Tag Archives: Salad

Kicked Up Chicken Salads

Forget about the traditional chicken salads your grandma used to make. You know the ones where it was hard to see the chicken chunks through all that mayonnaise. These next recipes add a new twist to the childhood classic. The first recipe combines crunchy apples and pecans with the tartness of cranberries and the sweetness of coconut. (All that, plus the chicken.) The dish couldn’t be easier to make and it never fails to get guests excited about eating salad. I like to serve this recipe in lettuce leaves and eat it like a wrap. It’s also a fun way … Continue reading →

Crunchy Thai Chicken Salad

With the weather warming up and the kids out of school who wants to spend more time in a sweltering kitchen than necessary? Not me. Which is why I tend to supplement my weekly dinner menu with hearty salads during the hot summer months. It gives me a chance to spend less time in the kitchen and more time outside. The following recipe is one of my favorites. It provides a twist on ordinary chicken salad and doesn’t include a drop of mayonnaise. Besides being healthy (or at least healthier than traditional chicken salad) it is also a breeze to … Continue reading →

Ready, Set, Grill—CHICKEN

The Memorial Day weekend has officially begun and I can smell the grills going now. All this week I have been guest blogging in FOOD sharing some of my favorite grilling recipes. Now that we’ve covered my favorite steak and my mom’s favorite shrimp recipes it’s time to move on to my daughter’s favorite grilled item–chicken. You don’t have to be an expert chef to know that it is very hard to mess up grilled chicken. As long as you don’t let your bird overcook and become dry and rubbery you’ve got the makings of a winning dish on your … Continue reading →

Ready, Set, Grill–STEAK

Subtitle: Leftover steak? What leftover steak? The Memorial Day weekend (and the unofficial kick off to the summer season) is just a few days away—-is your grill ready for some serious action? Whether you fire up the coals (or turn on the gas) and throw on hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken or steak it seems nothing tastes as delicious as char-grilled goodness. Our family has a long-standing tradition of grilling steaks on Memorial Day. Which brings me to the subtitle of this blog and the subsequent recipes. Perhaps, we’re part lion or wolf… whatever the case may be when it comes to … Continue reading →

Hearty Ham Salad

If you have leftover ham in your refrigerator this is the ideal recipe for you. My dad loves ham and even when he was cooking for our family of eight he would make sure he had enough leftover to make ham salad the next day. Growing up I was never that fond of ham salad. Then I was introduced to the following recipe and all of sudden I became a devoted fan. No offense to my dad (who happens to be an incredible cook), but his ham salad was rather bland and uninspired. (Sorry Dad!) It wasn’t until I was … Continue reading →

Tarragon Chicken and Spinach Salads

Summer is still several weeks away. Yeah, try telling that to residents living along the West Coast of the U.S. where record-breaking heat is saturating the region. Highs in the mid-to-upper 90s are predicted for cities from Oregon to Arizona, which means you can bet that most household ovens will remain off today. Rather, today might be the perfect time to try out one (or both) of the following recipes for cool and simple salads. I grew up in Hawaii and my parents prepared hearty salads for dinner on a regular basis. The following recipes do not require turning on … Continue reading →

Mother’s Day Potluck: Chinese Shrimp and Noodle Salad

This is year my beloved grandmother will be spending Mother’s Day in a nursing home. It will be her first Mother’s Day since her horrific stroke and I wish more than anything we could be with her to celebrate. If I were there I wouldn’t hesitate to whip her up some of her favorite dishes. (Unfortunately, we are 5,000 miles away and we’ll have to settle with sending her some photo gifts in the mail.) However, my parents and brothers (along with my sister-in-law) have assured me that they will be hosting a little potluck in honor of my grandma … Continue reading →

Super Summer Salads

It’s not exactly summer in my neck of the woods. Heck, it doesn’t even feel like spring. Today’s forecast calls for a mix of rain and snow with temperatures barely above freezing. (Don’t ask about the windchills.) I don’t know if Mother Nature can read but the calendar says it’s April 28th. Regardless of what it might look like out my window, I realize that in other parts of the world the mercury has already hit 100 degrees. And believe me I am not letting this batch of nasty weather stop me from looking ahead to the summer months. I … Continue reading →

Another Easy Mother’s Day Meal—Perfectly Simple Pasta

Dads you can do this! Mother’s Day is May 11th and all this week I have been guest blogging in FOOD sharing simple recipes that even the most culinary-challenged dad can whip up for that special woman who bore his children. This next recipe is just as easy as the others and it comes with an added bonus: it’s very affordable. There’s no arguing that mom is worth all the money in the world, but if you are battling high gas prices, rising food costs and a shrinking household budget then you might consider cutting back on excessive Mother’s Day … Continue reading →

Rounding Out Your Mother’s Day Feast—Tropical Shrimp Salad

This week I have been guest blogging in FOOD in an effort to share some of my family’s favorite Mother’s Day recipes with you. I covered the main dish and everyone’s favorite part of a meal—-dessert, so this blog is dedicated to rounding out your Mother’s Day feast. The other dish my father (the self-appointed Mother’s Day chef) made sure was prominently featured on my mom’s big day was her favorite Tropical Shrimp Salad. It’s a simple side dish that packs quite a Hawaiian punch… and not just because we lived in the 50th State. You don’t have to be … Continue reading →