Layered Taco Salad

yield: Makes 6 servings

Ingredients
For dressing

* 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
* 1 teaspoon sugar
* 1 tablespoon chili powder
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
* 1/2 cup olive oil


For beef

* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
* 1 to 2 fresh serrano chiles (including seeds), finely chopped
* 1 tablespoon chili powder
* 2 teaspoons ground cumin
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 1/2 lb ground chuck
* 1 (8-oz) can tomato sauce
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon black pepper


For salad

* 1 (1/2-lb) firm-ripe California avocado
* 1 head iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced (8 cups)
* 1 large tomato (1/2 lb), chopped
* 1/4 lb coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar (1 1/2 cups)
* 1 (15- to 19-oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
* 1 (6-oz) can sliced pitted California black olives, drained


* Accompaniment: tortilla chips

Preparation

Make dressing:
Whisk together lime juice, cilantro, sugar, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper, then add oil in a stream, whisking until emulsified.

Cook beef:
Cook onion, garlic, chiles to taste, chili powder, and cumin in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is well softened, about 6 minutes. Add beef and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up lumps, until meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes, then spoon off any excess fat from skillet.

Add tomato sauce, salt, and pepper to beef and cook, stirring, until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Assemble salad:
Peel and pit avocado, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces.

Spread lettuce over bottom of a shallow 4-quart dish. Spoon beef mixture evenly over lettuce and continue making layers with tomatoes, cheese, beans, avocado, and olives. Drizzle dressing over salad.

Summer Garden Salad with Chili-Garlic Shrimp

* 1 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1/4 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 2 pounds uncooked large shrimp, peeled, deveined
* 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided


* 2 ears of corn, husked
* 3 small tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges
* 1/3 English hothouse cucumber, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced crosswise


* 4 teaspoons fresh lime juice
* 2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
* 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil (such as Asian)


* 1 large avocado, halved, peeled, pitted, cut into thin slices
* 8 cups (loosely packed) mixed baby greens
* 2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint leaves

Preparation

Mix chili-garlic sauce, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in large bowl. Add shrimp and toss to coat. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large nonstick skillet over high heat until hot. Add half of shrimp and sauté until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Using tongs, transfer shrimp to plate. Add 1 tablespoon oil to same skillet. Add remaining shrimp and sauté until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer shrimp to plate and cool.

Cook corn in pot of boiling salted water until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and cool. Cut corn kernels off cobs. Mix corn, tomatoes, and cucumber into shrimp.

Whisk remaining 2 tablespoons oil, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, lime juice, soy sauce, and sesame oil in medium bowl. (Shrimp mixture and dressing can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover separately and refrigerate.)

Combine shrimp mixture with any accumulated juices, avocado, greens, and mint in large bowl. Add dressing and toss to coat.

Pasta Salad with Feta

Dressing

-60 mL (1/4 cup) Irresistibles extra virgin olive oil*
-25 mL (1 1/2 Tbsp.) Irresistibles lemon juice*
-10 mL (2 tsp.) chopped fresh oregano or 2 mL (1/2 tsp.) Irresistibles dried oregano*
-1 clove garlic, chopped
Salad
-375 mL (1 1/2 cups) cooked penne*
-250 mL (1 cup) crumbled Canadian Feta
-250 mL (1 cup) seeded and diced tomatoes
-250 mL (1 cup) diced cucumbers
-125 mL (1/2 cup) sliced black olives*
-125 mL (1/2 cup) sliced green pepper
-30 mL (2 Tbsp.) chopped fresh parsley
-30 mL (2 Tbsp.) chopped green onions
-Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preparation

To make dressing, in a blender process olive oil, lemon juice, oregano and garlic until creamy.
In a salad bowl, combine pasta, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, green pepper, parsley and green onions.
Drizzle with dressing and toss well. Salt and pepper, to taste.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Mexican Bean Salad

1 can black beans
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can red beans
1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1 cup vinegar
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup salad oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 package taco seasoning mix


Drain canned beans, combine with corn, green and red pepper, onion and
cilantro. Set aside. Combine remaining ingredients, except taco seasoning.
Pour over vegetables, mixing well. Cover and marinate in refrigerator
overnight or 24hours, stirring occasionally. Before serving, drain, and
save 1/2 cup marinade. Sprinkle reserved marinade and taco seasoning over
salad just before serving.

Grilled Scallop Skewers w/ grape tomato, boccocini and chick pea salad

I cribbed the recipe for the salad from Eat, Shrink and Be Merry, and I had some scallops kicking around the house, so I put this together.

Scallops (feeds 2)
Marinade about 10 medium scallops in the following for about an hour:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp garlic juice
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp lime flavoured Red Hot sauce

While your scallops are marinading nicely, put in a big bowl:

• 1-19 oz can of chickpeas
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup mini boccocini, halved
• 1/3 cup chopped red onions
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil (must be fresh)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (I used lime, and it worked just as well)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Mix it all together and let sit for a while. Tomatoes can lose their flavour when refrigerated, so if you are going to let it sit for a long time (which I would, because oil/vinegar salads taste best if left to marinate for a while) don't add them until just before you serve it. Although, I threw it all together and let it all rest and it tasted great.

Thread scallops on a skewer and grill on bbq for about 3 minutes each side. Really, its the size of your scallops that dictates how long you grill it for. Look for them to get opaque and less "squishy".

Serve with french bread, and enjoy!