Olive Garden Salad

This salad is made by the dressing. The dressing is AMAZING! You could really pair it with any kind of salad that you would like, but this is what we usually go with. Everytime I make this, people rant and rave and have to have the recipe!
Dressing:
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1/3 c. white vinegar
1 t. vegetable oil
2 T. corn syrup
2 T. parmesan cheese
2 T. romano cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 t. italian seasoning
1/2 t. parsley flakes (or fresh)
1 T. lemon juice
Mix together in blender until combined. Serve over salad made of Dole American blend salad mix, olives, tomatoes, sliced red onions, and homemade croutons.
Homemade croutons:
cubed up bread, cooked in a sauce pan over medium heat in melted butter, garlic salt, and parm cheese until crispy and light brown.

BLT pasta

This was a fun change up on a BLT sandwich which is a family favorite in our house!

BLT Pasta

from cookscountry.com

2 T. butter

2 slices hearty white sandwich bread, cubed

1 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled, reserving 2 T fat

1 onion, chopped fine

1 clove garlic, minced

1 lb orecchiette pasta

salt and pepper

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

1 (5oz) bag baby arugula

1 c grated parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and reserve 1 1/2 c cooking liquid. Melt butter in a nonstick skillet over medium heat and cook bread cubes until browned, stirring frequently.  Remove to a bowl. Cook onions and garlic in reserved bacon fat until soft, adding salt and pepper to taste. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl adding reserved pasta water to desired consistency. Top with cooked bread cubes and serve. 

Best Banana Bread recipe

This bread is from my friend Kristi, who in my opinion makes the best banana bread. I crave it all the time, and luckily she brings me some from time to time!!! I make it all the time but we eat it too fast to get a good pictures. But I had to post it and sharte the love becuase it is soooooo good and moist!!! (picture to be coming soon!)


Banana Bread
1 c. sugar
1/4 c butter, softened
3 mashed, ripened bananas
1/4 c milk
1/4 c sour cream
2 large egg whites
2 c flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt

Cooking spray
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine sugar, butter until fluffy. Add milk, sour cream, egg whites and beat well. Stir in bananas. Combine dry ingredients and add slowly to banana mixture until combined. Pour into bread pans coated with cooking spray and bake for about 45-50 minutes, unless it is a large loaf pan then bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Be careful not to over cook or it will dry out. I usually cover mine loosely with foil for the last 20 minutes of baking time to make sure the top doesn't get to brown and dry. The ultimate comfort food!

Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze

Oh my gosh this bread is good! I love banana bread, I love coconut, and I love lime...The combination is TO DIE FOR! I almost ate the whole loaf myself! This is my all time favorite banana brea now. Nothing else compares!

Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze

adapted from Our Best Bites

2 c. flour

3/4 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

1 c. sugar

1/4 c butter, softened

2 large eggs

1 1/2 c mashed ripe bananas (about 4 bananas)

1/4 c sour cream or plain yogurt

3 T apple juice

1 t. vanilla extract

1/2 c. shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wisk flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until blended. Add eggs and beat to combine. Add banana, sour cream, apple juice, and vanilla. Beat until just blended. Add flour mixture and beat at a low speed until just combined. Stir in 1/2 c. coconut. Pour batter into 9x5 loaf pan that has been greased and floured. Sprinkle an additional 2 T shredded coconut over the top of the loaf. Bake for about 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. ( I cover mine loosely with aluminum foil about 40 minutes into the baking time so the top doesn't get too brown or hardened. When done remove from oven and let cool on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes.

For the glaze:

wisk 1/2 c. powdered sugar with 1 1/2 T. fresh lime juice. Drizzle over the top, wipe the drool from your face and DIG IN!!!!This makes my mouth water everytime that i am thinking about it!!!

Berry-infused Waffles!!

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Berry Sour Cream Waffles adapted from A Feast For The Eyes
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup milk
½ cup sour cream
3 large eggs
1 ½ cups of fresh or frozen berries, optional (I used raspberries and blueberries)
Maple syrup or jam, for serving ( We used blueberry syrup and it was SOOO good! We also added sliced bananas over the top, which was the perfect topping!
Heat a waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions. Lightly oil the grids.
Meanwhile whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl to combine and make a well in the center.
If adding berries, add about ¼ cup of the flour to the blueberries and gently mix—this will help prevent the blueberries from sinking to the bottom of the batter.
Whisk the melted butter, milk, sour cream, and eggs in a medium bowl until well combined and pour into the well. Whisk just until smooth; do not over mix. Gently fold the berries into the batter.
Spoon about ¼ cup of the batter into the center of each quadrant of the waffle iron and close the iron. Cook until the waffle is golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
Serve the waffles hot, with butter and syrup.

Grilled Pork Chops!! Summer is Here!

When the weather warms up, so does our grill, almost nightly in fact! This is a new go to recipe that I have already made three or four times! It is easy to throw together and doesn't require a long marinating time, which is a plus in my book!

Grilled Pork Chops

(adapted from melskitchencafe)

8 boneless pork loin chops

1/2 c. olive oil

5 T soy sauce

2 t Montreal steak seasoning

sliced button mushrooms, sauteed in butter and seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic salt

Mix olive oil, soy sauce, and steak seasoning ingreadients in a small bowl and pour into a 1 gallon resealable ziplock bag. Add the pork chops and set the bag in a baking dish. Marinate in the fridge for 3-8 hours (but no longer than 8. I have done just one hour and the flavor was still WONDERFUL!) Heat the grill to medium and grill the chops 6-8 minutes per side, until they are no longer pink in the center. Remove the chops and let them rest under some tented aluminium foil for about 5 minutes. Serve smothered with the cooked mushrooms and any summertime bbq sides that you please ( like corn on the cob, sliced watermelon and a green salad!! )

Marinated, Grilled, Steak Skewers

These are SOOOOOO good! SOOOOO easy to make and one of the best marinades that I have ever tried. SOOOOO give them a try!

Korean BBQ beef skewers
(from ourbestbites)

1 1/2 lb sirloin steak, cut thinly against the grain. (I like to stick the steaks in the freezer for about 15 minutes right before I slice them to make it easier to slice).
1/2 c. rice wine vinegar
1/2 c low sodium soy sauce (regular soy sauce makes it too salty and tough)
2 T brown sugar
2 T minced garlic
1 t Sriacha chili sauce (found in the asian section of your local supermarket)
1 1/2 t sesame oil
Combine rice wine, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, chili sauce, and sesame oil in a large bowl. Add meat and marinate at room temperature for 1 hour. Preheat the grill. While the grill is preheating thread the steak pieces onto bamboo skewers. Cook over medium high heat for about 3-4 minutes per side. They cook fast and you don't want to overcook them, so watch them vigilantly! Serve immediately. This is another recipe that I always double because my family gobbles them up immediately! And we can't have hungry little Lamb's running around!!! :)