Spinach Salad

One of my favorite Pampered Chef recipes:

Summer Spinach Salad

2 firm, ripe medium nectarines* or peaches
6 ounces baby spinach
1 cup raspberries
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Raspberry Vinaigrette (recipe below)

1. Slice nectarines or peaches into thin wedges.
2. Place baby spinach in a bowl. Add nectarine or peach slices, raspberries and almonds; toss gently. Serve with Raspberry Vinaigrette.

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This recipe can also be altered for those of us who sometimes don't have access to summer produce -

Winter Spinach Salad

1 firm red apple (such as Braeburn)*
6 ounces baby spinach
1/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1/4 cup toasted pecan halves
Raspberry Vinaigrette (recipe below)

1. Slice apples into thin wedges.
2. Put baby spinach in a bowl. Add apple slices, cranberries and pecans; toss gently. Serve with Raspberry Vinaigrette.

*Tip: Dip nectarine or apple slices into lemon jice to prevent them from turning brown.

Makes 6 servings

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Raspberry Vinaigrette

2/3 cup raspberry vinegar
2 Tbs seedless raspberry jam
2 Tbs sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1 cup canola oil

1. Combine ingredients. Mix until blended.
2. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Makes 2 cups

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The original recipe says to drizzle 3/4 cup of the dressing onto the salad. However, I do not like other people deciding how much dressing I get! It seems that I like less dressing than everyone else, so I just leave the dressing in my handy Measure, Mix & Pour container to serve. It's not very pretty, but it works well for mixing and pouring!

Pink Pancakes!

This morning I tried another recipe from Deceptively Delicious - the Pink Pancakes (with Beet). I will admit that I was skeptical because I am not a big fan of beets, but I figured it was worth a try. And it was! They did leave a weird after-taste in my mouth, but it was easily washed down with a cold glass of milk. Braxton also enjoyed them... so here is the recipe!

Pink Pancakes
(with Beet)

3/4 cup water
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup beet puree
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup pancake mix
1/4 cup grated apples
Nonstick cooking spray
1 Tbs canola oil

Maple syrup or fruit, for serving

1. In a blender or food processor, combine the water, ricotta cheese, beet puree, vanilla and cinnamon and blend. Dump the mixture into a medium bowl, add the pancake mix and apple, and stir until just combined. Do not overmix- the batter will be a little lumpy.

2. Coat a griddle or large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set it over medium-high heat. When hot, add the oil. Spoon the batter onto the griddle or skillet, using about 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. Cook the pancakes until bubbles form on top and the batter is set, 1 to 2 minutes. Then flip the pancakes with a spatula and cook until golden brown on the other side, 2 to 3 mintues. Serve warm, with syrup or fruit.

Serves 4

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So, why beets?
According to Nutrition Data: Beets are very low in saturated fat and cholesterol. They are also a good source of magnesium and potassium, and a very good source of dietary fiber, vitamin C, folate, iron and manganese. However, canned beets (which is what I used for my puree) are very high in sodium, and a large portion of the calories come from sugars.

And why ricotta cheese?
Nutrition Data says that ricotta cheese is low in sodium. It is a good source of protein, calcium and selenium. However, it is very high in saturated fat.

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And here is my little taste tester, enjoying his pink pancakes!

Veggies Everywhere!

In the past few weeks, I have discovered that I can put a vegetable puree in almost anything! Since my last post, I have added carrots into red pasta sauce, sweet potatoes to white pasta sauce, yellow squash and butternut squash to meatballs, and cauliflower to mashed potatoes. I only add between 1/4 and 1/2 cup to the mixtures, otherwise it might overpower the other flavors. John did say that he feels like it makes things taste a little bit more bland - so perhaps I need to try adding more seasoning.
Anyway, Braxton has eaten everything, and then when he gets full, throws the rest on the floor for the dogs. Surprisingly, they eat it too! John has even eaten everything as well, and commented that he can't taste it, so he doesn't mind and is happy about the extra nutrients he's getting. John is preparing to run a 1/2 marathon in May, and so I think I've lucked out with him being so open to my experiments!
My sister, Jenny, was less than excited about the veggies being mixed in, but her husband, Travis, isn't picky at all, so he ate everything. My dad commented that he thought he could taste the squash in my Italian Meatball Sandwich Casserole... but I'm not so sure that he wasn't teasing me.

I have also tried out a few more recipes from my new cookbook: Deceptively Delicious. I have to admit that the Scrambled Eggs (with cauliflower) wasn't very good. The cauliflower flavor was completely overpowering, and the final product didn't hold together very well so it was difficult to eat. Braxton ate them, and seemed to enjoy them, but I probably won't make this recipe again for myself. I am going to have to play around with the recipe to make it more like scrambled eggs and less like cauliflower, but still as nutritious as the original recipe!