Mariel here. This weekend was one for the books. Despite the weatherman’s warnings that Saturday would be rainy and gray, Mother Nature pulled out the big guns and dished up two days of clear blue skies and 70-degree temps. My husband and I headed east to see both of our moms for Mother’s Day and[…]
Spinach Salad with Balsamic Chicken, Roasted Tomatoes and Greek Olives
Mariel here. Last weekend, I had a hankering for my mom’s incredible Herb & Garlic Roasted Chicken with Figs. As I’ve mentioned many times before, however, patience is not my strong suit, so the thought of marinating this dish overnight all but killed my urge to indulge. Incidentally, I had also spent the previous day eating[…]
Chunky Chicken Salad with Cherries and Walnuts
Mary Anne here. Our frugal-yet-fabulous mantra would be a whole lot harder to maintain without scooping up seasonal fruits and veggies. And right now, in the midst of this sultry July, Bing cherries are at their peak. While we’ve all seen recipes for chicken salad with grapes, it occurred to me that it might prove[…]
Garden Pasta Salad with Chicken Sausage, Dried Apricots, and Walnuts
Mary Anne here. The weather outside is frightful – and I’m not talking snow. Here in the Northeast, we’ve been hitting 90-degrees almost daily, and the Weather Channel is predicting we’ll top out at 100 by the end of the week…and it’s only the sixth of July! This past weekend, I was hankering for my[…]
Herbed Croutons
Mary Anne here. ‘Tis the season for cleaning out the fridge and addressing those bits of leftovers too good to toss, but not really all that appetizing in their current condition. This was the case with our leftover breads and rolls from Christmas dinner. And as Michael pointed out, turning bread into crumbs was redundant[…]
Waldorf Salad with Brussels Sprouts
Mary Anne here. Traditionally, my family forgoes a green salad on Turkey Day in favor of all of the other scrumptious sides we can chow down on just once a year. We do, however, always have fresh green beans in some form – a slight nod to healthier fare. But for some reason, this year[…]
Summer Tomato Salad with Brie and Bermuda Onion
Mary Anne here. Tomatoes are reportedly in season here, but again, given the recent spate of rainstorms, local tomatoes have yet to make an appearance at my local green grocer. Not to be discouraged, I opted for grape tomatoes, which were on sale for $2 a pint and I dressed them up with a bit[…]
Crunchy Vegetarian Brown Rice Salad
Mary Anne here. In discussing new recipes for our blog, Mariel offered to take a stab at creating a recipe for Chinese-Style Tilapia, and given how busy this summer has been, I jumped at the chance to relax a bit and provide a simple side dish for her entree. This is our first joint venture[…]
Roasted Beets with Pears and Feta
Mariel here. I love beets. Roasted, pickled, spicy, sweet or salted, I order beets whenever possible – I’m predictable that way. I haven’t, however, ever made beets at home. They look weird in the grocery store, like they’d be impossible to cook and require some sort of ancient skill (I feel the same way about[…]
Sweet Potato and Red Onion Salad
Mary Anne here. This salad is an incredible marriage of sweet and savory; one that my East Hampton clients have consistently requested over the years. The sweet potatoes have the added bonus of being not only lo-cal, but loaded with Beta-Carotene which we all know is very good for us! It’s best served at room[…]
Sweet and Crunchy Summer Corn Salad
Mary Anne here. This is actually the first in a series of what Mariel and I call “dueling dishes.” Awhile back, Mariel created her own version of Bean and Corn Salad and it’s truly a winner both in form and flavor. My recipe is somewhat different and so in our very first recipe duel, I[…]
Bean Salad with Summer Corn and Cilantro
Mariel here. This past weekend my fiance and I moved apartments. We migrated from the West Village all the way up to the Upper West Side, a transition that kinda feels a bit like moving to the ‘burbs. It’s different up here. Since I’m still in a state of flux – there’s hardly any furniture,[…]
Heirloom Tomato and Bread Salad
Mariel here. A LOT of eating happened this weekend. My mom came out to our family house in Long Island loaded up with fried chicken, mac salad and deviled eggs galore. Not usually one to chow down on fatty foods, I threw caution to the wind and indulged. And indulged. Today, I’m paying the price.[…]
Macaroni Salad with Tuna and Sweet Pickles
Macaroni Salad with Tuna and Sweet Pickles Serves 12 Ingredients: 1 lb. Medium Shells, cooked according to package directions – $0.80 2 + cups Mayonnaise – stock 1 medium yellow onion, diced – $0.52 3 large stalks of celery, chopped – $0.44 1-16 oz. jar Sweet Gherkin Pickles – $2.00 ¼ cup of the pickle[…]
Salade Nicoise (a la On the Cheap)
Serves 6 Mary Anne here. As far as I’m concerned, this salad is only limited by one’s imagination. While I’ve written my version of a traditional Salade Nicoise, feel free to improvise. Asparagus or canned artichokes sub-in nicely for green beans, or swap out the sweet red pepper for a tangy green one. Eliminate portions[…]
Thai Spinach Salad with Mango & Avocado
Serves 6 Ingredients: 1 8oz. bag organic baby spinach – $3.99 1 large, ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and cut into thin slices – $1.50 2 ripe Haas avocados, halved, pitted, and sliced – $2.58 ½ red bell pepper, julienned (narrow slices) – $0.39 3 Tablespoons dry roasted peanuts, chopped – $2.49 *Note: See Mango Salsa and Guacamole recipes for how[…]
Green Salad with Montrachet Croutons
Serves 8 The croutons can be made one day in advance and re-crisped on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees for 5 minutes just before serving. Ingredients for the Dressing: 4 tablespoons shallots, finely minced – $0.98 1 clove of garlic, minced – from stock 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard – from stock ¼ cup red[…]
Wild Rice Salad with Montrachet, Currants and Scallions
Serves 8 with leftovers Mary Anne here. This recipe is delicious served hot, cold, or at room temperature. It’s been a staple in my catering business for years and the type of work-horse recipe I can’t imagine living without. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do! Ingredients: ¾ lb. premium quality wild[…]