Food

Festive Kale Salad

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kale salad

kale saladKale salad

For those of us who think we don’t like kale, think again. You’ll like this festive kale salad. You get to decide what to add to the kale, and once it’s put together, you’ll be coming back for more.

My daughter-in-law Rae puts this festive kale salad together often, and it’s always a treat. There’s no real rhyme or reason on how to do this or what to add, but there’s one important part. Do this important part, and you’ll have it made.

After the kale is clean, rub olive oil(with sea salt) onto each kale leaf, using your fingers. It needs to be enough to brighten the kale, but not enough to leave drippings in the bowl.

Next, you add your ingredients: petite provolone cheese chunks, craisins, slivered almonds, pumpkin seeds, and shredded parmesan cheese. Add more or less of each ingredient, depending on your taste preferences and how it looks. Mix it together and serve.

kale saladFestive and tasty

Rae served this kale salad the other evening at our women’s Christmas dinner. One of my friends was not going to take some. I told her she had to try this salad. She did, and she liked it. If you know my friend, you’ll know what feat this was. She does not do kale, raw or cooked. But she liked this salad.

The Recipe

kale salad

Festive Kale Salad

My Windowsill
Prepping the kale takes a little bit of time, but this kale salad is worth the effort. Nutrition, color, flavor, and texture all combine to make this a great salad.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 mins
Total Time 15 mins
Course Main
Cuisine American
Servings 8 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 4 - 6 cups Kale
  • 1/2 cup craisins
  • 1/2 cup slivered almonds
  • 1 cup cubed provolone cheese
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
  • 1/2 cup parmesan cheese shredded - optional
  • Sea salt
  • Olive Oil

Instructions
 

  • Rub each kale leaf with olive oil and sea salt.
  • Use enough to have the leaves glisten but not enough to have excess in the bowl
  • Add other ingredients
  • Toss together
  • Serve

This recipe is a re-post from a few years ago. This is the second Kale recipe I’m including this month. When you’re looking for a different salad recipe for the holidays, try one with Kale!

If you’re interested in learning more about kale, you can go to this link, provided to me by the Editor at Happy DIY Home.

pinterest festive kale salad

Apple Jello Salad

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jello with apples

Jello salad with apples

When I was a child, this jello salad dish was a regular on the table for Sunday dinner. The other regular was the same except the flavor of the jello. Mama used strawberry and pineapple jello with diced apples. We had both yellow and red apple jello salad for lunch on Sundays. When I serve this, I am back in my mama’s kitchen again.

The key to making this salad turn out right is to keep stirring it until the apples settle to the bottom and all around instead of just floating on the top. You’ll need to stir it every 15-30 minutes until it is set. I can still see the large serving spoons on the kitchen counter next to the refrigerator – one stained red and one stained yellow. They were used separately for the jello salads when Mama stirred them to make sure the apples settled where they belonged.

You can use regular jello or sugar free. For a quick set, you can use ice instead of the cup of cold water. I usually put the jello into the refrigerator until it begins to set, then add my diced apples. It will set faster this way. If you want to make sure you don’t forget to stir the jello, keep it on the counter in plain site so you won’t forget.

To make this jello salad, simply make the jello according to package directions. When the jello is partially set, add one cup of finely diced apples per 2 cups of water recipe. Keep stirring until it is setting well, then refrigerate until ready to serve. You can also put it in the refrigerator as it sets. You will need to keep stirring the jello from time to time – but putting it in the refrigerator helps speed up the jelling process.

The recipe

Jello Apple Salad

My Windowsill
An easy jello dish with apples makes for a fruity flavor as well as color.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 1 hr
Total Time 1 hr
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Servings 6 - 8 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 box small jello - any flavor; regular jello or sugar-free
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1 cup cold water or 8 ice cubes
  • 1 cup finely diced apples

Instructions
 

  • Dissolve jello in boiling water
  • Add cold water OR ice cubes
  • Stir thoroughly
  • Refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until jello begins to set
  • Peel and dice apple finely
  • When jello is just beginning to set, add the diced apples
  • Continue to allow jello to set, stirring occasionally
  • When apples are settled into the jello and not just floating on the top, stir once more
  • Refrigerate until ready to serve.

This recipe is a re-post from six years ago.

apple jello sal

Ham/Swiss Cheese (Slider) sandwiches

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A party affair- slider sandwiches.

Ham-Slider-Sandwiches MWMy friend Joy introduced me to this recipe for slider sandwiches when she asked me to contribute them to a book signing for a mutual friend. They have been a must-have ever since. Dinner rolls with ham and cheese and a butter/brown sugar/poppyseed sauce give elegance to a traditional sandwich. I have used white slider  buns, honey slider buns, and whole wheat slider buns as well. I’ve used both the small dinner rolls and Sister Schubert’s yeast dinner rolls (pictured).  I’ve never tried them with homemade dough, but I am sure that would work well also.

These sandwiches are great to make ahead and freeze. When you are ready to serve them, pull them out of the freezer, make the sauce and pour it on top.

You can even make the sauce ahead and freeze it if you’d like.  Just warm the sauce before you put it on the sandwiches. In addition to the ham and swiss cheese, you’ll need ingredients for the sauce.  Butter, mustard, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and poppyseeds fill the bill.

You can put the sauce inside the buns or on top.  Putting the sauce on the outside helps the buns stay moister.  It also makes the sandwiches a little messier.  [My family thinks it’s worth the mess.]

I am re-posting this from three years ago.

The recipe.

Ham/Swiss Cheese (Slider) sandwiches

www.mywindowsill.com
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 30 mins
Course sandwiches

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb. approximately deli ham or leftover ham from another meal.
  • 1/2 lb. approx baby Swiss cheese.
  • 24 small dinner rolls
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 2 Tbsp. prepared mustard
  • 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar

Instructions
 

  • Put ham and cheese on the rolls and place in a 9 x 13 inch pan OR put into freezer bags and place in freezer for later use.
  • For sauce, combine the last 5 ingredients
  • Heat on low until it comes to a boil.
  • When ready to serve, pour sauce over the tops of the sandwiches
  • Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
HAM slider Sandwiches PINTREST

Turkey Gumbo

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Turkey left-overs

I’m re-posting this recipe for turkey gumbo from many years ago. Our number has grown and I still use this recipe for anything that is left-over.

This is a sure-fire recipe to use up Thanksgiving (or Christmas) leftovers. ‘Only thing  is, there really isn’t a recipe. You just use up your left-over dishes and layer them into a casserole dish.

This year, due to most of my kids being out of town, one down with the flu, and someone who ended up working longer than planned, we only had thirteen folks at our table. Our 15-pound bird was more than enough for the small crowd, and we had plenty of left-over turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, and gravy.

and how to make turkey gumbo

So, instead of putting each dish into separate containers in the refrigerator for disposal of later, I layered the leftovers into a 9 x 11 casserole dish, covered it and put it in the refrigerator.

On Sunday morning, I put it into a 250-oven before church.  By the time we were ready for lunch, the dish was hot and ready to serve.

bread stuffing

I started with the bread stuffing since it was the driest of all the ingredients.  Next, I layered the turkey and then spread mashed potatoes evenly across the top. Last but not least, I poured gravy over the entire top of the pan.  The gravy seeped down through the potatoes and past the cracks of the turkey pieces. That’s all there is to it – heat it through and you’ve got some tasty turkey gumbo to serve.

ready to go into the oven

Be sure to cover the turkey gumbo with a lid or some tin foil to keep the potatoes from drying out.

Serve with other left-over vegetables or newly cooked vegetables, and you are ready to go!  You can find the recipe for the jello salad here.

Turkey Gumbo

My Windowsill
This is a guaranteed way to use up turkey leftovers - and other leftovers. Whether it's Thanksgiving or Christmas, this recipe will help you use up your leftovers in a way that everyone will enjoy.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 2 hrs
Total Time 2 hrs 10 mins
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 12 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2-4 cups bread stuffing
  • 2-4 cups leftover turkey boneless
  • 2-4 cups mashed potatoes
  • 2-4 cups gravy

Instructions
 

  • Using a 9 X 12 casserole dish, layer the ingredients in the above order.
  • Season with salt and pepper as desired
  • Cover with tin foil and refrigerate or freeze for later .
  • To serve, place in 200-250 oven and heat until hot through.
  • Serve with vegetables and a salad of choice.

Holiday Kale Salad

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kale salad

kale salad

Kale for the holidays

If you like kale, you will love this kale salad. If you don’t like kale, you can always substitute spinach for kale. And, if you don’t like kale or spinach, then it’s sad. I’m sure you could substitute lettuce but it won’t be the same. So you could keep trying and learn to like kale!

I claim no credit for this recipe, but my daughter-in-law Katie graciously shared her recipe with me when she made it for us over the Thanksgiving holiday. We agree that this is a great holiday (or anytime) salad. The pomegranates with the dark kale give an appearance of a holly tree. Not only is it dainty and festive, it’s delicious as well.

The how-to

kale salad
Wash the kale. Remove the vein (stem/hard part) and cut or tear kale into bite-sized pieces.

You can choose what nuts you want in the mixture. Don’t use peanuts, because that will really change the flavor and texture. Make your own combination of almonds, cashews, pecans, pistachios, and walnuts. You don’t have to include all of them, but use at least two or three. Put them in a food blender and mix them together. Don’t grind them to a powder; you want them to have some “chop” texture to them.

Kale is a great vegetable to give you plenty of vitamins and minerals. Try these for size: excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin C, vitamin A, manganese, and copper; a very good source of vitamin B6, fiber, calcium, potassium, vitamin E, and vitamin B2; and a good source of iron, magnesium vitamin B1, omega-3 fats, phosphorus, protein, folate, and vitamin B3.  You can click here for more health benefits.

kale salad

The recipe for kale salad

kale salad

Holiday Kale Salad

My Windowsill
Nutritious and colorful, this delightful kale salad will add flavor, color, and texture to your holiday meal. A nutmeat mixture and pomegranates laced together with homemade dressing will have you coming back for more.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 mins
Total Time 4 hrs 20 mins
Course Salad
Cuisine American

Ingredients
  

  • 8 cups kale - 2 bunches washed, drained, and cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1/2 - 1 cup pomegranates
  • 1 1/2 cups nutmeat - almonds cashews, pistachios, pecans, and walnuts. NO peanuts.
  • 1 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • DRESSING
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • juice of one lemon OR 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
  • 1/4 tsp. sea salt or regular salt
  • 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar

Instructions
 

  • Wash kale. Remove the vein.
  • Cut kale into bite-sized pieces
  • Chop garlic clove in food chopper/blender and add to nuts after mixing them.
  • Put nuts into food chopper/blender and make into a chopped mixture, NOT powder
  • Mix nutritional yeast with nuts (and garlic clove) and olive oil
  • Add nutmeat mixture and pomegranates to kale
  • Toss together well.
  • Mix together ingredients for dressing
  • Massage the leaves to get the dressing mixed through
  • Pour over salad and refrigerate for 4 hours

If you want to learn more about kale, you can go to this link provided to me by the Editor at Happy DIY Home.

This recipe is a re-post from five years ago.

kale salad