Pepperoni Pasta Salad

There are a million ways to make pasta salad. I've kinda taken what I like and created my own, and my family LOVES this combination. It doesn't last for long at my house when I make it. I don't ever measure, I just add whatever looks like a good amount.

Here are my ingredients:

• Rotelle (spiral) pasta (I usually use 1 bag/box for our family)


• Pepperoni, cut into fourths


• Mozarella cheese, cut into 1" cubes


• Black olives, sliced


• Tomatoes, cut into small wedges (or you could use sun dried tomatoes)


• Newman's Own brand salad dressing-Family Recipe

Cook pasta according to package directions. Prepare the other ingredients while the noodles are boiling. Strain the noodles and rinse them with cold water. In a large bowl, toss the pasta with the rest of the ingredients, including the dressing. Just put what you think looks/tastes good (I don't like mine dry, so I use most or all of the bottle of dressing). Chill in the refigerator for a couple hours before serving.

Lemon-Basil Chicken Pasta Salad

I tried this new recipe tonight, and apparently my step-daughter was raving about it her mom, so I was asked to post it for her ;) It came from Betty Crocker, but I made a few changes to it.

What You Need:

• 2 cups uncooked rotini or rotelle (spiral) pasta


• 10 asparagus stalks (about 8 oz)


• 1 clove garlic (I use the fresh minced garlic in the jar)


• 5 oz. chicken or turkey


• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves


• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese


• 1/4 cup olive oil or vegetable oil


• 1 TB grated lemon peel

Boil your pasta. While your noodles are boiling, prepare your asparagus by breaking off the tough ends, then wash. Cut asparagus into 1" pieces to measure 2 cups. Add asparagus to the pasta during the last 2 to 3 minutes of cooking.

Peel and finely chop the garlic (if you're using fresh garlic). Cut the chicken into 1/2" cubes to measure about 2 cups. Tear basil leaves lengthwise into narrow strips.

Place strainer in the sink. Pour pasta and asparagus in the strainer to drain. Rinse with cold water; drain.

In a large bowl, toss pasta, asparagus and chicken. Stir in garlic, basil, cheese, oil and lemon peel. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 hour or until chilled.

Now...confession...I really don't measure anything. I kind of estimate and it turns out just fine. Also, I thought it was a little bland with just olive oil. So I added a little of my favorite dressing, which happened to be "Newman's Own-Family Recipe".

Thai Beef Salad

Another recipe from a diabetic cookbook. Although it's just because it's low carb, not that it's specifically "diabetic". It was pretty tasty!

• 1/2 beef flank steak (about 8 oz)


• 1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce


• 2 jalapeno peppers, finely chopped (I de-seed mine to make it less spicey)


• 2 TB packed brown sugar


• 1 clove garlic, minced


• 1/2 cup lime juice


• 6 green onions, thinly sliced


• 4 carrots, diagonally cut into thin slices


• 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro


• 4 romaine lettuce leaves

Place flank steak in a ziploc bag. Combine soy sauce, jalapenos, brown sugar and garlic in small bowl; mix well. Pour mixture over flank steak.

Close bag securely; turn to coat steak. Marinate in refrigerator at least 2 hours.

Preheat broiler. Drain steak; discard marinade. Place steak on rack of broiler pan. Broil 4 inches from heat 13-18 minutes, depending on desired doneness. Keep an eye on it-mine cooked a little faster and was slightly on the dry side the first time I tried this. Turn it once throughout the cooking. Remove from heat, let stand 15 minutes.

Thinly slice steak across grain. Toss with lime juice, green onions, carrots and cilantro in large bowl. Serve salad immediately on lettuce leaves.

It says it makes 4 servings. Again, these are small servings. So if you have a big appetite you might want to consider this enough for 2 or 3 instead of 4.

Sesame Chicken Salad Wonton Cups

These make a great appetizer! And they're low carb with only 12 grams per 2 filled wonton cups. You will need:

• 20 (3 inch) wonton wrappers


• nonstick cooking spray


• 1 TB sesame seeds


• 2 cups water


• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 8 oz)


• 1 cup fresh green beans, cut diagonally into 1/2 inch pieces


• 1/4 cup reduced fat mayonnaise


• 1 TB chopped fresh cilantro (optional, but it makes it good!)


• 2 tsp honey


• 1 tsp reduced sodium soy sauce


• 1/8 tsp ground red pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Spray mini muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. Press 1 wonton wrapper into each muffin cup; spray with cooking spray. Bake 8-10 mins or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack before filling.

Place sesame seeds in shallow baking pan. Bake 5 minutes or until lightly toasted, stirring occassionally. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in medium saucepan. Add chicken. Reduce heat to low. Cover; simmer 10 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center, adding green beans after 7 mins. Drain.

Finely chop chicken. Place in medium bowl. Add green beans and remaining ingredients; mix lightly. Spoon lightly rounded tablespoonfuls of chicken mixture into each wonton cup.

Shrimp and Garlic-Parmesan Grits

I got this from a diabetic cookbook. I've never had grits before, so I was a little uneasy about trying them. But it was a really good recipe that even my picky eaters liked (well...all but Aubrey. She gags on shrimp, lol).

Grits:

• 2 1/4 cups water


• 1/2 cup instand grits


• 2 TB milk


• 2 TB margarine or butter


• 1/4 tsp garlic powder


• 1/4 tsp salt


• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Shrimp:

• 1 tsp dried oregano


• 1/2 tsp smoke paprika


• 1/2 tsp dried basil


• 1/8 to 1/4 tsp ground red pepper (optional)


• 1/2 tsp salt


• 1/4-1/2 tsp black pepper


• 1 TB extra-virgin olive oil


• 8 ounces peeled raw shrimp


• 3/4 cup chopped green onion


• lemon wedges (optional)

Bring water to a rolling boil in medium saucepan over high hear. Gradually stir in grits, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 9 minutes or until thickened, stirring occassionally. (this is a longer cooking time than directed on most packages, because a thicker consistency is desired at this point). Set grits aside and keep warm.

Meanwhile, combine oregano, paprika, basil, ground red pepper, if desired, salt and black pepper in a small bowl. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add shrimp, sprinkle with oregano mixture and cook 4 minutes or until shripm are pink and opaque, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, stir in green onions and cover to keep warm.

Whisk in milk with grits, then add margarine, garlice powder and 1/4 tsp salt. Place on serving plate, sprinkle evenly with paremesan cheese and top with shrimp mixture. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

It says that it makes 4 servings...this wasn't very much for our family of 5 (counting the 2 little kids as one person). Next time I will double it!

Low Carb Enchiladas

I've never been a huge enchilada fan. But with my diabetic diet, I get really bored of the same meals. A friend passed on this low carb recipe for enchiladas and it was really good. In fact, probably my favorite enchilada recipe that I've made! Ingredients:

• 1 can shredded/cubed chicken, or you can boil and shred your own chicken (which is what I did)


• 1 1/4 cups sour cream


• 2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese


• 2 1/2 cups monterey jack cheese


• 1 large can Las Palmas Green Enchilada Sauce (you can use whatever brand you like)


• 10 low carb tortillas (if you're not worried about your carbs, just use regular tortillas, but they taste perfectly fine)


• 1 medium can sliced olives (optional)

In a medium bowl, mix together chicken and sour cream and set aside. In a 9 by 12 pan, add enough of the enchilada sauce to cover the bottom of the pan. Warm the remaining sauce in a medium frying pan. Dip half (5) of the tortillas in the warm sauce and layer the bottom of the pan, covering the bottom. Add the chicken mixture on top of the tortillas and spread out evenly. Sprinkle half of the cheeses on the chicken mixture. Then dip the other half of the tortillas in the warmed sauce and place on top of the chicken mixture. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of the tortillas. You can pour the rest of the sauce on top if you want...I found it made them a little soggy though. Cover and bake for 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees, until the cheese bubbles.

Zucchini Tomato Medley

This also came from the "Meals in Minutes" cookbook I got from my grandma. It was easy and really good. You wouldn't think something as simple as tomatoes and zucchini would be so tasty, but it was the onion and basil I think that made it. You will need:

• 2 TB margarine or butter


• 1/3 cup chopped onion


• 3 medium zucchini, sliced


• 2 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges


• 1/2 tsp dried basil leaves or 1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh basil (I prefer fresh, gives it a good flavor!)


• 1/2 tsp salt


• 1/8 tsp pepper

Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add onion and zucchini; cook and stir over medium heat until crisp tender.

Add remaining ingredients; cook until tomatoes are thoroughly heated.

Note: It's another one of those recipes that you don't really need to measure. I just seasoned to tasted with the salt, pepper and basil. Surprisingly, my kids ate it!