was making potato salad to go with Gumbo (it's great in a bowl of gumbo instead of rice!) and I was out of potatoes. It was late so I didn't want to go to the store. I happened to have a bag of sweet potatoes so I improvised. I added the seafood boil to the boiling potatoes in hopes of cutting the sweetness in exchange for some savory and spice. Worked great and I think this is how I'll and making all of my future potato salad! Enjoy! 

8 medium Sweet Potatoes 

1 1/2 Cup Mayo

2 tbs Apple Cider Vinegar

2 Tbs sugar

2 Tbs Yellow Mustard

1 Tsp Tony's Seasoning

1 Tsp Garlic Powder

1/2 Tsp Pepper

2 ribs of celery sliced

1 cup finely chopped onion

5 eggs

1/2 cup- 1 cup Zatirains Pro Boil (or other all in one powdered seafood boil)

Paprika

Start your water to boil. Peel the potatoes and chop into small cubes. Add the seafood boil seasoning. The amount you add depends on the amount of water. You want the water to be salty but not unpalatable so taste it and add more if needed. Add the potatoes and eggs. Boil for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are completely cooked. Dump into a colander when done. 

While the potatoes and eggs are cooking : 

In a bowl, mix together all ingredients except the chopped veggies and eggs. Stir until well combined.

Peel & chop the eggs

Add all ingredients except the egg and stir still well combined. I like to take a potato masher and just mash the mixture a few times but not a lot. You still want to see cubes of potatoes. Taste it and see if it needs more salt, pepper, mustard , etc. Gently stir in the chopped eggs and top with Paprika. Chill before serving.

Thanksgiving and Christmas Feasts!

Our family has always valued our time together at Thanksgiving and Christmas. The lunch-time meal (which we always call "dinner" for some reason) is a HUGE part of our celebration. Every year, little things or new traditions are added to our holiday celebrations; but,the meal VERY RARELY changes. It was a really big deal when we added the squash casserole about 10 years ago! One of the main reasons I started this little recipe collection was so that this particular meal created and orchestrated every year by my mother, Linda Fayard, can continue on forever!

The women of our family gather the day before the meal to prepare and refrigerate it all. This is not a sexist thing :) I am all about some girl power but this has just become a wonderful family tradition for us girls to get together and prepare the family meal and spend time together. The boys are welcome to join but so far none of them have showed up! We do make them cut the turkey and do all this dishes so it works itself out!

Most of the recipes for the sides and deserts are all individually here in this blog - just click on the name and it will open the recipe.  Have fun and enjoy!

The Menu

Oven Roasted Whole Turkey
Gravy (Turkey drippings mixed with jar gravy)
Cornbread Dressing & Cranberry Sauce
Squash Casserole
Sweet Potato Casserole
Green Bean Casserole
Broccoli and Rice Casserole
Watergate Salad
Seven Layer Salad
Uncle Ben's Wild Rice
Bake & Serve Rolls (With squeeze butter on top)
Nestle Chocolate Chip Cookies
Millionaire Pie
Pumpkin Pie (Thanksgiving only)
Cherry Cheesecake (no bake box mix with canned cherry on top)

Seven Layer Salad

We always serve this awesome salad at Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is even better the next day so make it ahead of time if you can.

1 Head of lettuce (torn small or shredded)
1 cup chopped bell pepper
1 cup chopped onion (optional)
1 cup chopped celery
1 pkg frozen English peas
1 cup mayo
3 tbs sugar
2 cups finely grated cheddar cheese
Bacon bits (optional)
BIG GLASS SERVING BOWL

Layer the first 5 ingredients in the bowl. Mix mayo, sugar and cheese. Spread the mixture on top. Top with bacon bits if you'd like.

Watergate Salad

1 20 oz can crushed pineapple unsweetened
1 3.5 oz pistachio pudding mix
9 oz cool whip
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Mix all ingredients and chill overnight

Serve as salad or a desert

Easy Caprice Salad

Easy Caprice Salad

1. Chop up two pounds of fresh mozzarella- place in large bowl

2. Add two containers of grape tomatoes

3. Chop up two cups of fresh basil- HINT don't buy your basil from the chain grocery store. You'll pay $2-$3 bucks for a tiny amount of fresh basil. Go to your local Asian grocery market and you can buy it buy a huge bag of it for the same price! You can freeze what you don't use...

4. drizzle olive oil over the mixture

5. Ad salt and pepper to taste

6.Chill for a bit

6. Mix it all up and serve!