Category: Sides - Simple Everyday Food

pasta salad with italian dressing

Posted by :Amy On : May 15, 2015

Category: Sides

Just less than 24 hours ago, we came back home from a two-week long vacation in Taiwan to visit my family. We had so much fun doing touristy things, taking little vacations during our vacation, eating everything in sight, visiting extended family, and spending time with my parents and my sister that I haven’t seen in years.

We were sad to leave, but we were also excited to hurry home and see my favorite boy. We sure missed him! But thank goodness for good friends who were willing to watch him and give him the love and attention he needed while we were gone.

We avoided the super hot and humid tropical weather this time around, but everyday was still a warm 80+ degrees with occasional rain storms and more than enough humidity.

Some days when it was sunny and hot, all I craved for was some summery light pasta salad. Like this one, which happens to use lots of bright summer vegetables and dressed with a light Italian vinaigrette. It can be eaten as a light meal, a snack, or as a side dish; it can be eaten cold or at room temperature – it’s so perfect for summer!

Are you ready for a confession? I can’t remember if I’ve ever made pasta salad before.

Yep, you heard me right. I’ve made potato salad and creamy broccoli/cauliflower salad before, but never have I made pasta salad from scratch, let alone one with a homemade dressing.

As far as I remember, the only kind of pasta salad I’ve ever made were from boxes that come with a packet of seasoning mix… I should totally be ashamed of myself.

So to redeem myself from being judged, today’s simple pasta salad only requires a few ingredients; you probably already have most of the ingredients for the dressing sitting in your cupboard right now!

pasta salad with italian dressing

2015-03-29 15:56:01

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For the dressing

1/3 cup red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste (optional)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

For the salad

2-3 cups uncooked pasta (I used small bowtie pasta)
1 pound asparagus, cut into 1" pieces
2/3 cup diced red onions
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
2/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Instructions

In a medium bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients and whisk. Set aside.
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil over medium high heat. Add in the pasta for the amount of time as directed on the box, minus one minute. Stir occasionally. Add in the asparagus in with the pasta and cook for an additional minute. Drain and rinse pasta and asparagus under cold water to stop the cooking process.
In a large bowl, combine the red onions, tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese, then add in the pasta and asparagus. Drizzle the dressing over the pasta salad and toss to combine. Pasta salad can be served cold or at room temperature.
Serves 6-8

By Simple Everyday Food

Adapted from Just A Taste

Simple Everyday Food https://www.simpleeverydayfood.com/

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Recipe adapted from Just A Taste

© Simple Everyday Food. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use any of my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or kindly link back to this post for the recipe.

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curried couscous (with a side of salmon)

Posted by :Amy On : July 30, 2013

Category: Sides

Tags:sides

Couscous has been making frequent appearances in our weekly dinners lately, as seen here, here, and here.

I think I introduced Brian to couscous a few months ago when we were looking for different kinds of carbs to add into our weekly rotation (eating brown rice with everything can get old after a while)… thankfully, he was willing to give it a try. Ever since then, our cupboards are always stocked with a container full of this tiny little coarsely ground pasta.

Here are three reasons why it has been so popular in our household, and why you need to try it too:

it’s super simple and quick to make – it only takes about 5 minutes
it’s bland if you make it plain, meaning that it can serve as a blank canvas. It has the capability to developed into a variety of beautiful flavors based on the different spices and ingredients you add to it
it’s healthy and low in calories

Okay, reason #4 we like it so much: it’s fun to say. Couscous. Couscous couscous couscous.

Now that you think I’m a total weirdo, let’s move along…

We’ve always made couscous with just chicken stock to let our main dish shine. However, today I decided to spice up our couscous and added a little bit of curry powder to it.

curried couscous

2013-07-28 19:55:05

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Ingredients

2 tablespoons EVOO
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium shallot, finely diced
3/4 teaspoon curry powder (make it 1 teaspoon for stronger curry flavor)
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup couscous
1 cup water

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, heat the EVOO over medium high heat. Add in the garlic and shallots. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often, until shallots are softened.
Add the curry powder, paprika, and salt to the shallots. Stir until combined.
Add in the water, and immediately add the couscous. Stir to combine, cover with lid, and remove from heat.
Let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork before serving.
Serves 2-3

Notes

Every brand of couscous may require different amounts of water to cook. Make sure you read the directions for the couscous carefully before cooking. If it requires 1.5 cups of water instead, then make the couscous using 1.5 cups of water instead of 1 cup as stated in the directions (I put 1 cup in the directions because that's how much water our brand of couscous calls for).

By Simple Everyday Food

Simple Everyday Food https://www.simpleeverydayfood.com/

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The slight hint of curry along with the shallots make this couscous super delicious. It paired wonderfully with our lightly seasoned salmon. I knew the flavor wasn’t overpowering when Brian (who never had the desire to try curry) gave it a try and actually thought it was pretty good.

“Pretty good” doesn’t really do it justice. I thought it was quite delicious! We’ll probably be making this again in the very near future.

The salmon was made simply by sprinkling it with some salt, pepper, paprika, and cooking it for 6-8 minutes under the broiler.

Enjoy!

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bacon & egg potato salad

Posted by :Amy On : June 26, 2013

Category: Sides

Tags:potatoes, sides

This is going to be the first part of a two-part blog series – to be perfectly honest with you, I decided to split tonight’s recipes into two posts simply because I’m feeling a little lazy and don’t feel like posting two posts tonight. Check back tomorrow for a grilled tenderloin with garlic herb sauce!

There are several things on my list that every summer must consist of:

shorts, tanks, and flip flops.
sunshine and warm temperatures – and by warm, I mean 80 or above.
fun, summery drinks – slushies, smoothies, punch, and convenience store Slurpies. (what’s everyone’s favorite flavor?)
grilling.
grilling.
….and more grilling.
driving with the windows rolled down.
iced coffee.
potato salad.

To me, nothing screams summer more than potato salad. It seems like someone almost always brings them to every potluck/cookout there is during the summer.

There are a few ingredients (or lack thereof) that are essential in my kind of a potato salad: it has to have eggs, it can’t have mustard, and it can’t be runny and soupy.

This recipe has everything that a perfect potato salad should (and shouldn’t) have…but wait! There’s one very important addition to this dish:

Bacon.

Mmmmm… bacon. Everything tastes better with bacon.

bacon & egg potato salad

2013-06-26 19:58:55

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Ingredients

1.5 pounds small red-skinned potatoes, quartered
1 pound bacon, cooked and chopped
2 large hardboiled eggs, chopped
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/4 medium red onion, diced
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Put the potatoes in a medium pot, cover with water and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook until fork-tender. Drain and let cool.
In the meantime, combine the vinegar, mayonnaise, scallions, red onion, sugar, salt, and a pinch of black pepper in a small bowl.
Once the potatoes are cooled, transfer them into a large bowl. Add the bacon bits and the mayonnaise mixture. Toss to combine. Then add in the chopped eggs and toss until everything is evenly coated with the dressing.
Serve at room temperature and refrigerate leftovers.

By Simple Everyday Food

Adapted from Food Network Magazine

Simple Everyday Food https://www.simpleeverydayfood.com/

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Once everything is prepped and ready, it’s time to mix everything together!

I’m pretty sure this is the best potato salad I’ve ever made, and I’m pretty sure these crispy bacon bits can win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for it’s superb performance in making this entire dish taste so much better. The dressing is enough to where it slightly coats everything, but not too much to where the flavor is overwhelming and you’re left with a puddle of dressing on the bottom of your dish.

All in all, this is the perfect potato salad to bring to your next barbeque cookout! I probably could’ve sat on the couch and ate the entire bowl tonight…. instead I settled for a small portion to go with my pork tenderloin.