Fruit Salad

This is super easy (aside from the time consuming part of chopping the fruit) and yummy. My mother-in-law makes this but she uses canned fruit, drained. I prefer the fresh stuff, but either way is good. Our favorite fruits to use are strawberries, bananas, kiwi, apples, nectarines/peaches, and grapes (if your kids will eat this, you may want to slice the grapes in half). Also this is best if eaten with in the first couple days... it starts to get real mushy after that.

1 medium sized tub of coolwhip
1 small box of pudding, unprepared (I like cheesecake flavor the best, but banana or vanilla are good, too.)
chopped fruit (I'm guessing about 4-6 cups)

Mix the coolwhip and pudding powder together and set aside while you chop the fruit. Throw it all in a bowl and stir.

If you're making this for a large group, the large tub of coolwhip and large pudding box will work, too.

Spinach Salad with Strawberries

This one I got from Megan Smith, anyone remember her? She used to be in our ward a few years ago and alway had awesome recipes!!

Salad

1 cup sliced strawberries

1 cup sugared cashew pieces (I use plain or honey roasted, whatever I can find at the store)

1/3 cup bacon pieces

1 purple onion, Sliced

1 head red leaf lettuce

1 package fresh spinach

Dressing

2 tblsp Red Wine Vinegar

3 tblsp white sugar

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup dry mustard

1/2 teasp salt

1/2 cup strawberry jam

Combine all salad ingredients and toss together. Combine dressing ingredients and beat together. Drizzle dressing over salad. Serve and enjoy.

*tip: One of the best ways I have to get the onion smell off my hands when I chopped an onion is to run my metal knife under cool water and using the flat part of the knife rub it back and forth against the metal...I do cut my onions with a big, almost butcher size knife. This gives me lots of metal to rub! It works like a charm every time!

BBQ Chicken Salad

I think I may have given this to some of you already, but here it is again. It's worth it! I originally got it from Tammy Matthews, so the credit goes to her.

1 head of romaine lettuce (you can use more or less depending on how many you are feeding)
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 cup canned corn, drained
1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup BBQ sauce (more or less if desired)
1/2 cup ranch dressing (more or less if desired)
cilantro
tomato
green onion

Mix all together and eat with tortilla chips and cheese.

* It's best to eat this all the night you make it. It tends to get a little soggy when you keep it overnight.