Watermelon Feta Salad

Ingredients:
 2 cups of watermelon (balled)
1/2 English cucumber (peeled and cut)
 1/4 or less of a red onion (thinly sliced)
 4 fresh basil leaves
 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
 1 tablespoon of agave
 sprinkle of feta cheese
 sprinkle of sea salt (optional)

 Directions:
In a large mixing bowl, combine the watermelon, cucumber, onion, and basil In a separate smaller mixing bowl, combine the vinegar, olive oil, and agave Add the bowl with the dressing to the bowl with the watermelon Sprinkle with feta cheese and sea salt (optional) Makes 2 servings

Chicken and Cherry Salad with Cucumber Dressing.

SALAD:
6-8 cups Baby Arugula and Baby Spinach
20-30 cherries, pitted and sliced in half
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 vidalia onion, sliced
1 cooked chicken breast, diced

CUCUMBER DRESSING:
1/2 cucumber
2 tablespoons diced vidalia onion
juice 2 limes
1/4 cup or sugar
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup light olive oil
salt to taste

Toss all ingredients for the salad together.

CUCUMBER DRESSING:
Place all ingredients in a blender. Peel the skin from the cucumber before adding it to the blender. Blend until smooth.

Strawberry Salad Dressing

Light and sweet, this salad dressing is easy to make. I love it served over leafy greens with fresh strawberries, blueberries, candied pecans and feta cheese.

1 clove garlic
1/8 slice of a small purple onion
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup strawberries
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup extra light olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon poppyseeds

Place all ingredients (except poppyseeds) into a blender. Blend until entirely pureed. Stir in poppyseeds. Serve immediately over your favorite salad.

Or.. you may like to try this Medjool Date Salad.

8 oz. fresh Medjool dates
8 oz. mixed greens or romaine lettuce
4 oz. feta cheese

Remove pits from Medjool dates and cut into quarters. Then cut each one more time to make 8 "cubes" per date. Combine dates with greens, feta cheese and Strawberry Salad Dressing and toss.

Crab Cakes

serves 1-2

1 pound crab meat
8 saltine crackers, crushed
1 egg
1 tablespoon mustard
1 tablespoon Greek yogurt
pinch of paprika
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoons olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a bowl except oil and stir until thoroughly combined. Heat a skillet on medium heat and add olive oil. While it’s heating, form the crab mixture into small patties. You will get about 5 to 6 cakes. Place them in the skillet and cook until lightly golden brown, about 3-4 minutes on each side.

This is wonderful with cole slaw and/or sweet potato fries. Enjoy.

Sweet Potato Fries
PREP TIME: 5 minutes
COOK TIME: 30 minutes
Serves 4

2 large sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Carefully cut the potatoes into 1/4″ thin strips, or to your desired thickness and length. Then place in a large bowl, and toss with oil until potatoes are evenly coated.

Then spread out the potatoes evenly on a baking sheet. Try not to overcrowd the sheet, or have multiple layers of fries — you want them to be roasted, not steamed.

Place in oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, turning the fries once or twice during that time to cook evenly. May take more or less time, depending on the size and thickness you cut the fries. Remove once the edges slightly begin to brown and fries begin to crisp.

Green Melon Cocktail.

Made with Midori melon liquer.
1oz Midori
1oz Malibu Rum
1/2oz Cream of coconut
1/2oz fresh Lime Juice
1 1/2oz Pineapple Juice

Pour ingredients over ice into a glass and stir gently. Garnish with a pineapple wedge, if you would like..

4 Granola Recipes. One of them is Patti's.

I love/love Vanilla Greek yogurt or Vanilla Yogurt. I choose one of the two tasty Granola recipes, to alternate with yogurt in a tall glass for a quick summer lunch. I found another Granola recipe to try, please follow the link at the bottom of the post to view.. Also.. Please check out Patti's Awesome, Granola recipe(located in the comments). Enjoy.

Recipe #1.
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup finely shredded carrots
1/4 cup agave nectar or honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp light oil
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup raisins

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl  combine the oats, pecans and coconut.

In a smaller bowl  combine the carrots, agave, brown sugar, vanilla, oil, and spices. Stir until mixed, then pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients. Mix together with your hands until everything is mixed well.

Spread the granola in an even layer over the parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake in a 325 degree oven for 40-50 minutes until the granola had become crisp and golden brown.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool before stirring in the raisins.

Recipe #2.

4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup dark cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Dark)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup light oil
1/4 cup agave nectar or honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 ounces dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup dried cherries

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, coconut, almonds, salt, cocoa powder and brown sugar. Mix well. In a medium sized microwaveable bowl, combine the oil and honey. Microwave for about 30 seconds. Whisk until well combined. Add the vanilla and combine. Pour over the dry ingredients and stir well until all is coated. Spread evenly on the baking sheet. Bake for about 22 minutes. Remove from oven and don’t mix the granola. Let cool completely. Break into pieces. Add the dark chocolate chips and dried cherries.

Please click  HERE for Vanilla Bean Raw Granola recipe.

Chopped Chicken Salad

This is a great main-dish salad that is perfect for spring and summer. If you want, you can just pick up a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store, to save time.

1/3 cup red-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
6 cups chopped romaine lettuce
2 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
2 small bell peppers, chopped
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup sliced ripe black olives
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1.Whisk vinegar, oil, dill, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add lettuce, chicken, cucumber, onion, olives and feta. Toss to coat.

2. Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a medium skillet or saucepan. Add lightly salted water (or chicken broth) to cover and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10 to 15 minutes.