INGREDIENTS Ingredients for the dressing:

• ¼ cup fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons honey
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• 1 clove garlic
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• freshly ground black pepper
• taste and add salt if needed

Ingredients for the tortilla strips:

• 6 6-inch corn tortillas
• 1 ½ tablespoons canola oil
• ½ teaspoon sea salt

Ingredients for the salad:

• 1 medium head romaine lettuce , chopped in approximately ½ inch pieces
• 1 medium bell pepper, diced in ¼-inch pieces
• ½ medium red onion, diced in ¼-inch pieces
• ½ medium jicama, peeled and diced in ¼-inch pieces
• 1 medium zucchini, diced in ¼-inch dice
• 4 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced into ¼-inch dice
• 4 ears corn (if fresh corn is not in season, substitute 1½ cups of sweet, tiny frozen corn)
• 1½ cups canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• ½ cup finely chopped cilantro, plus whole cilantro leaves for garnish, if desired

INSTRUCTIONS

1. For the dressing, combine lime juice, honey, cumin garlic and salt. Stir to combine. In a slow, steady stream, add the oils, stirring continuously with a fork or small whisk. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Set aside.
2. For the corn tortilla strips, preheat oven to 400˚F. Stack corn tortillas on a cutting board. Cut in half. Cut each stack of halves into thin strips, crosswise, about ¼ inch thick.
3. Transfer tortilla strips to a sheet pan. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with salt and toss to coat.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, or until light golden brown and crisp. Set aside to cool.
5. For the salad, place corn, two ears at a time, in the microwave and cook for 3½ minutes. Remove from microwave with a hot pad and allow to cool for 5 minutes. After cooling, cut bottom end of corn off, about 1½ inches from end. Pull back husk and silks (almost all of the silk should easily pull away). Cut kernels from husks and set aside.
6. Combine corn and other salad ingredients in a large bowl. Stir to combine. Add dressing and stir to coat all ingredients. Garnish with cilantro leaves, if desired.
7. Serve with tortilla strips on top or place a bowl on the side and let guests help themselves.

Source: www.thecafesucrefarine.com

                  FLUFFY FRUIT SALAD

Ingredients:

– 1 large container of cool whip (make sure its frozen)

– 2 cans of pineapple tidbits

–  3 small cans of mandarin oranges

– 1 small “standard” package of orange jello

– 1 1/2 container of reduced fat cottage cheese (the larger containers)

– 1 1/2 cup of mini pastel marshmallows (i eyeball the marshmallows)

Directions:

In a large bowl combine cottage cheese and the package of orange jello powder, mix these two together really well. Next add in your semi thawed semi frozen cool whip (if its fully thawed then the salad won’t set up when chilled in the fridge) mix the cool whip in real well. Then drain your canned fruit really well and add all cans of fruit. Be sure to fold the fruit in, making sure to not destroy the mandarin oranges. Once the fruit is all mixed in, you can fold in your marshmallows. Smooth out the top of your bowl, cover it and let it chill in your fridge for at least 2 hours or more. Enjoy.

Source:  Craft O Maniac

St. Patty’s Favorite Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients

• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup margarine, softened
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup buttermilk

Directions

 

Creamy White Bean and Bacon Soup

Ingredients you will need:

• 2 cups of dried cannellini beans
• 5 strips of bacon, cut into tiny pieces
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 tbsp. (or more) of fresh rosemary, chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 tbsp. tomato paste
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. Soak your beans overnight covered in water. Drain the next day and set aside.
2. In a large stockpot, add the bacon to the pan and cook until bacon pieces are brown and crispy. Remove and let drain on a paper towel.
3. If there’s a lot of bacon grease in the pan, dump out all but 3 tbsp. of it.
4. Saute onion, garlic, and carrots in the bacon grease until vegetables start to get tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the rosemary and cook for an addition 1 minute.
5. Gently pour in the chicken stock and add the drained beans. Whisk the tomato paste in until all has dispersed and incorporated into the soup.
6. Bring mixture up to a boil then cover and let simmer gently for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. When the soup is ready, carefully use your immersion blender and gently pulse the bean mixture until a desired creamy texture is achieved. You see whole beans in my picture ­ that’s because I gently pulsed and left some beans whole because I wanted texture in my soup. You’re more than welcome to blend the entire mixture to be more of a puree consistency. If you’re worried about blending too much, you can always ladle out a few scoopfuls of beans, blend the soup, then add the beans back in.
8. Serve hot with bacon pieces on top.
9. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Notes: You can use canned cannellini beans if you want.  

Source: tablefortwoblog.com

The balance between Healthy Living and The Holidays is an easy task to manage if you follow these steps below:

• Eat four to six smaller meals rather than “saving” yourself for that special holiday meal
• Plan a workout before a holiday party or big meal In contrast to our “sports mentality” to pick up the pace, when eating, SLOW DOWN!
• Every dessert at a holiday meal, take a bite or two and receive 90% of the pleasure at 10% of the calories.
• Try recipe modification
• Beware of liquid calories, especially alcohol
• Don’t “hang out” at the appetizer table when socializing at a party
• Exercise in the Morning.
• Get active at least four times a week, and include protein with your breakfast – both will give your metabolism a boost that lasts all day.
• Find Balance.

Remember this time of year is all about enjoying yourself with friends and family. Definitely don’t deprive yourself of the things you love most about the season. Just be sure to stay on track during the days before and after the party. When you stick to a healthy lifestyle and stay consistent, you have wiggle room for a little indulgence here and there.