Summer Tuna Salad

A few years ago I was spending about 3 days of every week doing business in NYC. I became very familiar with the local hot spots of mid-town Manhattan. Every time I had a meeting at Rockefeller Plaza around lunch-time I would try to sneak into Dean and Deluca. One summer I discovered their tuna salad sandwich and my life was changed (yes, I am that dramatic). It had a nice crunch with carrot and red onion and I became obsessed.

I set out to duplicate, and even hunted down the recipe from the Dean and Deluca Restaurant cookbook, but, quickly realized it need to be heathified...stat. My version is loaded with peppers, kale, celery, carrot, parsley, and much more. The base cuts out much of the heavy mayo (does anyone else hate mayo like I do??) and adds in pickle. It is delightful and much easier on the waistline.

Try it with fresh watercress, avocado, and extra sliced pickle. My favorite way to enjoy...on a bed of buttery Boston lettuce and sliced avocado.

Cousin Carol's Carrot Salad

A few months ago my sister was in town visiting and we went to visit a cousin who live nearby. I got really excited when she insisted on lunch because she is a great cook and, of course, we were not disappointed.

She served the most delicious carrot salad and I simply could not get enough of it. In that past I've avoided carrot salads because they usually include pineapple and/or raisins and, frankly, I do not care for that combination. This one, though. This one was different. My sister and I both downed double servings. Even my 2-year-old nephew seemed to really enjoy it (although if I'm being honest, he may have been more motivated by the lemon San Pellegrino we were bribing him with. . .). Only the thinnest barrier of social propriety kept me from grabbing the serving bowl and shoveling the rest of it in my mouth Cookie Monster style.

After the gentlest of prodding, Carol graciously passed along her recipe, which was mostly an ingredient list because she just eyeballs it (told you - great cook!). I have been tinkering around for awhile and came up with a slightly modified version that I love. I've found that it the trick is to let it sit for at least a few hours or, even better, overnight. Be warned that this recipe makes a lot of salad, but there are worse things.

The best thing about this recipe? It is so easy. The salad goes particularly well alongside sandwiches (grilled cheese and egg salad are my favorites) or cooked fish. Or straight from the mixing bowl, Cookie Monster style. No judgement here.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

I have a love hate relationship with spinach artichoke dip. While it is delicious, I can't get past the heavy creams, cream cheeses, and other heavy bases. This recipe is by no means "healthy" or "guilt-free," but it is a little lighter then the traditional dip with a base of Greek yogurt and it is packed with great flavor. This is a real winner on an appetizer line up. 

Brown Rice and Arugula Salad + Mason Jar Salad

I have a a darling little boy who is ten months old. When he was born last summer my little sister, Layne, came to help out and spend a few days with us. The afternoon we all came home from the hospital I walked into my house and my table was set beautifully with this scrumptious looking salad. It may be all of the positive feelings associated with this salad, but it is definitely one of my favorite salads in America. This is technically Layne's recipe, but since she is off gallivanting around Jerusalem for the summer, I am going to share it with you. It really is incredibly simple, I could hardly call it a recipe, more of an ingredient assembly, if you will.

Baked Brown Rice

It's no big secret that I am slightly obsessed with America's Test Kitchen. Every month or so I pick up a different ATK book from the library, and almost every cookbook they have released has this amazing brown rice recipe. It was a dream come true because I love brown rice. It has the nuttiness and heartiness that plain white rice lacks, but it seemed the brown rice NEVER turned out correctly. I tried the rice cooker, stove top, and boiling, but it always seemed to fail me, until I came across this recipe. I give you my word that it will turn out every time.

Yes, you may notice that brown rice is not a veggie-based recipe, nor does it have any veggies in it. I have a recipe coming up on Friday that needs this recipe, so go ahead and bake your rice and have it prepped for the recipe coming Friday!