This has to be one of my favorite salads to make when we are barbecuing over the summer.  It’s a classic salad that you probably have seen more than once on a salad bar…but homemade is so much better!  My niece was over this weekend and complimented how fresh it tasted, the green beans had that slight crunch and the dressing was tangy and sweet.  I like to add Vidalia onions for a little extra crunch, especially when they are in season.

I originally started making this recipe when I first started blogging a couple of summers ago after discovering it on Mixed Salad Annie.  I tweaked it a bit by using apple cider vinegar and adding a good amount of sliced Vidalias.  Leftovers are awesome because you can continue to use the dressing along with the beans by adding it to a nice green salad.  And bonus, this salad is super portable so go ahead and take it to your next summer get together.  Your friends will love it!

Three-Bean and Vidalia Onion Salad

Recipe inspired by Mixed Salad Annie

(printable recipe)

1 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 medium cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press (or minced)
1 teaspoon salt
Ground black pepper
1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans, cut into 1-inch-long pieces
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 can red kidney beans , rinsed and drained
1 large Vidalia onion, thinly sliced

Heat vinegar, sugar, oil, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste in small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and cool to room temperature.

Steam green beans in water with 1 tablespoon salt added to it; cook until crisp-tender, about 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, fill medium bowl with ice water. When beans are done, immediately plunge into ice water to stop cooking process; let sit until chilled, about 2 minutes. Drain well.

Add green beans, garbanzo beans, kidney beans and onions to vinegar mixture; toss well to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight (or for a few hours) to let flavors meld. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving. (Salad can be covered and refrigerated up to 4 days.)

(Disclosure: I’m excited that I’ve entered into a paid, formal partnership with Bush’s Beans but the post above isn’t a part of that agreement.  I just love the recipe. )

And though I just got back from a nice long vacation in Marco Island, FL with the fam…I’ll be soon off again on another adventure.  I’ll be attending The Women in Social Media Conference (aka EVO ’10) in Park City, Utah later this week with the great people at Bush’s Beans and other bloggers.  Bush’s Beans is sponsoring the event’s closing dinner and ceremonies and guess who’s recipe will be sampled at the western-themed dinner?  That’s right…yours truly! (will be sharing that recipe with you when I get back!)  I’m really excited and can’t wait to meet face to face with other bloggers…not to mention connect with other social media junkies like myself!  I’ve got a few friends lined up to drop in while I’m at the event…keep up with me and follow my experience “real time” on Facebook and Twitter!

I’ve been hooked on this corn salad lately.  It goes so well as a side or topping to any of your favorite Mexican or even barbecue dishes and it’s fairly simple to put together.  It’s basically a copycat recipe of Chipotle’s corn salsa but I like to bulk up on the extra veggies and add crumbled queso fresco (which I get at Costco but have seen at Publix too, queso blanco is also a good sub).  I’m a huge fan of cilantro and lime so I add a ton of it, and as you can see in the photo I’m a little lazy about chopping the cilantro… I usually just roughly tear it and add it and the cheese to the salad right before I serving.

Great for a potluck summer barbecue…or to add to your Cinco de Mayo menu!  Enjoy!

Chipotle’s Corn Salsa
Recipe adapted from The Secret Recipe Blog

(printable recipe)

6 ears of fresh corn (or about 3 cups of frozen corn kernels)
2-3 poblanos, roasted and chopped (see directions)
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 jalapenos, chopped
handful of cilantro, roughly chopped or torn
queso fresco, crumbled
juice from 1-2 limes
salt and black pepper, to taste

Roast poblanos on grill or in 425 degree oven turning often until skin is charred. Place in a bowl with lid or covered in saran wrap for about 10 minutes (this helps with removing the skin). Once peppers have cooled, gently remove skin, seeds and stem and chop.

Cook corn in boiling water for about 5-8 minutes. Carefully cut kernels off stems and add to salad bowl. If you want a roasted corn, cook in water first, then throw onto hot grill for a few minutes to char skin.

Combine corn, chopped roasted poblanos, chopped onion and jalapenos into a bowl. Add lime juice, salt and pepper to taste. Right before serving add cilantro and queso fresco and toss gently to combine.

Don’t you love recipes with a short ingredient list?  Well that’s this month’s Virtual Supper Club’s theme…5 Ingredients or less, chosen by Jamie of Mom’s Cooking Club.  I loved the idea…and loved all the dishes everyone chose to bring to the table.

My dish was a very simple side.  The kind of side you can make any weeknight without too much fuss.  The recipe calls for chili oil, which I have had in the past…but didn’t this time.  No problem…just toss in some red pepper flakes into your oil while you saute your garlic.  The chili will infuse into the oil and add just enough flavor and heat.

Here’s what else was on the menu this month…enjoy!

For starters…Chili Lime Shrimp from Shelby

Jamie brought the main dish…Sherried Pineapple Pork Tenderloin

On the Side…Spinach with Chili Oil (click for recipe)

For Dessert…Val treated us with Strawberries with Balsamic Vinegar

On a side note…wanted to share with you my first interview featured on a local website Pulse of Central Florida! Thanks for the featuring the article Ashley!

I debated posting this recipe, since it’s such a simple one…but it’s one of those recipes that is so good that I had to share “just in case” any of you have never tried roasted broccoli.  Since I did get a couple of emails asking how to roast broccoli, I decided that it was definitely a “blog-worthy” recipe.  So simple…so good.  If you are trying to make things a little more exciting in the veggie department, please try this one.

And I have to add that this recipe is definitely kid friendly…my kids gobble up their broccoli when I make it for them like this.

I would highly recommend using a course salt and fresh ground pepper with this recipe.  Enjoy!

Roasted Broccoli
Recipe from Aggie’s Kitchen

(Printable Recipe)

1 head broccoli, cut in florets
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
sea salt or kosher salt
fresh ground pepper
1-2 garlic cloves, minced (optional)
red pepper flakes (optional)

Toss broccoli florets with a little olive oil, salt and pepper (and some chopped garlic or red pepper flakes if you like). Roast in 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until slightly crisped and browned.

I have a couple of new favorite veggie dishes to share…

One of them, the Roasted Carrots, I’ve made many times.  There’s not much to this recipe, it can be found in The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook and if you’ve roasted vegetables before then you really don’t need to follow anything in writing to cook these up.  If you haven’t noticed, I am a huge fan of roasted vegetables.  Cooking them this way really brings out some natural flavors and sweetness and you gotta love the slightly crisp texture you get when you roast them just right.

Roasted Carrots
Recipe from Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook and Food Network

12 carrots
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill or parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

If the carrots are thick, cut them in half lengthwise; if not, leave whole. Slice the carrots diagonally in 1 1/2-inch-thick slices. (The carrots will shrink while cooking so make the slices big.) Toss them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Transfer to a sheet pan in 1 layer and roast in the oven for 20 minutes, until browned and tender.

Toss the carrots with minced dill or parsley, season to taste, and serve.

Now my newest favorite veggie dish is Bobby Flay’s Roasted Green Beans with Shallots and Almonds…his original recipe calls for hazelnuts instead of almonds, but I had some trouble finding hazelnuts so decided sliced almonds would work just fine.  What I loved about these green beans is not only were they super easy and roasted, but the lemon zest that is added with the almonds as a topping.  The lemon really added a burst of flavor for me that I almost wasn’t expecting.  The shallots cooked along with the green beans and added a subtle sweet onion flavor to the slightly crisp beans.  This was so easy and such a nice way to change up your everyday green beans.  Try it…you’ll like it!

Roasted Green Beans with Shallots and Almonds
Recipe adapted from Bobby Flay, Food Network

1 pound green beans, trimmed
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 shallots, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 tablespoon finely chopped lemon zest
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Toss the green beans in a large baking dish with the oil and shallots and season with salt and pepper. Roast until just cooked through and golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes. Combine the hazelnuts, zest, and parsley in a small bowl. Transfer green beans to a platter and sprinkle with the almond mixture.

Blogger Tip…

Now a few people have asked me how I set up my Printable Recipe links…I’ll tell ya, it’s taken me some time to finally figure this one out myself, and I will have to credit my husband on this one.  He introduced me to Google Docs, which according to Wikipedia is:

Google Docs is a free, Web-based word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, and form application offered by Google. It allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating in real-time with other users.

Fancy huh?

What you would do to get started is first get yourself a Google account if you don’t already have one.  Once you have access to Google docs it’s pretty easy to go from there.  You should be able to easily get to it from any Google page, you should see the word Documents at the top left corner on the page or listed under the “more” category.  Here are the steps I take to get my Printable Recipes links on my blog:

1.  Create New (drop down) Document

2. Copy and paste your recipe into the document.  Edit as you like.

3. Save

4. Share (drop down) – Publish as web page

5. Share (drop down) – Get the link to share

6. Copy/Paste that link into your blog post as your “Printable Recipe”

There you have it!  I’m amazed at how much there is to learn in regards to blogging and website upkeep…it kinda hurts my brain sometimes. 

Hope this helps some of you!