We had lunch at church yesterday, so I decided to take a couple tried and true recipes, and one new salad. I made a cold Italian macaroni salad since it was going to be a hot day. I then decided on homemade French Bread (that I’ve shared before) to go with it. This bread is so easy and is a perfect accompaniment to a salad. It can be on your cooling rack in a matter of less than two hours and it makes two loaves!
A friend had served us a piece of pound cake recently and it created a hunger for more! I pulled out my Cooking Light recipe and made the Blueberry Pound Cake. We were rewarded with a beautiful cake, but with less fat than an old-fashioned recipe! You can’t beat that! You would never know it’s light! This is a great recipe!
Here’s the Italian Salad I made. It looks like whole wheat pasta, but it’s not -it’s the balsamic dressing that goes over the salad that darkens the pasta. I love cold pasta salads in the summertime! This was good! You could add or delete ingredients to suit your family’s taste.
Italian Salad
8 oz. elbow macaroni
12 oz. cherry tomatoes
1 red bell pepper
1 red onion, chopped
7 oz. Mozzarella cheese, cubed
12 black olives, pitted
1 oz. fresh basil leaves
shavings of fresh Parmesan cheese, to garnish
Crusty bread, to serve
For the dressing:
5 tbl exra virgin olive oil
2 tbl balsamic vinegar
1 tbl chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper
Cook pasta according to directions. It should be tender, but firm. Drain. Rinse under cool running water.
While pasta is cooking, make the dressing by mixing all ingredients in a small jar. Cover and set aside.
Mix salad ingredients in a bowl. Pour dressing over and mix. Cover and refrigerate until cool. Scatter over the basil leaves. Garnish with fresh Parmesan cheese shavings and serve with crusty bread (like the French Bread on today’s post!).
What do you like to make for dinner on a hot summer day?
From my parsonage kitchen,
RefreshHer 