Pepperoni Pasta Salad

I am starting to really look forward to warmer weather and all of the changes in the kitchen that occur with that. I do love my comfort food and nothing can ever replace a good, old-fashioned hot casserole or steamy bowl of soup in my opinion. But I do love the salads and fresh fruits and veggies that come with summer.

This is one of my all-time favorite pasta salad recipes. During the summer, I make this at least once a week. The original recipe, which I lost a long time ago, came from my aunt. So I've been enjoying this ever since I was a little girl and I haven't gotten tired of it yet!
Pepperoni Pasta Salad

• 1 lb. grape tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 c. sliced black olives
• 1 4 oz. pkg. pepperoni, slices cut in half
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 bottle Creamy Italian salad dressing
• 3/4 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 lb. spaghetti noodles, cooked and chilled

1. Combine tomatoes, green pepper, olives, pepperoni, salt & pepper, and dressing in a large bowl.

2. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. (In a pinch, you can skip this step.)

3. Add cheese and spaghetti to bowl. Toss to combine.

4. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Sausage & Cheese Turnovers

This recipe uses the crescent roll dough that I shared yesterday. The recipe as given makes enough dough to make about 3 dozen of these turnovers and a dozen crescent rolls.

The turnovers themselves are so good! They take a little extra effort but they freeze really well. Plus, they are deceptively filling. Our family of six was full after eating a dozen of these for lunch and I was able to freeze the rest for later.

Also, the turnovers are versatile enough to be served for breakfast, brunch, lunch or as an appetizer.

Sausage & Cheese Turnovers

• Crescent roll dough, full batch (If you do not have the time or inclination to make the homemade dough, you can use canned crescent rolls. You'd probably need 2 or 3 cans.)
  
• 1 lb. bulk pork sausage, fully cooked and drained
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 c. sliced green onions (green parts only)
• 1 t. garlic powder
• 1 t. salt
• 1/2 t. black pepper

1. Prepare and let dough rise fully. Divide into 7 portions.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine fully cooked sausage, cream cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, green onions, and seasonings. Stir to combine well.

3. Roll out one portion of dough at a time on a floured surface. Roll into a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. Divide dough into six or eight sections.

4. Place about 1 tablespoon of the sausage mixture into the center of each section of dough. Fold over the dough and trim of extra edges. Seal the seams with a fork. Continue this process with the remaining sections and portions of dough.
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 15-18 minutes, or until lightly browned on top.

*I baked these fully before freezing. To reheat, do not thaw first. Just place desired number of turnovers on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees until heated through.

We are definitely hooked on these! To find out what others are hooked on today, head over to Hooked On Houses.

Also be sure to visit The Grocery Cart Challenge for more recipes.

Bacon, Cheese & Egg Biscuit Cups

I've had the idea for these cups floating around in my head for a long time. I've always loved appetizer-type dishes made with canned crescent rolls or biscuits. However, I wanted to be able to make similar dishes with a made-from-scratch dough. So I finally tackled that project this weekend and I am so happy with the way they turned out.

This recipe makes 2 dozen, so there are plenty to stick in the freezer to enjoy later. We reheated a frozen batch for lunch today and they turned out wonderfully! These are definitely versatile enough for breakfast or lunch.

Bacon, Cheese & Egg Biscuit Cups
For Biscuit Dough:

• 2 1/2 c. flour
• 2 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 T. sugar
• 1/2 c. butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 c. milk
• 1 egg, slightly beaten

1. In a large bowl, whisk or sift together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in milk and egg until dough comes together. Knead a few times by hand and set aside.

For Filling:

• 6 eggs
• 3 oz. cream cheese
• 1/2 c. milk
  
• 1 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
• To taste: hot sauce, garlic powder, salt, pepper...or any other seasonings you'd like to add

1. Whisk eggs in a large bowl. Stir in cream cheese and milk until smooth. Add other ingredients and stir to combine.

To assemble:

1. Using about 2 T. of biscuit dough at a time, press into the bottom, and 3/4 of the way up the sides, of lightly greased muffin tins. Pre-bake at 400 degrees for 3 minutes.
2. Pour 1/4 c. egg mixture into each pre-baked biscuit cup and bake for 12-15 minutes longer, until eggs are completely set and biscuit cups are slightly browned.
Stop by The Happy Housewife for more Hot Breakfast Challenge.

This post is also being linked to:

• Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace
• Tasty Tuesday at Forever, Wherever
• Kitchen Tip Tuesday at Tammy's Recipes
• Tackle-It Tuesday at 5MFM
• I Am Blissfully Domestic at Blissfully Domestic

Black Bean & Ham Soup

This recipe is a favorite in our house. I only make it twice a year because I like the authentic flavor of using a ham bone. So, after each Christmas and Easter, we all get excited because we know what's coming! Fortunately, this recipe makes a huge batch and provides enough soup to freeze at least 2 more meals worth.

Black Bean & Ham Soup

• 3 T. Extra-Virgin olive oil
• 6 stalks celery, plus leaves, chopped
• 2 large onions, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
  
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 T. cumin
• 2 t. rosemary
• 1 t. cayenne pepper
• 1 ham bone, with some meat still on the bone
• Water, about 12 cups
• 5 c. fully cooked black beans
• 1 1/2 c. white or brown rice
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Optional garnish: sour cream and extra cumin

1. Heat oil in a large stock pot. Add celery, onions, green pepper and garlic. Cook for 3 minutes. Stir in cumin, rosemary and cayenne pepper.

2. With the leftover ham bone, remove any ham that still cuts off easily and would be good for making other dishes. Freeze that ham. Add the ham bone with remaining meat to the stock pot. Cover completely with water. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours.
3. Remove the ham bone and any large chunks of ham that may have come off the bone. Set aside to cool and let the soup continue to simmer.
4. When the ham is cool enough to touch, shred as much of the edible meat as possible and return to the pot. Add the beans and rice.
5. Bring soup back to a rolling boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer until rice is completely cooked. (About 20 minutes for white rice and 1 hour for brown rice.)

6. Just before serving, taste the soup and season as desired with salt and pepper. You can also add more cumin and/or cayenne pepper at this time if you'd like the soup to have more punch.

7. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream and a pinch of cumin.

Asian Chicken Pasta Salad w/ Peanut-Ginger Dressing

This is one of our favorite summertime dinners. I enjoy it so much though that I've decided it is also a great lunch for the rest of the year. It makes a lot, so there's enough for us all to eat it for a few days.

Chicken Pasta Salad

• 1/2 lb. cooked and chilled pasta (best options are: spaghetti, angel hair, soba noodles, buckwheat noodles, or even ramen noodles)
• 2 c. cooked and shredded chicken
• 2 T. oil
• 1/2 diced onion
• 1/2 thinly sliced green or red pepper
• 3 c. thinly sliced cabbage
• 1 zucchini, cut into matchsticks
• 1 carrot, grated or cut into matchsticks

Peanut-Ginger Dressing

• 1/4 c. peanut butter, chunky or creamy
• 1/2 c. hot chicken stock (If you use the ramen noodles, you can use 1/2 a seasoning packet and 1/2 c. hot water)
• 1/4 c. tamari or soy sauce
• 1 T. sesame oil (optional)
• 1 T. honey
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 2 thinly sliced green onions
• 1 1/2 T. freshly grated ginger or 1 t. dried ginger powder
• 1/8-1/4 crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 c. chopped peanuts (optional)

Directions

For Chicken Pasta Salad

Heat 2 T. oil in a large, deep-sided skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add onion and pepper and cook for 1 minutes. Add pasta and cook until pasta starts to brown a bit, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Add chicken, cabbage, zucchini, and carrot. Cook until cabbage just begins to wilt (you want everything to still have a little crunch to it. Transfer to a bowl and chill in refrigerator.

For Peanut-Ginger Dressing

Place peanut butter in a small mixing bowl. Stir in hot (It is important that you use hot stock or the peanut butter will not melt) chicken stock and tamari until well blended. Add in remaining ingredients, except optional chopped peanuts, and refrigerate until dressing the salad. (If the dressing sits in the refrigerator for longer that 20 minutes or so, you may need to microwave it to bring it back to the correct consistency. Do this very carefully, 20-30 seconds at a time so that the peanut butter does not burn.)

To Serve

You can put the salad in a serving bowl or on individual plates and pour some dressing on top, or you can mix the two together before serving. If you want to mix the two, do this before refrigerating to save the step of bringing the dressing back to proper consistency. Garnish with chopped peanuts, if desired.

**Leftovers also taste wonderful for the next 2 - 3 days.