Italian Orange Salad

Reagan and I used to have this tradition where we ate pizza every Sunday night. Be it frozen, homemade, carryout - we ate pizza. After I had to go gluten free, I spent my Sunday nights pretending to like the flatbread(ish) pizza that I had to eat while Reagan ate something delicious.

The other day I remembered this Italian Orange Salad recipe and decided to "surprise" (ha!) Reagan with it on a Sunday night. (My reasoning is that it has pepperonis. That's pretty solid, right?)

Italian Orange Salad
serves 4

For salad:
1 small head of lettuce (or a bagged lettuce of your choice)
1/2 head curly lettuce
1 large can mandarin oranges
1/2 red onion, sliced
Pepperonis
1 1/2 tsp. butter
1/3 cup walnut halves
1/4 tsp. salt

For dressing:
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. minced onion
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. celery seeds

To make walnut croutons, melt 1 1/2 tsp. butter in skillet.  Add 1/4 tsp. salt. Add 1/3 cup walnut halves and brown over medium heat, stirring constantly.

Combine all the dressing ingredients and shake well.  Assemble the salad and enjoy!

After this dinner, Reagan suggested we change our tradition to salads on Sunday night. I think that was the I'm-taking-three-finals-in-three-days-and-I'm-delirious-from-studying voice talking!

P.S. If you are ever in the mood for whipping up a homemade pizza, I highly recommend this recipe. Or, if you are really brave and want to try a creative salad, give this Southwestern Chicken and Spaghetti Squash Salad recipe a try! Pin It

Green Chile Stew

Hello there! It has been forever since I last blogged! My lack of time is due to many projects at work, a busy law student husband, and the holidays being right around the corner (ahhhhh!!)

It's officially December, and it's still 75 degrees outside. However, as previously stated, that doesn't stop me from making cold weather foods. Enter - green chile stew. I grew up in New Mexico where green chile is put on everything. Cheeseburgers. Casseroles. Soup. You name it. I went to college and realized that is not the case in central Texas. "What do you mean you don't have a green chile cheeseburger??"

Moving on.

This recipe came from none other than my mom (don't most good recipes start that way?), and it's a favorite in our house.

Green Chile Stew
Serves 8

Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 lb. sirloin steak, cubed
2 onions, chopped
1 cup red wine
8 cups water
2 carrots, diced
2 potatoes, diced
1/2 cup green chile (or more if you prefer)
1 can beef stock
1 1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon coriander
2 cups salsa

Saute steak and onions in oil for 5 minutes.  Add wine and water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Add carrots, potatoes, green chile, beef stock, cumin, coriander, and salsa. Simmer for 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with sour cream, cheese and tortillas.

Also, the countdown to Christmas is on! Does anybody else feel like the fall flew by? Reagan informed me this afternoon it was incredibly slooooow for him. That's the life of a law student, I suppose.

P.S. Can I get a sic 'em for the awesome way Baylor ended the season?? Pin It