Spinach & Cheese Tortellini Salad

This is a really easy yummy salad that looks pretty too.  This is one of those recipes that doesn't have exact measurements. You can make a lot or a little. 

• 1-2 Bags raw fresh spinach
• Box of cherry tomatoes
• Can of black olives-sliced
• 1 Bag of fresh cheese tortellini - Boil for 5-6 minutes, then drain, then cool before adding it to the salad.  Be careful not to overcook the noodles because then they get really mushy.  
• 1 bottle of Italian dressing
• Shredded Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese

*Combine Spinach, tomatoes, olives, tortellini in a large bowl. Pour and toss the dressing over the salad and then toss in the cheese.  

Black Bean Soup

This is definitely my go-to soup! It is so yummy, easy, and fills you up! Madison requests this soup all the time. Serve with chips, warm pita wedges or great with a Cheese Quesadilla.


INGREDIENTS:
• 2 15oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed (or lately I have been using dried black beans but you have to think to cook them before hand)
• 2 cups of chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 tsp ground cumin

TOPPINGS:

• Sour cream
• Chopped cilantro
• Shredded Cheese
• Chips
• Avocados
• Warm pita wedges
• Cheese Quesadilla
  

PREPARATION:
Lightly puree one can of black beans with broth, salsa and cumin in a blender. In a
medium saucepan combine pureed bean mixture with remaining beans and heat
through.Top each bowl with your choice of toppings.

Caribbean Passion-ish Smoothie

We are huge Jamba Juice fans here at our house and Caribbean Passion is our favorite flavor, so when we found this recipe, we had to try it.
It is so good! Both Beau and I were totally shocked at how similar it is to the original. We couldn't tell the difference at all!

3/4 cup water
1/4 cup frozen orange-peach-mango juice concentrate (Dole)
1 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup frozen peaches
1 cup tropical sherbet (we used orange flavored sherbet)
1/2 cup ice cubes

• Pour the water into the blender. Add the frozen fruit juice, strawberries, peaches, sherbet and ice.
• Blend until no big chunks of ice or frozen fruit are left. You want the smoothie to be ... smooth. But also thick. Don't let it get runny.

Try this! It's seriously so good and an awesome way to get your kids to eat fruit with not a lot of sugar.

Hollandaise Sauce

This is a simple but super good hollandaise sauce recipe that I make a lot to drizzle on asparagus or dip artichokes in (artichoke season starts this month!).
It can be a little tricky to make correctly, but the key is to do it slowly over a really low heat so that the eggs don't scramble, and to whisk constantly.

1 cube butter
2 egg yokes
3 Tbsp lemon juice (fresh or bottled, it doesn't matter)

Add all ingredients together in a small sauce pan and whisk constantly over a low heat until it's combined and almost the consistency of pudding, but not quite as stiff as pudding.

Coconut Syrup

This coconut syrup is amazing! I could eat it by the spoonful.
We especially love it on pancakes topped with strawberries.

1 cube of butter (No substitutes)
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of real buttermilk
Mix contents together and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Let
boil for 2 minutes then remove from stove and add:
1/2 tsp. of baking soda
1/2 tsp of coconut extract
CAUTION: When baking soda and coconut flavor is added and stirred in,
the syrup expands to almost double the size.

ENJOY!