HG's Chicken Pot Pie

Growing up I loved Chicken Pot Pie. My favorite kind of pot pie was not homemade, but from Marie Callendar. That woman knows how to cook. :) However, I couldn't even tell you the last time I ate one, have you seen the "nutritional" info on those puppies? Go take a quick peak. 430 Calories... 30.6g of Fat (12.6 saturated)...1041.3mg Sodium... YIKES! So as soon as I found Kickin' Chicken Pot Pie in HG's book, I marked it to make right away.

This recipe has 4 ingredients and is super simple to make. It does taste pretty close to a real pot pie. I did make a few changes.. added more veggies, added a tiny bit of chicken broth and greek yogurt. Next time I make it I think I might try it out with Cream of Chicken Soup rather than celery. Even with my changes though, I know it is still MUCH healthier than other chicken pot pie options out there.

HG's Kickin' Chicken Pot Pie



8 oz. raw boneless skinless chicken breast; cut into bite-sized pieces
3 cups frozen mixed vegetables (I used Birdseye SteamFresh Baby Potato Blend)
1 can (10.75 oz.) Campbell's Condensed Soup, 98% Fat Free Cream of Celery
3 servings Pillsbury Reduced Fat Crescent Rolls (unprepared) I wanted a thick crust so I used the entire thing.
Because I added more than 3c veggies, I also mixed in about 1/4 c reduced sodium chicken broth and maybe 2 tbsp of greek yogurt and some S&P.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute chicken pieces for several minutes in a pan spritzed with nonstick cooking spray, until chicken is light brown/cooked but still tender; set aside.

Heat frozen veggies in microwave according to package. Mix chicken, vegetables and soup together and put in a 9" round baking dish sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

Place dish in oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly (stir about halfway through).

While dish is cooking, unroll 3 crescent rolls. Combine pieces together with hands to make one large ball of dough. With a rolling pin, roll dough out into a circle to cover top of dish. Add dough to the top of the dish and cook for an additional 15 - 20 minutes or until top is golden brown.

Serves 4. Serving Size: 1/4th pie (approx. 7 oz.)

Nutritional Info for the Original Recipe:
Calories: 210
Fat: 6g
Sodium: 800mg
Carbs: 24g
Fiber: 2.5g
Sugars: 6g
Protein: 16.5g

Cooking With Love

When my friend Sarah posted about a Blog Event: Cooking With Love , I knew exactly what story I wanted to share....

One night in college at a party Matt told one of his friends: "She had me at ......



"



I kid you not, those are the exact words Matt said to one of his friends. "She had me at Hamburger Helper." Um ok, or maybe not those exact words, but you could interpret the story that way if you want.

The first meal I ever made for Matt consisted of Lasagna Hamburger Helper, Cream Corn, Salad, and Cheesy Garlic Bread. In college that was "our" meal. We had it a couple times a month. One night out at a party one of his friends came up to me and told me how Matt was braggin on me because of this AWESOME meal I made and how I was the best girlfriend ever. It makes me giggle just thinking about it. The night we got engaged we even had "our meal".

Before we got married someone gave me a recipe for a sort of "homemade" hamburger helper. Matt loves the recipe as is. To see the original recipe click here. I have to spice it up if I make it. I know I'm not a gourmet chef, but I've come a long way from Lasagna Hamburger Helper in the past 6 and a half years. My wonderful husband loves almost everything I make, but I know he'd be a happy man if I made Hamburger Helper every night of the week.

Corn and Blackbean Skillet

1lb ground turkey
1 can black beans
Minute Rice - I usually make 2 servings
1 can Rotel
1 cup Salsa
1 chopped Red Pepper
1 chopped Green Pepper
3/4 bag frozen corn
1/2 cup chopped green chilis
Fresh Cilantro to taste
Cumin to taste
Paprika to taste
Cheese, tortilla chips, sour cream, other toppings

Cook turkey- drain. Combine rice, beans, rotel, salsa, corn, peppers, and 2.5 cups of water. (you may have to increase this depending on how much rice you make) Bring to boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 min or until water has been absorbed. Add cilantro, cumin, and paprika.

I like to make mine as a burrito and Matt likes to eat his with chips.

Comfort Food

With my leftover cheese from fondue night, I decided to make the most perfect fall comfort food: macaroni and cheese. Usually I have a hard time figuring out what to do with the left over Gruyere and Emmentaler and that stuff isn't exactly cheap so I hate for it to go to waste.

I based my recipe on Ina Garten's Grown Up Mac and Cheese. A recipe I spotted on quite a few blogs last month for Barefoot Bloggers. The result was phenomenal! I especially loved the hint of nutmeg in the dish - delish! I decided this is definitely a mac and cheese that would be ok to serve to company. :)

Macaroni and Cheese
Adapted from: Ina Garten



Vegetable oil
Kosher salt
2 cups shells
1 3/4 - 2 cups milk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Gruyere, Emmentaler, and Sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (Combined, mine equaled a little over 2 cups.)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch nutmeg
Grated Colby Jack Cheese to taste
Panko Bread Crumbs to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt the butter in a medium pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or 2 more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, Emmentaler, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and stir well.

Pour into a 2 1/2 qt baking dish. Sprinkle Colby Jack Cheese over top of pasta, sprinkle bread crumbs over top Colby-Jack Cheese. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

Fresh and Fabulous

Vegetables are my favorite food right behind chocolate. I love, love, love veggies. My lunch usually consists of raw veggies and some sort of crackers with laughing cow cheese or stuffed in a pita. I love 'em. [and with lunches like that I can afford to eat all of the sweets I make ;)] I was so excited when we moved into our house last fall because we're only 2 and half miles away from the OP Farmers Market. Unfortunately I've only been twice all summer thanks to my crappy work schedule.

After my most recent trip I decided I wanted to make some sort of Veggie Couscous with all of my fresh goodies. I turned to a couscous recipe I starred in my Google reader a while ago - Garden Vegetable Couscous with Simple Dijon Dressing. I adapted this a bit and the only part of the recipe I followed was for Simple Dijon Dressing. I served the couscous on Fresh Spinach and Arugula (also FM finds) and it was fabulous. I loved the contrast the spinach gave the cilantro and jalapeno and then the extra bite the arugula gave the entire dish. I highly recommend this!

Farmers Market Couscous with Simple Dijon Dressing
Adapted From: Picky Palate



*I didn't really measure my vegetable amounts... these are just estimates

1 box Near East Couscous (Plain)
1 bunch fresh asparagus, roasted
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 green onions, sliced
1 cup yellow squash, quartered
1 cup zucchini, sliced
1 - 2 red peppers, chopped
1/2 yellow pepper, chopped
1 heirloom tomato, quartered
1/2 cup baby carrots
1/2 cup broccoli florets
1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 fresh jalapeno, diced

1.5 tbsp EVOO
1 tbsp Grey Poupon or spicy brown mustard
Pinch of Salt and Pepper

I prepare the Couscous as directed and then sauteed the onion and garlic until it was fragrant. Then I added all veggies (except the asparagus and tomato) and sauteed for just about 5 - 10 minutes. I added the asparagus and tomato in and placed a lid on the skillet and turned the heat down to warm.

Doesn't that just look so yummy!

To make the dressing, in a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, mustard, salt and pepper.

Combine the couscous and veggies. Stir in cilantro. Pour dressing over couscous and stir to combine. Serve over spinach and arugula if desired.

I ate this warm yesterday cold today. Either way, it tasted delicious.

A dish Popeye would love

This is one of those recipes that doesn't come out like you expected but still tastes good. Rather than making spinach pockets, I seemed to have made spinach roll-ups. HUGE spinach roll-ups. The picture below is of one of the roll-ups cut in half. I found this on realsimple.com and wanted to try it but was hesitant because my husband doesn't like spinach. He'll eat spin-art dip, but not spinach. In order to make this more husband friendly, I doubled the cheese, and added artichokes. It must have done the trick because he liked these, as did I. We served them along side some Cheese Fondue. (which I didn't take a pic of...) This was also my first time using phyllo dough.

Spinach Artichoke Roll-Ups
adapted from realsimple.com - Spinach Pockets



1 pound cooked spinach, chopped
1 can artichokes, chopped
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan I used 1 cup
1/2 cup ricotta cheese I used 3/4 cup
2 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced I used 3 scallions
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt object
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper object
1 1-pound package phyllo dough, defrosted (12 sheets)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Heat oven to 400º F. In a large bowl, combine the spinach, Parmesan, ricotta, scallions, egg, salt, and pepper. Mix well and set aside. I did this early in the afternoon to save time in evening.

Fold 1 sheet of phyllo in half crosswise and place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Brush the top with some of the butter. Top with another folded sheet and brush with more butter. Repeat one more time. Leaving a 2-inch border around the edges, place 1/4 of the spinach mixture at one end of the pastry. Roll up the pastry, tucking in the sides. Brush with more butter. Repeat to make 3 more individual pockets. I just rolled my dough up rather than following this step exactly.

Bake in the oven until puffed and golden, about 30 minutes.

This dish would also be good as an appitizer at a party by cutting each huge roll up into quarters or the filling would make an excellent dip.

Fiesta, Fiesta

Last week I came to the conclusion I'm a huge fan of any dish that has corn and black beans in it. I made this last Thursday, Friday for lunch ordered Vegetarian Black Bean Soup, and for dinner had Southwestern Chicken Wraps that had corn and black beans in them.

This recipe is super easy and delicious. All the ingredients are things I usually have on hand and it makes a lot, so there are leftovers. We had this with a packet of Spanish rice and it was a perfect meal. My changes are in italics.

Chicken and Fiesta Cornbread Casserole
from ... and a cookie for dessert



4 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces
2 Tbsp EVOO
1 package taco seasoning (I have a jar of taco seasoning. I used more than a packet's worth)
2 cans black beans drained & rinsed
1 can ro-tel drained
2 cans Mexican corn drained (I used 2 cans of regular corn)
1 package corn bread with ingredients to make it
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup red bell pepper (I used 1 cup)
1/4 cup green pepper
1/8 cup green chilie peppers
Fresh Cilantro to taste


Heat oven to 350 degrees spray 3 quart dish with cooking spray.Heat EVOO in large skillet over medium heat. Brown chicken until the middle is no longer pink.

Make cornbread according to instructions, then stir in cheese and peppers, and cilantro.

Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken. Add black beans, Rotel and corn, add more taco seasoning if desired. Mix together then pour into prepared dish. Pour cornbread over the top (Because I added extra peppers, I had to add more milk to the cornbread mixture to thin it out and make it pourable)

Bake for 30 minutes or until the cornbread is golden

Eggcellent

A while ago I found a recipe for a Fast ‘N Fresh Frittata in my Pampered Chef It’s Good For You Cookbook. I’ve wanted to make it for a while but the hubs does not like 2 of the main ingredients (asparagus and tomatoes). Last night when I got home from the gym I was really craving an omelet when I remembered the frittata so I based this recipe off the original one. The original recipe calls for a bigger skillet, but I just used an 8in last night.

Easy Frittata
(I didn’t get a picture of it last night. Here is a frittata I found online that looked pretty similar to ours except for the salsa on top)



These are all estimates, I just threw stuff in

1 tbsp Olive Oil
¼ cup chopped red peppers
¼ cup chopped green peppers
¼ cup canned corn
1/8 cup chopped green chilies
¼ cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped Leftover Turkey Day Ham
1 small potato - diced
Shredded Cheese (to taste)
2 eggs and 2 egg whites whisked together
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Garlic Salt to taste (or you could use fresh pressed garlic)


Heat olive oil in skillet on medium-high heat until hot. Add potatoes, veggies, ham, and garlic salt. Cook and stir four minutes, reduce heat to low. Add shredded cheese and salt and pepper to potato mixture. Pour eggs over top potato mixture. Cover; cook on low heat for 14-15 minutes, or until center is set. Remove from heat, sprinkle cheese on top, let stand until melted. Cut into wedges.

This was excellent, we both loved it. It tasted great with a nice cold glass of chocolate milk. Next time I’ll definitely use a larger skillet so we have leftovers.

Not my cup of tea

But, some people may like it. This recipe came from my It's Good For You cook book. It's low in fat, calories, cholesterol, and apparently taste.

Chicken Vegetable Cobbler


Chicken & Vegetable Filling
2 cups diced cooked chicken (or turkey)
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cups broccoli florets
1 can corn
1 can 98% fat-free reduced-sodium condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup 100% fat-free broth
1/2 cup skim milk
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Biscuit Topping
1.25 cups reduced-fat all-purpose baking mix
1/2 cup skim like
1 egg white

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. For chicken and vegetable filling, cut chicken into 1/2 inch cubes. Cut carrots into 1/3 inch slices and chop onion. Steam carrots, broccoli, and onion in the microwave for 2 - 3 min or until crisp-tender.

2. In bowl combine soup, broth, milk, garlic, thyme and black pepper; whisk until blended. Stir in chicken, corn, and vegetable mixture; mix well. Pour in to deep dish baking pan.

3. In small bowl, combine baking mix, milk and egg white; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened and mixture forms a soft dough. Drop six scoops of dough over filling. Bake 30 - 35 min or until topping is golden brown.

So, like I said, this wasn't my cup of tea. My husband didn't like it either. Not enough flavor for us. If I ever make it again I'll add more spices and maybe some more flavorful veggies.




Yields: 6 Servings.
Calories: 270, Total Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat 2 g, Cholesterol 50 mg, Carbohydrate 30g, Protein 23g, Sodium, 640mg, Fiber 2g.

A little bit of this, A little bit of that

I don't have class at all this week. YAY! I hope to do a few blog updates. Last night I was at the gym and saw a commercial for a casserole and deicded it looked delicious. I got home and looked through the freezer and pantry made myself a meal.

Veggie Casserole
(I have a picture.. it's just not uploaded!)

1 bag frozen mixed veggies (mine had potatoes, green beans, squash, and carrots)
2 cups frozen snap peas
1/2 box angel hair pasta - cooked
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 empty soup can full of water
French Fried Onions to taste
Parmesan Cheese to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste

1) Combine all veggies, pasta, soup, water, and salt and pepper. Bake at 425 until mixture is golden brown and slightly boiling

2) Stir in parmesan cheese. Top with french fried onions and parmesean cheese Bake for 10 more minutes.

3) Devour!

This was super easy and delicious. Next time I might add chicken and a box of corn muffin mix to the ingredients.

One Dish Meal

One of the showers I had before the wedding was a recipe shower. This recipe is from that. It's one of M's favorite things to eat. I think it's alright, just not my favorite. It's kind of bland so to spice it up I added some fresh green chili's.

Black Bean and Corn Skillet


1lb ground beef or turkey
1box 8oz Black Beans and Rice (I use 7oz Zatarain's)
1 can Rotel
3/4 bag corn
1/2 cup cilantro

1/2 cup chopped green chilis
Cheese, tortilla chips, sour cream, other toppings

Cook beef - drain. Stir in Rice and beans, Rotel, corn, cilantro, and 2.5 cups of water. Bring to boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 min or until water has been absorbed.

M loves to eat this with chips. I like to eat it like a burrito. I had left overs the next day and was out of salsa so I cubed some Velveeta, added some onion, cilantro, and taco seasoning and melted it in the microwave. I added it to the mixture and it was so good. I highly recommend that.

One Dish Delight

I found this recipe in my favorite Betty Crocker Cook Book. M didn't want to have anything to do with the recipe because it had the word tamale in it. Little did he know there isn't a tamale in it. (Not quite sure where the name comes from.) We both loved it. This recipe is simple but rates pretty high on my mess scale! My tiny kitchen was a disaster afterwards. I'm not quite sure why.

3 Bean Tamale Pie
Prep: 25 min Bake: 25 min Oven: 400 Makes: 6 main dish servings



Don't make fun of the "garnish"... I'll explain that in a second.

1 cup chopped green sweet pepper
½ cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon, cooking oil
1 15 ounce can kidney beans, rinsed, drained, and slightly mashed.
1 15 ounce can pinto beans, rinsed, drained, and slightly mashed.
1 15 ounce can white kidney beans, rinsed, drained, and slightly mashed.
1 6 ounce (2/3c) veggie juice
1 4 ounce can diced green chili peppers undrained
1 tsp chili powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 8.5 ounce package corn muffin mix
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup cilantro parsley

1) Grease a 2 quart square baking dish or 10 inch quiche dish, set aside. In a medium skilled quick sweet pepper, onion, and garlic in hot oil until tender. Stir in kidney beans, pinto beans, vegetable juice, chili peppers, chili powder, and cumin; heat through. Spoon bean mixture into prepared dish.

2) Prepare corn muffin mix according to package directions: add cheese and cilantro, stirring just until combined. Spoon cornbread mixture evenly over top of bean mixture. Bake uncovered in a 400 degree oven about 25 minutes or until golden. If desired, serve with salsa or sour cream.

Ok, now on to my garnish..... M loves to garden. Since we live in an apartment and can't have a garden, he has one at his brothers house. These teeny, tiny carrots are the fruit (ha, pun intended) of his labor. He pulled a couple carrots to see how they were doin. After he ate the carrots he wanted to throw the top of them away. I wouldn't let him and used the greens to garnish my dish!

Wrap It Up

This recipe is from my list below. I found it in a Betty Crocker cookbook I got for Christmas. I think I like these. I'm not 100% sure. I messed with the recipe a tiny bit so that may be why I'm on the fence. I'm usually not a big fan of wraps. Overall I give it B+. The husbanator on the other hand gave it an A+.

Bean Salad Wraps

Oven: 350 Makes: 4 Main Dish Servings

4 - 8 inch flavored of plain flour tortillas

1 - 15 ounce can Black Beans, rinsed and drained

1 - 15 ounce can Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup chopped green sweet pepper or 1 fresh jalapeno chili pepper, seeded and finely chopped

2 tablespoons snipped fresh cilantro

1/3 cup light mayo dressing or salad dressing

1 tablespoon lime juice (I used lemon)

Leaf Lettuce

Chopped Red Pepper

1) Stack tortillas and wrap tightly in foil. Heat in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes to soften

2) Meanwhile, in a medium bowl mash black beans and garbanzo beans slightly; add pepper and cilantro. Stir in dressing and lime juice

3) To Serve, spread bean mixture evenly over tortillas. Top with lettuce.

A few notes about this meal.....

1) It is super filling! I got out raw veggies and dip to eat with it, didn't need them.

2) The original recipe does not call for garbanzo beans or red pepper. I just added the beans because I had them and the red pepper because it was starting to go bad. Next time I'll use a whole red pepper.

3) My mouth is on fire. After I tasted the mixture I decided I wanted to spice it up some more. I added 2 fresh jalapeno chili peppers. WOAH! That was a bit too much.

4) I added a little more than a tablespoon of lemon juice.

5) I used dried Cilantro.

6) I think I'm going to use the leftover lettuce and left over bean mixture to make a salad for lunch tomorrow. I have some chicken I'll throw in there too.

A Family Staple

These two recipes aren't on my list below but, I already knew I was making the pasta tonight. It is one of my favs and everyone in my family loves it. Even my husband who hates broccoli loves this. The day before my wedding my grandma, aunts, cousins, and mom hosted a bridesmaid luncheon. This was one of the main dishes and everyone couldn't get over how good it was. It's an easy recipe, it just takes a bit of time.

Pasta Con Broccoli

1 Box of Large Pasta Shells (16 oz)

1 Bag Frozen Broccoli (16 oz)

1 Small Block of Velveeta Cheese (16 oz)

1 Can Cream of Celery soup

1 Can Cream of Mushroom soup

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 Can Milnot evaporated milk - DO NOT USE LOW FAT or FAT FREE!!!

1/2 Stick Margarine.

Garlic Powder or Garlic Salt to taste

Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook noodles per box directions. Cook broccoli per bag directions . Cut up Velveeta. In a roasting pan (ours is 10lb poultry pan) cut margarine in pieces. Add cooked noodles, cut up Velveeta, cooked broccoli, Milnot, and creamed soups. Mix well. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix again.

Cook at 375 for 40 - 50 minutes. In the words of my mom "you'll just know it is done".

In order to make this recipe a little bit healthier use Campbell's 98% fat free creamed soups and 2% Milk Velveeta (it has half the fat of regular Velveeta). If you use low fat Milnot this dish just doesn't taste the same. I guess if you have never had it you wouldn't know the difference but believe me, it is MUCH better with the full fat Milnot.

If you are planning on having this for a group of people it tastes great with garlic cheese bread and Pasta House Salad. (Tastes like salad from the Pasta House Co in St. Louis, similar to Olive Garden - but better!) I didn't make the salad tonight b/c it was just M and I but, here is the recipe:

Rich and Charlies Pasta House Salad

1 head of Romaine Lettuce

1 Head of Iceberg Lettuce

1 can drained Artichoke

1 can drained Heart of Palms

1 4oz jar drained Pimento

1 Purple Onion sliced

1/2 cup of Grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2 cup of Oil

1/2 cup of Vinegar

Salt

Pepper

Tear lettuce in bit size pieces, add artichokes, heats of palm, pimentos, sliced onion, and Parmesan cheese. When ready to serve, add vinegar and oil and salt and pepper to taste. Pour over salad.....

The final step of adding the salt and pepper is key. You have to keep tasting/adding the salt and pepper until it's right.

The pasta serves roughly 6 - 8 and the salad may be around the same. I'm not sure. All I know is it is all delicious! :)

Thai-Style

Never in a million years would I have ever thought I'd make a Thai-Style dish. That is, until we went to Jamaica and I tried a few new things. This meal took about 30 minutes to make and both M and I loved it!

Chicken with Pasta and Peanut Sauce

6oz dried fettuccine or linguine
2 cups fresh pea pods, tips trimmed, or one 6 ounce package frozen pea pods
1 cup cooked turkey or chicken strips
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh pineapple or one 8 oz can pineapple chunks, drained
¼ cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon reduced–sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice or lemon juice
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 clove garlic, minced

1) Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, halve the pea pods diagonally. Place pea pods and chicken in a large colander. Pour hot cooking liquid from pasta over pea pods and chicken in colander, drain well. Return the pasta, pea pods, and turkey to the hot pan. Add the pineapple.

2) Meanwhile, for sauce, in a small saucepan stir chicken broth into peanut butter. Heath and stir with a whisk until peanut butter melts. Sir in soy sauce. Lemon juice, red pepper, and garlic; heat through.

3) Add sauce to the pasta mixture. Gently stir to coat pasta with sauce.

Favorite Summer Dish

I know we are only a week and a half into summer but this has become my favorite summer dish. You can add meat and make this as the main course or it is great as a side dish too. The first time I made this I put in cubed ham as the recipe calls for. I'm not a fan of cubed ham but, my husband really liked it. Luckily, I could just pick the ham out.

Rainbow Veggie Salad


Salad
1.5 cups uncooked rainbow or plain rotini pasta (4.5 oz)*
2 cups cubed cooked ham**
1 cup thinly sliced carrots (2 med)
1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes (4 med)
1/4 cup sliced green onions (4 med)
1 Large cucumber, cut in half lengthwise, sliced
½ or 1 cup of red pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley


Dressing
3/4 cup reduced- fat mayo or salad dressing****
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper


1) Cook Pasta as directed on package. Drain; rinse with cold water to cool. Drain well
2) Meanwhile, in large bowl, mix remaining salad ingredients.
In small bowl mix dressing ingredients until well blended
3) Gently stir cooled cooked pasta into salad. Pour dressing over salad; stir gently to coat. Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate until serving time. Top with Parmesan Cheese.

* There is usually plenty of dressing so I just cook the whole bag of pasta. I don't use it all in the salad, I just eyeball it.
**I think cubed ham is kinda gross. Turkey Pepperoni is delicious in the salad. Chicken would be good too.
***I use light Italian dressing

This is delicious when served right away but, tastes even better the next day.