Tag: celery

Mother’s Day Luncheon

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The older I get, the more that I realize that all of those times that Mama said: “don’t spend your money on me,” she meant it. She wanted then what she still wants, time spent together. Time is something we can never get back, and the older my mama gets, time becomes more precious to me.

In comparison to many families today, my mother’s family was a big one. She had six brothers and sisters.  Today, my mother and her sister are the only siblings that remain. I decided that my mama would like nothing better than a little family time for Mother’s Day. So on a recent visit, I invited my aunt and a couple of cousins to a luncheon at mama’s house.  I kept the menu simple with homemade chicken salad, pasta salad made with fresh vegetables and purchased Italian dressing, cucumber sandwiches, purchased cheese straws, and I bought a fruit tray, cut up and ready to eat and made a poppy seed vinaigrette dressing.  The table was elegantly set with mama’s best china and crystal and the memories we made are priceless.

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As you struggle to come up with a gift for mom this Sunday, keep in mind that time spent with you is something she will always treasure!

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Simple Pasta Salad
 
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Ingredients
  • 1 lb. pasta
  • 2 c. cherry tomatoes, cut in half
  • ¾ c. sliced black olives
  • sliced red onion
  • crumbled feta cheese
  • chopped bell pepper
  • 1 to 1½ c. Italian dressing
Instructions
  1. Cook pasta according to package directions.
  2. Toss pasta, cherry tomatoes, olives, red onion, feta cheese, and bell pepper with Italian dressing.
  3. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.
Notes
You may need to add a little more Italian dressing to salad just before serving.

 
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Fruit Salad with Vinaigrette Dressing
 
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Ingredients
  • 4 cups fresh fruit
  • 2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp. sugar
  • ¼ tsp. poppy seeds
Instructions
  1. Wash and cut up fruit, set aside. In a small bowl whisk vinegar, oil, sugar and poppy seeds. Pour over fruit an gently toss. Serve immediately.

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Cucumber Sandwiches
 
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Ingredients
  • 12 oz. cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cucumber, peeled & seeds removed
  • 1 medium onion
  • dash salt
  • dash hot sauce
  • mayonnaise on bread, if desired
Instructions
  1. Grate cucumber and onion and squeeze dry. (I do this using a clean dish towel. Put in the center of a towel then roll towel and twist.) Set aside.
  2. Blend cream cheese with an electric mixer. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Store in refrigerator for 24 hours.
  3. If using mayonnaise, spread on desired bread. Top with cucumber spread and another slice of bread.

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Perfect Chicken Salad
 
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Ingredients
  • 4 lg. chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
  • 1 to 2 c. mayonnaise, depending on how you like it
  • ½ to ¾ c. chopped celery
  • 1 tbsp. yellow mustard
  • ¼ tsp. poppy seeds
  • ½ tsp. salt
Instructions
  1. Mix shredded chicken, mayonnaise, celery, mustard, poppy seeds, and salt in a large bowl and refrigerate.

 

Ultimate Tomato Soup and Over-the-Top Grilled Cheese Sandwich

ultimate tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich

Sometimes the only thing that will satisfy the stomach and the soul is comfort food. There’s just something about creamy mac and cheese, delicious chicken and dumplings, melty chocolate chip cookies, or this ultimate homemade tomato soup with over-the-top grilled cheese sandwiches. This combination has always been a favorite of mine. It’s like a warm hug and especially good when the weather turns chilly.
I start my tomato soup as I do marinara sauce, with onions, garlic, carrots, and celery. After adding tomatoes and simmering for a while, I then blend it until smooth and add a can of diced tomatoes for a few small chunks of tomato scattered throughout the soup.

The name of this grilled cheese could not be more fitting. It is over-the-top good! However, you can change it up to your liking. I usually start with good, fresh bread. Then I add a creamy cheese, like Monterey Jack or Brie, and a sharp cheese, like Cheddar, topped off with goat cheese crumbles. As if that wasn’t enough, I add sliced onion and tomato, with some arugula, basil, or spinach. Grilled to perfection in a skillet or Panini press its divine when dipped into a delicious bowl of tomato soup!

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Ultimate Tomato Soup
 
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Ingredients
  • 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 celery stalk, chopped
  • 1 carrot, chopped
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 (28-oz.) can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 (28-oz.) can diced tomatoes
  • 1 (14.5-oz.) can diced tomatoes
  • 1 (14.5-oz.) can chicken broth
Instructions
  1. Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add onions and garlic and cook about 10 minutes over medium heat, until onions are translucent. Add celery, carrot, salt, and pepper and cook until soft. Add bay leaf, crushed tomatoes, 28-oz. can diced tomatoes and bring to a boil, uncovered. Lower temperature and simmer, uncovered, for about 1 hour.
  2. Remove bay leaf and puree in a blender, in batches. Pour the pureed tomato soup into the Dutch oven and add the 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes and chicken broth. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if desired. Simmer until heated through.

Over-the-Top Grilled Cheese Sandwich
 
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Ingredients
  • Good bread
  • Monterey Jack cheese, sliced
  • Sharp Cheddar cheese, sliced
  • Goat cheese, crumbled
  • Arugula leaves
  • Onion, thinly sliced
  • Roma Tomato, thinly sliced
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Place the Monterey Jack cheese on one side of the bread. Add arugula leaves, onion, tomato, salt and pepper. Crumble goat cheese over top and then add Cheddar cheese. Top with second slice of bread and grill in a buttered skillet or a Panini press until the cheese has melted and the bread is lightly browned.

 

Perfect Chicken Salad

Great Chicken Salad

All Southerners should have a good chicken salad in their recipe box. After all, would any of us be married or have babies without it? It has always been a staple among my family and friends at any wedding or baby shower.

I have been making this chicken salad recipe for as long as I can remember. Occasionally, I will try something different, but this is always my favorite and the one I always return to.

I like to keep my chicken salad simple, and this is perfect, with only six ingredients. I don’t care for relish, onions, pecans, or grapes like so many chicken salads have.

My favorite way to cook tender chicken for chicken salad is in my crockpot. I cook my chicken in the crockpot at night while sleeping. Then, in the morning, I remove it to a plate to cool slightly before chopping or shredding.

This is a good base recipe, but if you like the extra fancy stuff, add your Ranch dressing mix, bacon, shredded cheese, grapes, crushed pineapple, apples, or nuts to make this suit your taste.

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Perfect Chicken Salad

Course Salad
Author Amye Melton

Ingredients

  • 4 chicken breasts cooked and chopped or shredded
  • 1 to 2 cups mayonnaise to taste
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup chopped celery
  • 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
  • 1/4 teaspoon poppy seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • In a large bowl mix the chopped chicken, mayonnaise, celery, mustard, poppy seeds and salt.
  • Serve right away or refrigerate.