Spinach Mandarin Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

This salad is filled with yummy flavors.  You can use your favorite store-bought poppy seed dressing or make this simple dressing.  It's a great salad to feed a group but if you're not going to eat it in one meal then I would suggest leaving the dressing off and adding it to individual portions.  It will make the greens wilt and nobody wants to eat soggy salad the next day.  Or you could just make a half portion of the recipe.

Spinach Mandarin Salad
1/2 head Romaine lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces
1 (8-10 oz.) bag baby spinach
1/3 purple onion, thinly sliced
1 large avocado, cubed
1 cup Swiss or Mozzarella cheese, shredded or cubed
1 package bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 large can (or two small) Mandarin oranges, drained (and I also like to slice them in half to make more pieces)
Poppy Seed Dressing to taste

In large salad bowl, combine lettuce, spinach, onion, bacon, cheese, and oranges.  Gently fold in avocado.  Just before serving, toss with salad dressing and serve immediately.

Poppy Seed Dressing
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. mustard
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 green onion, ends removed
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tsp. poppy seeds

In blender, combine vinegar, salt, sugar, mustard, and pepper.  While blender is going, add green onion and then add the oil in a constant stream until it is mixed in.  Pour dressing into a bowl and stir in poppy seeds.

Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette and Grilled Fish Tacos

I have never eaten Fish Tacos.  I know.  Crazy!  I love fish and I love tacos and I see this combo all the time but it never really sounded very good to me.  But I saw this recipe on Our Best Bites and for some reason it sounded really good so I decided to go for it.  The fish is marinated in a Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette before grilling.  (Not to be confused with the Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing.)  I served them with delicious Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing on top (also from Our Best Bites) and my Homemade Salsa.  They were so good!  Every one of my kids loved them, too.  The cabbage slaw was a great addition to them!  This vinaigrette has great flavor and can also be served on a salad, not just as a marinade.

Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

1/4 c. fresh lime juice (about 2-3 juicy limes)
1/4 c. white wine vinegar or rice vinegar
4-5 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp. Kosher or sea salt
2 tsp. sugar
1 c. canola oil
1/2 c. roughly chopped cilantro, stems removed

In the jar of your blender, combine lime juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, and sugar. Blend until ingredients are completely combined. With the blender running, add the oil in a steady stream. Add cilantro and blend until the cilantro has broken down but still maintains some of its texture. Serve with greens, on any type of Mexican salad, or use as a marinade.

Grilled Fish Tacos

Mild white meat fish-cod, talapia, red snapper, mahimahi, etc.

Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

Corn tortillas

Shredded cabbage (or cole slaw mix)

Pico de Gallo or Homemade Salsa

Creamy Cilantro-Lime Dressing

Use a mild white meat fish like cod, tilapia, red snapper, mahimahi, etc.  Marinate in Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette for about 20 minutes (reserve some marinade to add to cooked fish later).  Lightly brush the grill with oil and cook fish for about 8-12 minutes over medium heat (depending on the thickness of the fish) or until very flaky.  (I just used my electric counter-top grill.)  Flake cooked fish and season with leftover marinade if desired (make sure you use the reserved marinade and not the marinade that the raw fish was in!)   Serve the flaked fish in corn tortillas. You'll need to slightly cook the corn tortillas so they don't overwhelm the flavor of the fish; you can brush them with olive oil and bake them in an oven set to 425 for about 5-10 minutes or cook them in a skillet with some olive oil until they start to brown but are still flexible.  Serve with cabbage (cole slaw mix), Pico de Gallo or homemade salsa, the amazing Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing and/or guacamole.

Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing

I found this Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing over on Our Best Bites.  I had to make some.  It was super good.  They say it tastes like a Costa Vida/Cafe Rio style dressing.  I've only eaten at Cafe Rio a couple times but can't really tell you if this is what the dressing tastes like.  I know I really liked it and I know I really like this one...so it must be a match!  I stored my leftovers in a quart jar to use on salads later in the week.  Very tasty!  The green salsa does add quite a bit of heat though!  There is a note about the salsa at the end of the recipe.  Put it on any salad, slather it on a burger, serve it with tacos, or dip your chicken fingers in it.  You could probably drink it from the jar if you wanted to.  It's that good!

Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing


1 pack (1oz) Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix (regular or buttermilk, and ignore directions on the packet)
1C mayo
1/2 C milk (or buttermilk depending on which packet you buy)
1 lime
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 C roughly chopped cilantro
1/4 C green salsa*
hot sauce

 Place milk, mayo, and ranch mix in a blender.   Juice the lime in there too, you should get about 2T juice.  Toss in the garlic, cilantro and green salsa.  Blend 'er up.  Sample it and add hot sauce to taste.  Make it several hours ahead of time to allow it to thicken.

*A note about green salsa:
There are several brands of green salsa available in most supermarkets and they have various degrees of heat.  One of the most commonly seen brands is Herdez. Herdez brand is a lot spicier than any of the others I've tried.  Even their medium green salsa is way too spicy for my liking.  I like to buy La Costena because their  medium is actually really mild.  That way I get all of the flavor of the tomatillos but I control the level of heat with the hot sauce.  If you're not used to buying green salsa, make sure to sample it first before you put it in the dressing so you know what you're getting into!

Asian Wonton Salad with Sesame Dressing

This is a very yummy salad on its own but throw in the dressing  and it is so delicious!  I'm not saying it's the healthiest salad around (fried wontons and all) but it is good.  They served it at a women's conference I went to and we were lucky enough to get the recipe.  The dressing recipe makes more dressing than what I like on the salad so I just save the rest for a salad on another day.  Double this recipe if serving a large group.

Asian Wonton Salad
1 head romaine lettuce
cherry tomatoes
1/2 red onion, sliced in thin strips
1 cucumber, sliced
2-3 cooked chicken breasts, cubed, optional
1/2 package wonton wrappers
oil for frying

Heat about one inch of oil in a skillet to 375 degrees.  Cut wontons into thirds (I like to use a pizza cutter to make it easier).  Fry wontons a few at a time.  Drain on paper towels.  These can be made ahead of time.

Tear lettuce into bite sized chunks and put in a large salad bowl.  Toss with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion.  Add chicken if using.  Top salad with Sesame Dressing and toss together.  Add wonton crisps last and toss to combine.

Sesame Dressing
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup canola oil
1-2 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 cup sugar
2-4 Tbsp. sesame seeds

Place all ingredients in a jar or container with tight lid.  Shake vigorously until well incorporated.  This can also be made ahead of time.  Store leftovers in fridge.