Crunchy-licious Waldorf Salad!

Yeah! It’s Friday! Even better, my husband has the day off (or so he says). My husband works very looooong hours, but thankfully we still recognize each other when we see each other. It will be nice to tackle some of the chores waiting in the queue to finally get done, as well as get in some quality play time. Now, before you go thinking that I tax him with chores on his day off, the main thing that needs to get done is building the shed that HE wants.

After working in the hot sun that has at long last arrived in our neck of the woods, he’ll need a cool refreshing salad to go along with his lunch. Enter in the Waldorf Salad! Have you ever had a Waldorf Salad? Ooooh, you are in for a real treat with this one. There are many, many versions of this salad floating around including making some with mayo, using grapes, adding onion, etc. I like something much different, and this one with it’s cool sour cream and honey dressing is my all time favorite.

It’s so simple, yet is always a bit hit. This recipe prepares two servings, and is very easily multiplied to serve more. Talk about easy to prepare .... it’s a total snap!

Waldorf Salad (Makes 2 servings but is easily doubled, tripled, quadrupled, etc.!)

1 large crisp apple, chopped or sliced into bite sized pieces. Leave the skin on. (I used a Fugi, but use whatever you’ve got)
¼ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon, heaping of honey
1 teaspoon lemon juice
½ - 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts
1/3 cup sliced celeryIn a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, honey, lemon juice, and zest. Stir in the apple, walnuts, and celery. Serve immediately, or put in the fridge for up to two days. You can, if you’d like, stir in some raisins, craisins, or slice grapes. I prefer to add either raisins or craisins, as I like the contrast of the crunchy apple with chewiness of the raisins/craisins. Oh, and of course, this is gluten free!

On another note, my hubby celebrated his 48th birthday this week.Isn’t this gift box a total hoot? It’s a pop up box that you place the gift inside, and then seal it up. The recipient has pull tabs that they use to open the box. It’s from Hallmark and we loved it!My kids always make cards. I love what they put together. What about you? Do you like homemade cards or store bought ones? Some of the store bought ones are a hysterical!, but I love the stuff the kidlin’s make, too. For the cake, my husband said he wanted a chocolate cake, and so my youngest daughter really, really, REALLY wanted to decorate his cake. Did I mention that she wanted to decorate his cake? REALLY wanted to? This was her first time decorating (beyond spreading frosting), and I gave her free reign to do whatever she wanted. I showed her how to use the frosting tip to write with, and then left her alone.She called for me a short time later, her face fallen, moaning that her lettering looked bad, that she didn’t like how it turned out, and how could we fix it. I took one look at her cake and told her that I absolutely loved it and so would her daddy. Assuring her that her cake with its homemade look would mean wayyyyy more to her dad than anything that a store bought baker could produce, her frown turned upside down, and we set out the cake. When her dad came home and saw the cake, he made a big deal out of how much it meant to him that she decorated it herself. Ah, times like that make me remember why I fell in love with that man!

Happy Fourth of July wishes to you all, and best wishes that you all have a lovely and safe holiday weekend!

Smooth Move - Strawberry Orange Smoothies

Hello, my blogging friends! Do you like smoothies? I’m relatively new to the world of smoothies, yet my kids LOVE them. No sense in going to one of those smoothie places and paying a small fortune for one when you can create your own delicious lip smacking fruit beverage at home.

That’s all a smoothie is, you know ... a fruity drink. Now, I know that some of the smoothie places would offer to add bee pollen or wheat grass or vitamins or whatever. Why try to boost fruit? It’s really good for you just as it is.

In my quest to make a smooth move for my kidlin’s, I turned to the internet for recipe guidance. Oh, lordy, there’s only 435 gazillion to choose from. There're the ones that are just made from fruit and ice. There’s fruit and milk. There’s fruit and juice. There’s fruit and ice-cream. There’s fruit and yogurt. Oh, and you can use fresh fruit, frozen fruit, or any combo thereof. Basically, I think just about anything mixed with fruit that you drink can be called a smoothie! These puppies are very filling, too. They are a great treat, and very refreshing.

This one is a basic recipe. Feel free to mix it up, add different fruit, use different juice, whatever ... it will be good! I promise! This will make 4 medium sized servings.

3 cups ripe, fresh strawberries
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt (can use another flavor or plain)
2 cups ice

In a blender that can crush ice, combine all ingredients. Blend until ice is crushed and mixture is smooth. It took about 10-15 seconds in my blender.


Pour and serve! Make yummy noises! I found this one to be very “tropical” in flavoring. For my next one, I think I’ll add pineapple and see how that tastes. I’m not much of a drinker, but I could totally see adding rum to a smoothie to create a cocktail type drink. Oh, this is obviously gluten free, too! What’s your favorite smoothie flavor?

Walking on Sunshine - Moroccan Orange Salad!

What are your thoughts about the food pyramid? You know what I’m referring to; that triangle shaped guide instructing us to eat X many veggies and X much protein, etc. per day. There are other guides, too. How about the one that is a divided plate indicating how much of your plate should be consumed by this or that food group? The divided plate one actually makes sense to me, and I subconsciously call upon it when I am serving my family.

One thing that I’m kind of, um, neurotic about is that my kids eat fresh fruit every day. Do you have any, shall we say, issues like that? Years ago, I told my hubbyman that the kids will snack on whatever is most conveniently available. If junk food is out, I contended, it would get eaten ... not because it was desired, but rather because it was easy to get. I didn't even want to start my snackers on that path, so began my quest for easy, accessible fruit. During the drizzly winter months, we rely heavily upon apples, bananas, grapes, and oranges. Come summer, our bounty explodes with bulging bowls of berries in all colors and varieties, and we experience magnificent melon mania until Fall. We eat 99.9% of all the fruit raw, and fresh fruit definitely has a foothold in making appearances at meal time, too. Oh we have the occasional potato chip and I, myself, have been known to crunch on a Frito, but for the most part, we want fruit.

It could have gone the other way, for me at least. When I was a kid growing up in Indiana, our annual school fundraiser was to sell ...wait for it, wait for it ... are you ready .... we had to sell crates of oranges and grapefruits. Good Lord, whose idea was that? Out of all the fundraisers on the planet, why oh why did they choose that? Yep, while other schools were out selling wrapping paper or popcorn or whatever, my school insisted on selling cases of oranges and grapefruits. (Okay, stop laughing.) The crates would be delivered in the throes of winter, supposedly bringing a bit of sunshine to all the folks trudging around in 3 feet of snow. Uh, yeah. Right. (Okay, you can join me in a major eye roll here.) I DREADED this every year. First off, I was such a shy little sprite, the thought of going around selling stuff was just wwwaaayyy outside the box for my little introverted persona. Then there was also the fact that those crates were unbelievably heavy and there was no way my little elf self would be able to lug those things around especially with 3 feet of snow. Thankfully for me, my parents never pushed me into childhood sales, and so I was spared having to hit the street and sell, sell, sell. Also, thankfully, my love of citrus was not deterred by the annual trama selling fest.

Despite all of that, now that I live in an area where I don’t feel sunshine on my face for extended periods, I find myself wanting some citrus sunshine during the winter. Popping a juicy orange segment into my mouth does bring a smile to my face, and perks me up. Today’s salad is a perfect example. Moroccan Orange Salad is very lovely and delightfully refreshing. The photos just don’t do it justice. It’s warm sunny orange color really perks up the plate, and it pairs perfectly with the heavier foods typically consumed during winter. Light and refreshing, bursting with dates, pistachios, and toasted almonds, it is loaded with those friends we hear so much about these days ... anti-oxidants. Give it a try the next time you serve steak, or kebobs, or even roast chicken. Plan your pyramid or plate to have meat, veggies, carbo’s, and Moroccan Fruit Salad. It’s sure to please the grown ups and kids alike.

Here’s all you need:

4-6 seedless oranges
¼ cup orange juice
¼ cup dates – chopped
2 T toasted almond slivers
½ teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon powdered sugar, divided

Peel the oranges taking care to remove all of the white pith. I used a knife.Check out the thickness of the pith! What a rip off! I thought I was buying giant oranges; turns out I was just buying pith. Slice the oranges into rounds, and place into a large bowl. Be on the lookout for little fingers and big ones, too, sneaking orange segments as you prepare this. Save all the juice that may have squeezed out during the peeling process. Add in the chopped dates, cinnamon, juice, and ½ of the powdered sugar. Gently toss to combine.You can serve immediately or put in the fridge to serve later. At serving time, sprinkle with the remaining powdered sugar if desired.Try a bite ... Mmmm ... start humming the song “Walking on Sunshine”. Do you like pistachios? I do.Oh yeah, look at all those little sunshine juice cells just waiting to burst out! The combo of cinnamon and orange flavor is amazingly good and very refreshing. The dates and the almonds add great texture as well as lend their yummilicious flavors. And the colors ... wow! This salad would be great all year long. And, like many of the recipes at It’s All Gouda, this is gluten free, all the way, baby!

Salmon: It's not just for Grizzlies ...

... but your family might snarl like one over the last piece of salmon prepared in this recipe! Here in the beautiful and bountiful Pacific Northwest, I have easy access to both fresh and smoked varieties. Grilled salmon is a frequent visitor to our table, and was front and center on our menu tonight. Our dining experience included Grilled Salmon with Onion Crispy Strips, Baked Tater Wedges, and Honey Fruit Salad. All yummy and all gluten free.

After having such great success a couple days ago with the dry rub used on the pulled pork, I got to wondering if such a rub would work on salmon, too. I've prepared salmon a million different ways, make that a zillion different ways (ok, that's an exaggeration -- but if you are what you eat, I can expect to grow gills soon), yet I've not actually put a dry rub on one and allowed it to cure for hours. So, after searching the Internet, I found a rub on the Family Fun site that sounded pretty good. I tweaked it just a little bit, and the results were pretty darn tasty.

To make this delectable salmon, you will need:

Enough salmon fillet(s) to feed your grizzlies, uh, I mean yourself and family.

Rub: 1 tbsp kosher salt, 1 tbsp brown sugar, 1 tbsp sugar, 1.5 tsp black pepper, 1.5 tsp celery seed, 1.5 tsp paprika, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp chili powder, couple shakes cumin.

Step 1: Combine the rub ingredients. Set aside a couple tsp's to use later on.
Step 2: Generously sprinkle the rub all over both sides of the fillet; really press it in with your hands.
Step 3: Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least a couple hours. (I did about 5 hours)
Step 4: Preheat gas grill on high.
Step 5: Remove salmon from the fridge, and rinse off the rub. Pat dry. Don't skip this step!
Step 6: Using the reserved rub, sprinkle a little bit on or just use salt/pepper or your favorite season salt. Lightly but completely coat the salmon with a little bit of olive oil. NOTE: At this point, I cut the fillets into squares. *Let's pause moment for those who never slice fillets.* Ok, for those of us who don't enjoy flipping entire fillets on the grill, go ahead and cut your fillets into palm size pieces. It makes serving a snap, and everyone feels like they are getting extra when they get two pieces. I assure you the salmon will not dry out. (Just check out the top photo!)
Step 7: Place salmon skin side down on super heated grill. Immediately turn the heat to med-low and CLOSE the grill lid. Let it sit for a full five minutes. Don't touch it. No peeking either!
Step 8: Open the lid, and with your handy dandy spatula, carefully flip the salmon over. Close the lid. Wait 3 more minutes. Open the lid again, and remove those beauties to a platter. Let them sit at least 5 more minutes before you serve them.

Step 9: Let your inner grizzly out and enjoy the feast.

NOTE: This could easily be done in the oven or stove top ... especially if you don't like grill marks on your food!

The Baked Tater Wedges were a snap. I used russets and sliced about 8 potatoes into 6-8 wedges each. Place the potatoes on a foil lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with season salt and pepper. I used Red Robin's brand of season salt and my cubs went wild over it. Bake in a preheated 400 oven for about 15 minutes, turn over the wedges, and put back in the over for about 15 more minutes. Keep an eye on them ... you're looking for golden brown not burnt. I was channeling Marjie and so I turned the broiler on for the last 5 minutes and got a real crispy golden brown lickety split.

The Honey Fruit Salad was a great compliment with the salmon. Simply slice up firm bananas, sweet or tart apples, blueberries, and strawberries. Er, um, you'll notice there are NO strawberries in my salad photo. You may recall my earlier post about the strawberry devouring debacle my grizzlies engaged in. Bottom line is I'm out of strawberries. Back to the salad ... drizzle with a couple generous swirls of honey and a splash of champagne vinegar. Toss gently and serve. If you don't have champagne vinegar, just use honey alone. There are some great desert wine dressings that you could make and serve with this, but my cubs were hungry and prowling the kitchen, so additional prep was not gonna happen.

The onion crispy strips were, I must say, outstanding. Like this entire meal, these puppies were gluten free, too. Thinly slice one sweet onion into half-rings (you could do whole rings, but I like half-zies). Place in a medium sized bowl and cover with 3 parts buttermilk and 1 part milk. Don't rush off to the store if you need buttermilk, you can just use regular milk. Cover and set in the fridge; I had them in there for about 2 hours, but I think 1 hour will do. When you are ready to make them, carefully heat up about 1 inch of oil in a heavy saute pan. I used my new cast iron skillet. Love that baby. In a pie tin, combine about 1 cup of gluten free all purpose flour with a couple teaspoons of corn starch, and a couple quick shakes of cayenne pepper. Remove the onions from the fridge, and drain them well. Working quickly, take a small handful of onions and toss them in the flour. Remove to a plate. Repeat until all the onions are coated. Now, carefully place small handfuls of onion strips in the oil. They should sizzle immediately. Adjust your heat up or down depending on the sizzle. You want the onions to have a strong, constant sizzle, but not a boiling sizzle nor a wimpy one. After you place the onions in the pan, stir them up a bit if they are clumped together. As they sizzle, occasionally flip them over so both sides are golden brown. With a slotted spoon or one of those special deep fryer slotted strainer gizmo's, remove the onions and place on a paper towel lined plate. Repeat with remaining onions. I used one onion and divided it into four or five batches. If your oil gets gunky, add a little more to the pan in between batches allowing time for it to heat up to be sizzle worthy. Oh, add a couple of grinds of sea salt on the crispy onions and you can call your grizzlies to the table to eat.