Mediterranean Orzo Salad

Like all of my recipes, this one is very versatile - you can add more of any ingredient, leave things out, or even add additional items to it (like cherry tomatos, sun dried tomatoes, chickpeas, or artichoke hearts). It's really up to you. It's also quick and easy and goes great with almost any meal as a side dish. I normally make it with grilled chicken. It's light, but very filling and tastes even better the next day as leftovers.


You'll need: 
1 (1 lb) package orzo pasta
2 medium cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups pre-washed baby spinach
1/2 medium red onion, chopped
1 jar kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1 cup balsamic vinaigrette dressing
1-2 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons pepper
salt to taste*


Directions:
Cook orzo as directed on package, drain.
Heat oil in saucepan or skillet on medium and add onion and garlic, stirring occasionally so it doesn't burn. Once the onion is cooked (translucent in color), stir in orzo, kalamata olives, and balsamic dressing until entire mixture is hot. Add spinach - it's important to put the spinach in last since it doesn't take very long to cook and you don't want it to get too soggy. Add feta and pepper, stir and serve.

* Keep in mind kalamata olives are salty, so taste before adding additional salt to salad.

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Homemade Spanish Rice

I got this recipe from someone I used to know. It was his mothers recipe. I edited it a bit, using Rotel to make it spicy. If you prefer, you can substitute the Rotel for regular diced tomatoes.

Browned rice

You'll need:
1 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
4 medium cloves garlic, minced
1 (10 oz) can Rotel
2 cubes of chicken bouillon
1/2 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoon ground black pepper
peas and diced carrots, if desired


In a blender, combine garlic, diced tomatoes, cumin, chicken bouillon, and pepper. Add water to make mixture a total of 2 1/2 cups. Blend until everything is thoroughly mixed and there aren't any chunks. Set aside for later use. 

Spanish rice half cooked

In a large saucepan, heat oil on medium to medium-high and add rice. Cook, stirring constantly, until puffed and golden. [see "Browned rice" photo on right for exact color.]


Add contents of the blender to saucepan, careful of the steam and any splatter, cover and let simmer on low for 12 minutes. Stir occasionally. Like regular rice, you want the liquid to cook out, but it's very important to monitor because you don't want it to burn. Let sit for 5 minutes, uncovered.

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Angry Mac©

One of my all time favorite foods is macaroni and cheese, and as much as I love Velveeta, nothing compares to homemade. I took my mom's recipe for baked Southern macaroni and cheese and spiced it up with some chopped jalapeños. This is a great side dish for any meal or add chicken or beef and make it a meal!




You'll need: 
One 16 oz box macaroni noodles/shells
One 16 oz block of sharp/extra sharp cheese, grated
1/2 stick butter
12 oz milk
1-2 tbsp plain white flour
1 jar/can pickled jalapeños slices, you can use fresh if you prefer
Roughly an 8x8 baking dish, can be glass or stone.

Cook macaroni noodles until they're al dente, adding salt to taste.


Blend jalapeños in food processor/blender until they're finely chopped.

In saucepan, on low heat, melt butter, then add flour, stirring slowly. Let the flour and butter simmer together for a few minutes. Add milk while still stirring mixture, try to avoid lumps. Slowly add 1/4 of the grated cheese to the mixture. Once butter, flour, milk, and cheese are mixed together, add jalapeños. If mixture gets too thick, add more milk. You want it to be soupy, so that it easily coats the macaroni noodles. It's important to keep the burner on low so as not to burn the milk.

Be sure to spray baking dish, so macaroni and cheese doesn't stick. Put half of the noodles into dish, pour half of sauce pan mixture over, then top with half of the remaining amount of cheese. Repeat once more, using remaining noodles, mixture, and cheese so that everything's layered in the baking dish. If you like a lot of cheese, you can always use more than directed. I like to put a lot on top.

Bake @ 350 degrees for about 30-45 minutes.

Note: If you prefer a different cheese, or even to buy already grated cheese, that's perfectly fine. I don't always have the time or energy to grate a block of cheese. And again, if you want to use more or less than the 16 oz, that's fine too. As far as the jalapeños go, use as much or little as you like. I like spicy food and like to use about 5-10 oz depending on what else I'm making with it. I've also made this dish with serrano peppers before. The size baking dish to use can also be altered. I've made this in a 9x13, 8x8, circular stone dish, etc. My mom uses evaporated milk, but I find that it makes the mixture too thick, so I just use regular. I've found that one of the best parts of this dish, is being able to make it my own.




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