Tag: Water Chestnuts

Toss Salad for A Quick and Easy Fix

The thing about Toss salads is that bulk of the effort would come from making the dressing. The salad is mainly made up of greens such as lettuce, cabbage and romaines. The reason why these are called tossed salad is because preparation for this is just tossing together all the ingredients.

Meaning, all the greens and other twist which one may opt to add in it. Some of the add-ons may include sausages, fruits, chips and basically anything else that might come up in one’s imagination. With a prepared dressing, it only takes one as little as five minutes to prepare this recipe. Below are some recipes which one can try out at home.

Parmesan Vegetable Toss

2 C. mayonnaise or salad dressing
1/2 C. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 C. sugar
1/2 tsp. dried basil leaves
1/2 tsp. Salt
4 C. fresh broccoli
4 C. fresh cauliflower
1 red onion, sliced
1 can (8 oz) sliced water chestnuts, drained
1 head iceberg lettuce, torn
1 lb. sliced bacon, cooked and crumbled

In a large bowl combine mayonnaise, Parmesan, sugar, basil and salt.

Add broccoli, cauliflower, onion and water chestnuts.

Toss.

Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.

Just before serving, place lettuce in a salad bowl and top with vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with bacon.

Top with croutons if desired.

CLASSIC TOSSED SALAD RECIPE

Ingredients:

1 head romaine lettuce
1 head red leaf lettuce
6 ounces crumbled feta cheese
1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives
1 (4 ounce) package blanched slivered almonds, toasted
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
6 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 red onion, sliced
6 fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
1 (8 ounce) bottle Italian-style salad dressing

Directions:

Chop, wash and dry the romaine and red leaf lettuces. In a large salad bowl, combine lettuces with feta cheese, olives, almonds, sesame seeds, tomatoes, onion, mushrooms and Romano cheese. When ready to serve, add the Italian dressing and toss thoroughly.

CONFETTI TOSSED SALAD RECIPE

Ingredients:

15 ounces Italian Blend or Spring Mix salad greens
16 ounces sausages, lightly rinsed, well drained
2 cans (11 oz. size) mandarin oranges, drained
1 1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 medium apple, cored and diced
1 cup fresh raspberries
1 cup pecan pieces
1/3 cup extra sharp shredded cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam, softened in microwave
1/2 cup frozen (whole) raspberries, thawed, with juice
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Salad: In large salad bowl, toss greens and Sauerkraut together. Top with oranges, cranberries, apple, fresh raspberries, pecans, and cheese.

Dressing: In a small bowl, blend together olive oil, vinegar, jam, thawed raspberries, and pepper.

Drizzle a few tablespoons of the dressing over the salad for moistness and color; serve remainder on the side.

Chinese Vegetable Recipes

Chinese vegetable recipes are very popular these days because everyone is always on a diet. With the right recipes on hand, you could easily drop a few pounds a month by eating delicious Chinese food a couple times a week.

Many people immediately think of things like bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and bok choy. While these are common Chinese vegetables, not that many recipes use them.

They are just usually prepackaged in the frozen food section with anything that says Chinese on it. There are many more vegetables you can use to give your recipes a distinctly Chinese flavor.

Chinese cabbage is one of the best tasting and useful vegetables you can buy. Its not as tangy or large as normal cabbage and has a great flavor.

You can use this in salads, soups and stir fry to add a more authentic Chinese taste and look to your food or improve any standard Chinese recipe. It doesnt hold up well under high heat so it should always be added last.

A great way to make your Chinese recipe really special is to add a handful of fresh snow pea pods. These are very sweet and are commonly found in soups like won ton. They can really add something special to any stir fry and go great with seafood.

Every grocery store has a section that will have some Chinese vegetables. If you like the taste of ginger, it can be used to spice up almost any recipe you have.

It can be overpowering though. You will also see many things that look like leeks and green onions. If you dont know what they are, it doesnt hurt to buy some, take it home and find a recipe for it. You might find a new favorite vegetable!

What Are Some Vegetables Found in Mexico

Americans love Mexican cuisine. The cuisine usually found in America contains typical vegetables you can find in the states. There is a variety of vegetables not as known in America, but are grown and eaten throughout Mexico.

Jicama is a Mexican potato and also considered a turnip. It is a large, bulbous root vegetable with the roots getting as heavy as 50 pounds. Its flesh is thin and is brown and white in color. Jicama has a crunchy taste to it. The flavor is described as being nutty and sweet, with the texture similar to water chestnuts. In Mexico the vegetable is thinly cut and soaked with Mexican lime, and topped to chili pepper.

Nopales are another common vegetable throughout Mexico. It is a popular vegetable to eat during Lent. Nopales consist of fleshy, oval leaves that are from the nopal cactus. Their color can be anywhere from light green to dark green. They have a light, tart taste to them. The vegetable can be boiled or grilled. In Mexico you will see nopales cooked in scrambled eggs and even sandwiches.

Chayote is a gourd that once was the main food for the Aztecs and Mayas. Its skin varies from being white to pale green. The outside can be found smooth, wrinkled, or full of pricks. People prepare it similar to summer squash. It also is used in salads. Because the taste is mild, seasonings are sometimes added to strengthen the flavor.

Another vegetable that would be great added to a salad is the Mexican Gherkin.
It is a young cucumber that is picked when it is 1 to 3 inches in size. The vegetable can then be cut and added to salads, or other dishes. People also jar the gherkins adding vinegar and dill, which makes them pickled.

Many Mexican dishes have tomatoes added. One popular tomato is called the Mexican husk tomato. It was popular back in the Aztec and Mayan economy. The plant can stand 4 to 5 feet tall. The tomatoes are usually miniature in size. When the tomatoes are ripe the skin will be yellow, purple, and sometimes red, but that is a rare color for the tomato. It gives many different flavors from being acidy, to sweet with many seeds. The Mexican husk tomato is grown in the Summer time in temperate regions of the country. It also needs plenty of sun and not extremely wet soil. Once grown, they are cut and eaten raw, or added to different dishes such as a sauce called salsa verde which goes on meats or green chili peppers or used alone. They also are popular additions to salads.

These vegetables and others that are grown in Mexico can be found at food markets and Mexican grocery stores. Each vegetable has its own purposes and make great additions to dishes. It is great to experiment and see what you can do with them. Before you know it, you may be adding chayote besides tomatoes and avocados in your salad!