Simple Skillet Tacos - Happy Cinco de Mayo!

This morning while the boys were eating breakfast I told them today was Cinco de Mayo. They asked what it was and I told them it's the celebration of tacos. Keep in mind, I know that Cinco de Mayo is not a celebration of tacos but rather a celebration of the Mexican Army's victory against the French during the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. I told them that in honor of Cinco de Mayo I was making tacos for dinner and that they would be wearing sombreros and drinking out of margarita glasses. They were very excited about Cinco de Mayo - especially because they were just told we'd be celebrating the occasion with a taco feast. I chuckled when I left the house because my boys were so happy to think that Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of tacos!

Weellll, little did I know that all three boys had Spanish class in school today. It started with Zachary who had Spanish first. Señor W asked the class if they knew what Cinco de Mayo was.  Zachary raised his hand and said "My mom said that it was the celebration of eating tacos." Señor W replied with "I think your mom might be a little confused and went on to explain what it really was." Then Tyler had Spanish class. Señor W asked the class if they knew what Cinco de Mayo was. Before Tyler answered he thought to himself - this is great my mom just told me this morning what it was - so he excitedly raised his hand with the "ooh ooh ooh I know." So Señor W calls on him and Tyler says "It's the celebration of tacos!!!" Señor W replied "that's exactly what your twin brother said" and then proceeded to say that while today is a day many people celebrate by eating mexican foods Cinco de Mayo is not the celebration of the taco. Now it's Nate's turn for Spanish class. Señor W asks the class if they know what Cinco de Mayo is and Nate being the older brother and a little wiser knew it couldn't be to celebrate the taco so he raises his hand to answer. Señor W calls on Nate and says "I think I know what you're going to say." Nate says "It's a celebration of the Mexican heritage so today people will celebrate by eating Mexican foods like tacos and wearing Mexican clothes like the sombreros." Señor W responded by saying that's very close to what your brothers said earlier."

So the boys came home to tell me that I was wrong and that Cinco de Mayo wasn't the celebration of tacos, wearing sombreros and drinking out of margarita glasses. I had no idea the boys would have Spanish class today, and that the teacher would ask if they knew what Cico de Mayo was, and that each of my boys would answer the question with such vim and vigor! I thought how embarrassing for them but how embarrassing for ME! Sr. W thinks I have no clue what Cinco de Mayo is! He thinks I think it's only about eating tacos and drinking margaritas!!!!  Then I thought to myself  - Heck ya, that's exactly what Cinco de Mayo is all about! I'm proud that each of my boys stated that it's about the taco!  Because eating delicious mexican foods and drinking refreshing mexican drinks is surely what it's all about.

So to celebrate Cinco de Mayo in our house I made delicious skillet tacos. We also wore sombreros and drank milk out of margarita glasses! We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and had a really good laugh about what happened in Spanish class today! What I love most about skillet tacos is that its simple. All of the ingredients of the taco are heated in the skillet with the exception of the tortilla shells, lettuce and sour cream. I am a big fan of the taco bar concept, but honestly that involves a lot of bowls and a lot of mess. With my skillet taco recipe everything is in one pan, hence no mess and very little clean up. That works for me especially for a weeknight meal. This taco skillet recipe also goes well on a flour or corn tortilla, over lettuce or even served over a platter of nachos. So whether it's Cinco de Mayo or not, serve this simple, festive skillet taco dinner and your family will surely say mucho gracias!  Salute to tacos!

Add black beans, diced tomatoes and white rice to the
ground beef

Now add red onions, cilantro and lime juice 

Now add the grated cheddar cheese, stir and wait for the
cheese to melt

There you go…a one skillet taco meal!

Scoop a spoonful on a flour tortilla, a salad or tortilla chips.
Festive and delicious!

My three amigos!!!!

Simple Skillet Tacos (Click here to print)

Preparation and cook time: 20 minutes

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs ground beef or ground turkey
• 2 packages of taco seasoning, hot or mild (I used Ortega brand)
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup of cooked white or brown rice (I used 1 package of boil in a bag rice)
• 1 can black beans 
• 4 tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 fresh lime
• 2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 12 tortilla shells
• 1 cup shredded lettuce
• sour cream* optional
• hot sauce* optional

In a large skillet add ground beef and cook over medium heat. When the beef is no longer pink, strain the fat. Return beef to pan and continue to cook over low heat. Add the packages of taco seasoning and two cups of water and stir until well blended. Add the cooked rice, black beans, tomatoes, red onion and cilantro and stir until well mixed. Add the juice of a half of lime and stir. Add the cheddar cheese and stir. Let heat for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Add a scoop of taco mixture to a corn or flour tortilla and add sour cream, lettuce and hot sauce. Serve and enjoy.

Food Impressions;

Nate: "This is super good. I want two or three tacos." 

Tyler: "This is so good I could just eat the meat part." He ate two taco and then used the nacho chips to scoop up the cheesy beef."

Zachary: "I love this and it's fun celebrating the taco! I don't like this green stuff though." he didn't like that I added so much cilantro.

Andrea: This is one of those meals that is so easy to make and your family will LOVE!

Pork Tenderloin: 10 Reasons to Cook Pork, the Other White Meat

It never fails, my boys always call pork chicken. It doesn't matter if I say I'm making pork, it doesn't matter if I have a menu in front of them that says it's pork and it doesn't matter if I write "I made pork" across my forehead with a sharpie marker they would still say this is great chicken! I guess I don't blame them... pork is considered the other white meat ya know! Tonight I made a savory pork tenderloin with a shallot pepper rub and a side of pork gravy. Simply delicious!

Many people avoid pork because they consider it fattening or unhealthy. While some cuts of pork aren't the healthiest, some are... like pork tenderloin and loin chops. In fact, a lean piece of pork has the same amount of calories and fat grams as a piece of skinless boneless chicken breast. 

Honestly, our family loves all pork, including the not so healthy kind like bacon, ribs and pork butt (see my post on pulled pork butt ) My favorite by far is pork tenderloin and not just because it's healthy or tastes delicious, I love it for several reasons. In fact, I could easily name 10 reasons why I love pork tenderloin. So here are my reasons why:

1. It's moist, tender and delicious. My boys mistake it for chicken, like all of he time.
2. It's inexpensive. Especially if you buy a family pack from Wegmans. I know those family packs are ginormous so just freeze what you don't use and save yourself a few bucks.
3. It's quick cooking. Only 15-20 minutes per 1 pound tenderloin. You can't cook some things that quickly in the microwave.
4. It's healthy, low in fat, low in calories and it's an approved lean meat by the American Heart Association and Dr. Oz…how cool is that?
5. It's great anytime of the year. Serve it with mashed potatoes and cranberry compote in the winter or serve it with jasmine rice and mango salsa in the summer. 
6. It's easy to prepare. Put the whole loin in a large zip lock bag, add a little olive oil, citric juice, spices, herbs, salt n pepper, mix it around. That's it…5 minutes of prep work and you're done. Just as quick as toasting and buttering bread! 
7. It's versatile. Keep it whole, slice it, stuff it, cube it, skewer it, grill it, roast it, pan sear it, slow cook it... The versatility goes on or whatever strikes your mood.
8. It's good to serve hot, room temperature or even cold.
9. It's perfect to serve a crowd. If I'm entertaining 12 people it's easier cook 4 loins than it is cook 12 chicken breasts or hamburgers. Plus it only requires slicing...no buns, no condiments! 
10. It's goes well with any ethnicity of flavors, Cuban, Spanish, Italian, Asian, Mexican, Greek, French. 
11. I know I said 10 reasons but here's one more... Kids love it! Have them dip it in BBQ sauce, blue cheese or ketchup and they'll think they're eating chicken nuggets!

So there you have it, 11 reasons why I love pork tenderloin! Salute to pork tenderloin, the other white meat! 

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with a Shallot Pepper Rub (Click to print recipe)

Preparation and cook time: 25 minutes

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2  - 1 lb. pork tenderloins
• 2 tb olive oil
• 1 tb minced garlic
• 1 tb minced shallot
• 1/2 t dried tarragon
• 1/2 t black pepper
• 1/8 t salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large zip lock bag add pork tenderloin and all of the ingredients - olive oil, garlic, shallot, tarragon, pepper and salt. Mix ingredients until pork is well coated. Place pork on a cookie sheet or roasting pan lined with a non stick piece of foil. Drizzle extra olive oil and spice mixture on top of pork. Bake in oven for 15-20 minutes until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees (medium rare) and the top is deep golden brown. Take pork out of the oven and wrap the pork with the foil and let rest for 5 minutes. The internal temp should reach 160 (medium) after resting for 5 minutes. Place pork on a platter and cut into medallions. There will be juices in the foil from the pork, pour over top of slices pork and use as a gravy.

Food Impressions:

Nate: "This chicken is soooo good. I hope there is more"

Tyler: "This is so juicy. Can I have more gravy on the top?"

Zachary: "I hope you have lots more of this chicken!"

Dave: He was woking late so didn't get to have any of the delicious pork tenderloin. 

Andrea: Juicy, moist, crispy coating, flavorful. A huge hit and it only took me 20 minutes to make. 

The Best Orzo Recipe Ever!

This post is very simple: THIS IS THE BEST ORZO RECIPE EVER! There is no need to even explain how good this recipe is, just trust me and make it. You will LOVE it and it will be a staple recipe in your house, I promise.

When Dave and I started dating 15 years ago, I found an orzo recipe from Gourmet Magazine. Gosh do they even publish that magazine anymore? Let me Google it…I'll be right back. Nope, they stopped publishing in 2009. Too bad, that was a great magazine. I had never made orzo before so making this recipe was a bit of an adventure to me. The recipe is Parmesan Orzo with Scallions. I remember hoping it would turn out okay, especially since I had only been dating Dave for a few short months. Well it didn't just turn out okay, it turned out spectacular. I was like this is damn good if I do say so myself! Dave was thoroughly impressed with my culinary skills. The recipe is pretty basic to make but the taste pretty amazing.

I seriously must have made this recipe 100 times throughout the years. If you know me well, you've probably had this recipe at my house at some point. It's a crowd pleaser for all ages. Kids loves this orzo recipe. Almost every time I make it for someone they ask for the recipe. So here it is if you don't already have it. My dear cousin Samantha asked for the recipe not too long ago. She made it and she said it turned out great. Good job Sam! This is also one of those recipes that you taste while it's still in the saucepan and can't stop eating it...Kinda like Tyler, Zachary and I did!

The recipe I have below is the basic recipe but it can be altered by adding other ingredients, like cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, asparagus or peas, really whatever ingredient you are in the mood for will go well. If you add other ingredients keep it simple; the more you add the more it takes away from the original flavors. The boys like it best the original way. I made a 12 ounce box of orzo and there was barely any left...and Dave wasn't even home for dinner tonight to eat any...and I made pork tenderloin to go with it. Yep, that's how delicious it is. Salute to the best orzo recipe ever from Gourmet Magazine circa 1997!

Start with 1 12 ounce box of orzo pasta

Bring 4 1/2 cups of water and 4 chicken bouillon cubes to a boil

Turn heat down to medium and occasionally stir

The liquid will begin to evaporate in the orzo,
continue to stir

After about 10 minutes almost all of the liquid will be evaporated, turn heat to low and stir.

The orzo will be perfectly cooked and no need to strain the liquid. Now add the parmesan cheese and scallions and stir.

Now you have the BEST ORZO RECIPE EVER!

Parmesan Orzo with Scallions (Click to print recipe)

Preparation and cook time: 20 minutes

Serves 6-8 as a side dish

Ingredients:

• 1 12 ounce box orzo pasta
• 4 1/2 cups water
• 4 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1/8 cup of chopped scallions
• 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/8 t salt
• 1/8 t pepper

In a medium saucepan add 4 cups of water and 4 chicken bouillon cubes and bring to a boil. Add orzo and turn heat down to medium-high. Stir every few minutes to prevent sticking. After about 10 minutes the liquid will almost be evaporated. Turn heat down to low until all liquid is evaporated. Add parmesan cheese and scallions and stir. Add to a large bowl and serve as a side dish.

Food Impressions:

Nate: "Yum, this is so delicious..minus the scallion-onion green things."

Tyler: "I love orzo, it's super good." Before he even finished his orzo on his plate and walked over to the bowl to help himself to more before it was all gone.

Zachary: "Oh wow, this is super good." He finished his orzo in 2 minutes and had a huge second helping.

Andrea: The best orzo recipe ever!

Avocado Caprese Salad

Ahhhh, Caprese Salad or in my house it's simply called "tomato-motz." It's one of my all time favorite salads. The first time I had Caprese Salad was at Hutch's Restaurant on Delaware Avenue and that was over 20 years ago! I still remember the first time I ate there and what I ordered….Tomato and Fresh Mozzarella for an appetizer and Jambalaya Pasta for my entree. Talk about a lasting food impression right? Actually those items are still on the menu at Hutch's today...hey that's ok, why change a good thing when you have it! 20 years ago Hutch's Caprese Salad did it for me and I've been making it ever since.

There are so many variations on making Caprese Salad but the ultimate is making it the classic way; the way they make it in Capri, Italy, where the recipe originated. Ripened heirloom tomatoes, the freshest creamiest mozzarella, aromatic basil and the highest quality extra virgin olive oil, salt n pepper….that's it! Using the best ingredients will yield magic in your mouth.

Today I decided to change things up a bit because when I went to Dash's avocados were on sale for 2 for $3.00…a great price that I couldn't resist and I love avocados. So my idea of making classic caprese salad went out the window once I saw those avocados. So instead I made Avocado Caprese Salad. This salad was amazingly delicious! And it helped that I used my secret ingredient…don't tell anyone….but it's freshly squeezed lemon juice. It adds a subtle tanginess that enhances the flavors of the salad. Balsamic vinegar is a nice addition but sometimes it's too harsh on Caprese salad, so lemon is the perfect balance in my opinion.

My family devoured this dish as they always do. I always serve a crusty artisan italian bread on the side with this salad. The boys like to make sandwiches with it and Dave loves to soak up the extra olive oil and lemon juice with it. This salad is so easy to make, fresh tasting and makes you feel like you are eating at a quaint cafe in Italy. Salute to Avocado Caprese Salad and for Hutch's introducing me to it 20 years ago!

Fresh aromatic basil

Fresh creamy mozzarella, ripened tomatoes, healthy avocado, tangy lemon and fresh garlic…magic!

My secret ingredient - lemon!
Thanks for the tip Cheryl and Al C.!

Take a bite and you'll feel like you are in Italy!

Avocado Caprese Salad (Click to print recipe)

Preparation time 10 minutes

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 4 red vine ripened tomatoes, sliced
• 8 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
• 1 acocado, sliced
• 10 fresh basil leaves, shredded
• 2 tb good quality extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tb finly minced red onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 lemon juice
• salt n freshly ground pepper

Generously salt n pepper sliced tomatoes, mozzarella and avocado. Arrange them on a platter by alternating tomato, mozzarella and avocado. Sprinkle red onion, minced garlic and basil over the top. Drizzle the extra virgin olive oil and then squeeze the fresh lemon juice over the top. Serve with crusty italian bread to soak up the juices.

Food Impressions:

Nate: "Oh my gosh this is so good." The only reason he liked it was because I gave him a plate of the classic style. He wouldn't eat the rest because I put minced onions over the top. Geeze!

Tyler: "This is super yummy." He proceeded to take two large pieces of bread and place the tomato-moz on top. He was in Heaven!

Zachary: This is Zachary's favorite salad. He goes nuts when I make Caprese salad. I can barely cut the ingredients before he is sticking his little paws and grabbing piece of mozzarella. I love it!

Dave: "Love it, love the avocados in this dish." He loves avocados and was stealing everyone's from their plates. He also loved soaking the juices with the italian bread.

Andrea: This could be a meal in itself for me. The avocado added a nice compliment to this dish. I love making caprese salad because it's always a hit with everyone. Whether it's just the five of us or 20 of us this is a great salad to make. Quick, easy, fresh, delectable!

Easy Chicken Piccata

My mom and Stan came over for dinner tonight. They also came over to play a serious game of Texas Holdem. If mom and Stan come over for dinner we always play cards and always have a blast. Stan may as well be my step dad because he and my mom have been together for like 25 years! I love having my mom and Stan over for dinner because they always oooh and aaah over everything I make, well almost everything. They are very simple eaters and not very adventurous when it comes to certain foods, especially my mom. I love her to pieces but there are certain foods she just won't even give a try like asparagus. So any food that I serve beyond meat and potatoes, mom and Stan inspect it before they take a bite. Most of the time they love it. Thankfully, they have become more adventurous when it comes to trying new foods. So when they come over for dinner I make a recipe they would never make themselves but I know they would love. One time when they were over for dinner I made my mom and Stan an Iceberg Wedge Salad with Bacon and Blue Cheese Dressing. They kept commenting on how creative it was that I served the salad in wedge form. They also kept commenting on how delicious the salad was, particularly the blue cheese dressing. When I mentioned the blue cheese dressing was all natural with no preservatives, Stan was like "what do you mean blue cheese dressing????" He proceeded to say that he didn't even like blue cheese dressing, he thought it was ranch dressing and he further said that if he knew ahead it was blue cheese he wouldn't have eaten it. We all laughed hysterically because he loved the blue cheese dressing I served….he was a blue cheese lover and didn't even know it. We love you mom and Stan and find your quirky food aversions quite endearing! So for dinner tonight I decided to make them Chicken Piccata. I figured they like chicken, they like garlic and they like lemon, so the only wild card ingredient was the capers. I love this chicken piccata recipe and it's a staple I make often. It's so simple to make, utilizes simple ingredients and the end result is simply divine. Lemon, butter, white wine, chicken stock, garlic and capers make up the piccata sauce….who doesn't like those ingredients? The sauce is so tangy and flavorful. Thin chicken cutlets are used in this classic dish so it cooks quickly and evenly. I served it over angel hair pasta but it's good over any pasta or rice. This is a great dish to make when you are having guests over for dinner; it's quick cooking, easy and elegant. I worked all day today and whipped up this dinner for 7 people in under 40 minutes. So did my mom and Stan like my chicken piccata, did they eat the capers? To find out check out their food impressions below! Salute to easy chicken piccata and mom and Stan giving new recipes a try!

Dredging the chicken cutlets in my favorite
 pan searing flour from Wegmans

Saute the chicken in olive oil until they are golden brown

Making the piccata sauce…I love it when a recipe requires wine!

Chicken sauteing and piccata sauce simmering
The lemon smells so good! 

Easy Chicken Piccata

Delicious served over pasta

Easy Chicken Piccata (Click to print recipe)

Preparation and cook time: 40 minutes

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 8 thinly cut/pounded chicken cutlets, 1/4 inch
• 4 tb olive oil
• 1/4 cup flour for dredging chicken
• salt n pepper
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 3/4 cup white wine
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 2 tb minced garlic
• 3 tb capers
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley

In a large saute pan heat olive oil over medium heat. Meanwhile, dredge chicken cutlets in flour and salt n pepper. Add chicken to pan and sauté until golden brown, approximately 4 minutes per side. In another sauté pan, add butter, garlic and capers and cook over medium heat for 3 minutes. Add wine and bring to a roaring boil and then reduce heat to medium. Add chicken stock, lemon juice and 2 lemon slices and cook for 10 minutes. Add parsley and stir. On a platter place chicken and top with piccata sauce. Serve over pasta or rice.

Food Impressions:

Nate: "Ohhh this is lemony. I really the chicken." He did not eat the capers

Tyler: "Is there more?" He barely spoke during dinner or took a breath he was eating so fast…he loved it and he ate the capers.

Zachary: "Flawless." Interesting word, I think it meant he loved it because he ate everything on his plate. He also asked if it was fish! He ate the capers.

Dave: "Delicious and flavorful." He ate all of his capers and I think he even ate Nate's.

Mom: "Andrea, this is so good, just super. Delicioso!" Yay! She ate her capers and liked them. She didn't love them but she said hey these capers aren't bad, they taste like tiny olives.

Stan: "Excellent, as always Andrea." He pushed all of his capers aside and didn't eat them….but at least he tried an avocado…no he didn't like it!

Andrea: Love this recipe. It's a staple in recipe book and make it often. Super easy to make and a great weeknight meal.

Nate and Stan, our non caper eaters! 

Ready to play a serious game of Texas Holdem!

Stan and Dave won the game and split the pot…this time!
Just wait until til next time boys!

Sautéed Hot Peppers and Onions - Wow!

Today my intention was to make hot stuffed banana peppers. I make them a few times a month because a) they taste absolutely amazing and b) my family goes crazy for them. There is typically an argument over the stuffed banana peppers because the boys claim someone got more than them or they complain that I didn't make enough. I usually stuff them and I have a few delicious variations (See recipe from previous post) but today I decided to simply slice and sauté them with onions and garlic. It was one of those recipes that I literally thought of as I was pulling the ingredients out of the refrigerator. My inspiration and food impression came from the sautéed hot peppers on the menu from Santasierso's Restaurant on Niagara Street. My brother Tom loves their peppers and also makes them at home. I figured why not give them a try because it will be a heck of a lot easier than stuffing them. Wegmans has precut and deseeded peppers which are great if you want to save on time or save yourself the agony of coring out the hot seeds and then mistakenly rubbing your eyes or nose…ouch! Those seeds burn so be careful if you are coring yourself. As soon as I started sautéing the peppers and onions the aroma staring permeating throughout the house. Tyler and Zachary came running into the kitchen and said with great excitement "Are you making hot peppers?" I said "Yes, but I'm making them a little differently." They didn't seem to care how they were prepared they were just psyched they were hot peppers. After sautéing them for 15 minutes they started to caramelize and even take on a crispy edge. They smelled and looked delicious in the pan. I decided last minute to add some cheese. Don't forget my intent was to stuff them so I felt that adding a little cheese would calm the heat a bit. So I added goat cheese. I always serve my hot peppers with baguette bread on the side to cool my mouth when there's a really hot bite. So I made bite sized hot peppers on baguette bread. They were amazing. So amazing that an argument broke out again and we were all fighting over who got the last bite. They also complained that I didn't make enough. I couldn't argue that because I didn't. I was craving for more. I was fighting for more. So I promised them that I would make a lot more sautéed peppers and onions the next day. I'm already looking forward to tomorrow. Salute to Sauteed Hot Peppers and Onions and my last minute recipe change!

Hot banana peppers, cleaned, cored 

Sliced peppers and onions sauteeing in olive oil and garlic

Look at how the peppers caramelize 

Goat cheese adds a creaminess and coolness to the hot peppers 

Ready to add the peppers to the fresh baguette bread

Wow! Now that's a great appetizer!

Serve these hot spicy morsels at your next party and they'll be sure to be a hit!

Sauteed Hot Peppers and Onions (Click to print recipe)

Preparation and cook time: 40 minutes if deseeding the peppers yourself

Makes 24 baguette slices

Ingredients:

• 8 hot banana peppers, deseeded and sliced
• 1/2 spanish onion, sliced thinly
• 1 tb minced garlic
• 2 tb olive oil
• salt n pepper to taste
• 4 oz goat cheese, crumbled
• baguette bread, cut into 24 thin slices

In a medium saute pan heat olive oil over medium- low heat. Add minced peppers, onions, garlic and salt n pepper and continually stir. Cook for 15 minutes until soft and caramelized. Add goat cheese and stir for 1-2 minutes until cheese melts. Place a small spoonful of peppers onto the baguette bread slices and serve.

Food Impressions:

Nate: You probably know by now if it has onions Nate won't go near it. More for us!

Tyler: "Why do you say Zachary like hot peppers more than anyone? You know I love these more than anyone." "Why didn't you make more??"

Zachary: "Please just one more, please just one more!!"

Dave: "Wow, these are really good. And why didn't you make more??"

Andrea: This recipe was amazing and I will make it this way often from now on. I can't wait to serve this to guests when I entertain. And now that grill seasons approaching I think this recipe would taste great sautéed on the grill.

My Favorite Greek Vegetable Salad Recipe

This is my favorite greek salad recipe. It's my favorite because it's the freshest tasting salad and the dressing is packed with flavor. I was first introduced to this recipe over 10 years ago from my good friend Ann, so I've titled it Ann's Greek Vegetable Salad. We were at one of our Gourmet Club dinners. Christa and Tom were the hosts and their dinner theme was Greek….the most perfect theme for Christa because I seriously think in her past life she was born and raised in Greece. The menu was amazing, it was so long ago but I remember Tracy made spanakopita, Christa made greek stuffed peppers, I made greek potatoes and Ann made her amazing greek salad. I took a few bites of Ann's salad and wanted to shout "opa" it was so greekalicious! I asked Ann what kind of dressing she used on the salad and she said olive oil, red wine vinegar, capers, dried oregano and salt n pepper. I half didn't believe her because I didn't think those few ingredients would taste so incredibly flavorful. Her greek salad recipe called for crumbled feta cheese but she didn't add it to the salad because we wasn't sure if everyone would like feta. So she had the feta on the side as well as fresh mozzarella. I love feta so it was a no brainier to add it to my salad. I thought fresh mozzarella isn't exactly greek but I also love fresh mozzarella so I tried it and was surprised that it was equally as good in this salad. So when I make this recipe I will use either or. I remember loving the entire meal so much that I made the exact dinner for Dave's parents a few weeks later. Ann's greek salad recipe really stood out for me during our greek themed Gourmet Dinner Club. So much so that 10 plus years later I still make this salad all of the time especially during the spring and summer months. Talk about a lasting food impression, right. It's goes so well with any type of meat or seafood. Tonight I made panko breaded chicken cutlets topped with arugula; the greek salad wad the perfect side. After Dave took a few bites I asked him what he thought and he said "spring." I laughed because as I mentioned that's the time of year I always start making this recipe. The meal tasted spectacular but it would have been nice if we had a shot of ouzo to go with it! Salute to Ann's greek vegetable salad that makes me shout "Opa!"

Ann's Greek Vegetable Salad (Click to print recipe)

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

• 1 english cucumber sliced and halved
• 2 green, red, or orange peppers, sliced into 1 inch pieces
• 1/2 cup kalamata olives
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved optional
• 1/2 red onion thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup feta cheese
• 2 tb capers
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 t dried oregano
• 1/8 t salt
• 1/8 t black pepper

In a large bowl add all of the cut vegetables. In a small bowl whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, capers, oregano and salt n pepper until well blended. Add the vinaigrette to the vegetables and stir until they are well coated. Place the salad on a decorative platter or bowl and serve. Refrigerate in a tupperware container for 1-2 days. 

Food Impressions:

Nate: "Ooooh, I get my own bowl of salad." Yes, Nate got his own bowl because he won't eat anything with onions so I made his without onions! 

Tyler: "This is delicious and so fresh." 

Zachary: "You haven't made this in so long." He had three helpings!

Dave: "Tastes like Spring!" He kept eating at the salad with his fingers before I even had it on the table. I kept telling him to stop but he couldn't help himself I guess.

Andrea: I totally forgot to add the capers!!!! I am shocked dave didn't say anything because he LOVES capers. I didn't realize until I was washing he dishes. While the salad was still amazing without the capers, they are necessary…so don't forget them!

Nate and Tyler toasting with the welcome drinks in Punta Cana,
Poor Zachary wasn't in the mood for any

Now onto more "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" drama but today's vacation title was "Zachary leaves his mark." (Faint stomachs don't read) 

So I ended my post yesterday with us heading to the Cleveland Airport, hoping we would make our three flights to Punta Cana despite the incredibly tight layover times. Dave stated that if any of our flights were delayed we wouldn't make the next flight, so we all crossed our fingers and said a prayer. We went to the American Airlines cheek-in, handed the agent our tickets hoping there wouldn't be any delays. The agent stated that our flight was being delayed by 40 minutes! I started to panic a bit and Dave told me to just leave the area so he could handle things alone. All the while Zachary kept saying his stomach hurt. I could hardly focus on his stomach ache and told him he just didn't eat enough at breakfast and he was probably just hungry. I couldn't stand waiting any longer wondering what was taking Dave so long so I went over to the counter. Dave said this wonderful agent is putting us on a different flight but it leaves in 20 minutes so we have to move fast. I was super happy and ran over to the boys to tell them to gather their things and move fast. Zachary continued to tell me his stomach hurt so I told him we'd order food on the plane. He told me that he needed a bathroom; well he didn't make the bathroom and made his first, let's call it "mark"in the airport. Sorry I know this is a food blog! I felt awful for Zachary but I was like honey, here's a tissue, wipe yourself up and we gotta run to our flight. He was a champ and did. A nasty bug was going around the boys school and Tyler had it a few days prior. I was hoping Zach or Nate didn't get what Tyler had but my hoping wasn't good enough. Zach was likely getting what Tyler had. Not a good thing especially when we had to take three planes in one day. We made it to Charlotte and had about an hour in a half until our next flight to Miami. Sure enough Zachary made his "mark" again but in the Charlotte airport…he didn't make it to a bathroom fast enough. We kept telling him he was a champ and pretty soon we'd be in Punta Cana. He had no other symptoms so we weren't too worried. We get on our next flight, luckily no delays and flew to the Miami Airport. Our layover was another hour and a half or so. It's a big airport so we had to jump on a train to take us to the next terminal. Zachary proceeds to tell us his stomach didn't feel quite right, there wasn't a bathroom close enough so yep, Zach made his mark once again! Poor Zachary, but poor cleaning crew. He made his mark once more in the Miami airport and we hopped on our plane…the last one before Punta Cana. Zach still had no other symptoms other than not eating anything all day. He could barely keep down the Gatorade we kept giving him and the anti-nasua medicine didn't do a thing. I kept thinking just one more flight and we are there, Zachary can rest and hopefully tomorrow he'll be building sandcastles, throwing a football with Dave and fighting the waves in the ocean. After 14 hours of traveling, we finally arrived in Punta Cana at 10:00 pm. We were all sooooo excited, even Zachary was. He was as white as a ghost though, poor thing. He seemed okay though. Since it was so late at night the airport wasn't busy so getting through immigrations wasn't too bad. When it was our turn to show passports, hand in our paperwork and pay our fees, Zachary makes his mark once again, in the immigrations line. I was thinking they aren't going to let us through! We decided not to tell any official and we pretended it didn't even happen, luckily it just kinda blended in with the floor color….ewww…sorry Punta Cana cleaning people. We made it through and headed to our charter bus to take us to the hotel. He made another mark in the parking lot. We FINALLY get to the Royalton Punta Cana Resort to check in. We were exhausted and simply just shot. They greeted us with fruity cocktails and poor Zachary didn't have any desire to even take a tiny sip. We couldn't wait to just get to our rooms. I booked adjoining/connecting rooms months ago and even called and emailed the resort confirming we would be honored our connecting rooms. All along the resort confirmed we had connecting rooms. Low and behold, Sarge, our receptionist states there are no connecting rooms available and he had 1 room available on the 3rd floor and the other was available on the 1st floor. Dave was going to LOOSE his mind. He asked to speak with a manager and sure enough there was no manager available. I started to tell them that it was imperative that we had connecting rooms due to medical issues and that our son was very ill. After about 20 minutes of Dave's persuasive abilities, they were able to put us in our connecting rooms on Tuesday. They also found rooms across from each other for Sunday and Monday. Still not ideal but we agreed, we were just wiped out. As we were waiting for our room keys in the lobby, Zach stated he needed a bathroom. You guessed it, he didn't make it and he made his mark in the lobby. I just looked at Sarge with my very stern italian facial expression and said in my very italian voice: I told you we had medical issues, this is why we need our connecting rooms!!! I think Sarge was afraid of me! We got to our rooms about 12:30 am and since it was an all inclusive resort we called room service and ordered lots of food and beer. I'm not even a beer drinker but it tasted darn good. We were all very tired so we all said goodnight and Dave and Zachary went to their room across the hall. Dave and I looked at each other like I can't believe we are in separate rooms, no 25 days of Christmas!!!! We all hoped that the next day would be better once we all got a good night's sleep. Not so much….chapter 3 tomorrow.