Fruit Salad

We all know that there are many different fruits to choose from, thus the possibilities really are endless when it comes to putting together a fruit salad.

I like fruit salad aside from macaroni salad. Fruit salad is a great way for kids to get vitamins and nutrients they need. I let my daughter to choose which varieties she would like to see join forces in their bowl, then I top with a dollop of yogurt and nuts and/or granola for a little protein.

Here’s a recipe for my favorite fruit salad:

INGREDIENTS:
1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced
1 pound seedless green grapes, halved
3 bananas, peeled and sliced
1 (8 ounce) container strawberry yogurt

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl, toss together strawberries, grapes, bananas, and strawberry yogurt. Serve immediately.

Luncheon Chicken Salad Recipe

I want to share the recipe for simple luncheon chicken salad with celery and mayonnaise and hard cooked eggs.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked cut-up chicken
1 cup chopped celery
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup mayonnaise, or as desired
2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped

Preparation:
Toss first 5 ingredients together, adding enough mayonnaise to moisten to desired consistency. Fold in chopped eggs. Serve on lettuce leaves and garnish as desired.
Serves 6.

Baked Chicken Macaroni Salad

If you are interested to know to make baked chicken macaroni salad recipe, here's what you need and what to do:

Ingredients:

8 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni (2 cups)
3 1/2 to 4 cups cooked chicken, sliced or cubed
1/3 cup chopped almonds, toasted
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese (8 ounces)
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
chopped fresh parsley, optional

Preparation:
Cook macaroni in salted boiling water as directed on package; drain. In a large bowl, combine macaroni, chicken, almonds, lemon juice and rind, shredded cheese, salt, pepper, and mayonnaise. Transfer to a buttered 2-quart casserole or baking dish. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired. Hot chicken salad with macaroni serves 4 to 6.

Creole Macaroni Salad

Have you tried mixing macaroni and tomatoes in one bowl? Serve this macaroni salad tossed with your favorite mayonnaise based dressing or serve with salad dressing on the side.

You need:

8 ounces cooked macaroni, rinsed and drained well
2 cups diced tomatoes
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sliced stuffed olives
2 tablespoons grated onions
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
lettuce leaves

You must:
Chill macaroni and measure 4 cups. Combine with remaining ingredients and serve with dressing on lettuce leaves.

Shrimp and Macaroni Salad

Have you tried making shrimp and macaroni salad? Not yet? Then try making one now!

You need:

1 cup light mayonnaise
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons brown spicy mustard
3 ribs celery, chopped
3 large tomatoes, diced
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 pound cooked shrimp
16 ounces shell macaroni (cooked without salt or fat)

You must:
Combine mayonnaise, seasonings, and mustard, in a large bowl. Mix well. Add celery, tomatoes and green onions. Mix well. Add shrimp and macaroni. Mix well. Refrigerate about 2 hours before serving.

Chicken Pasta Salad With Spinach

Yesterday I tried making chicken pasta salad with spinach. It is tossed with a flavorful mayonnaise and lemon juice dressing.

Here's what you need:

8 ounces fusilli or rotini pasta
1 cup coarsely chopped spinach
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup diced onion
1 medium clove garlic, finely minced
2 to 3 cups coarsely chopped chicken
1 to 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon or a favorite gourmet mustard
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf basil
salt, to taste

Here's How To Make:
Cook pasta following package directions; drain and rinse well.

Toss cooled pasta with the spinach, red bell pepper, onion, garlic, and chicken.

Combine 1 cup of the mayonnaise with wine vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, pepper, and basil. Toss with the pasta mixture. Add more mayonnaise, if needed. Taste and add salt, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving time for best flavor.
Serves 4 to 6.

Tuna Pasta Salad

My daughter really like salad. I tried making tuna pasta salad last week and she loved it. Tuna pasta salad is a great dish for a cookout or summer gathering too. This macaroni salad is made with canned tuna, mayonnaise, and chopped vegetables.

Ingredients:

1 package (8 ounces) small shell or elbow macaroni
1 can (6 to 7 ounces) tuna, drained, flaked
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Preparation:
Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain and rinse well. Drain thoroughly and transfer to a large bowl. Add the tuna, mayonnaise, and onion. Mix well and cool completely; blend in remaining ingredients. Cover and chill.
Serves 6.

Pasta Salad With Ham

I am now loving to eat pasta salad or macaroni salad. This pasta salad is hearty enough for lunch, or serve it along with grilled meat for a cookout or summer meal.

Here's what you need in making pasta salad:

* 8 ounces fusilli pasta, or rotini or similar
* 8 ounces diced ham
* 1/2 cup chopped red onion
* 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper, red, green, or combination
* 1 can (4 ounces) sliced black olives
* 1 large clove garlic, mashed and finely minced
* 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
* 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 6 basil leaves, chopped, optional
* 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt, Creole seasoning blend, or a seasoned salt blend, to taste
* 1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
* 3/4 cup mayonnaise

How to Make:
Cook pasta in boiling salted water following package directions. Drain, rinse, and put in a large bowl. Add the diced ham, onion, bell pepper, black olives, minced garlic, parsley, pepper, chopped basil, and salt or Creole seasoning blend. Toss to mix. Add relish and mayonnaise and mix well. Add more mayonnaise, if desired.
Serves 4 to 6.

Macaroni Salad

I have a 2 year old daughter. She does not like to eat rice. She always drinks her milk (Pediasure). Right now I am giving her also heraclene and multivitamins. She recently like to eat noodles, soup, beef noodles, chicken noodles, and macaroni salad. That is why I am making macaroni salad every week. It is very easy to make one.

INGREDIENTS
* 1 (16 ounce) package macaroni
* 1/2 cup mayonnaise
* 1 cup cucumber - peeled, seeded and chopped
* 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
* 1 cup diced ham
* 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
* 3 tablespoons olive oil
* 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
* salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until al dente, rinse under cold water and drain.
2. Combine the pasta, mayonnaise and mix well. Stir in cucumber, onion, ham and cheese. Mix well. Drizzle oil and vinegar over top and toss. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Eating Crabs

Did you know that there is a saying in Japan about eating crabs? When you eat crabs, you become silent. Isn’t it interesting? Why? It’s because you are too busy to say a word when you eat crabs.

In Japan, you can see different variety of crabs like the king crabs and horsehair crabs. Snow crabs are the very common. The most popular meal using snow crabs is hot pot meal called kani-chiri or crab shabu shabu.

Japanese Steak

I love eating steak. The image below is what we ate when I was in Japan last year. Beef is a luxury; it is used sparingly and for special occasions in Japan. This steak is teriyaki style, which means teriyaki is all in the marinade. Teriyaki marinade contains soy sauce, ginger, sugar and Sake or Mirin. This marinade can also be used on most any meat.

How to make sure that the steak will taste good? Take the steak you are going to grill and make 1/4 inch slices into the surface of the meat at a 45-degree angle on both sides in order to get the most from the marinade. Why this is needed? This will allow the flavor to get deep into the meat. Cut across the grain to increase the tenderness of the meat. Cut down on the time you need to marinate. After that, place the steak in the marinade and refrigerate for 2 hours. Then it is ready to cook on a hot grill.

Nutritional Tofu

Tofu is one of my favorite viands. Well, it is known for its extraordinary nutritional benefits, as well as its versatility. Below is an image of tofu viand I have ordered at my favorite restaurant in Japan.

Soya curd, as known by some, is made by curdling soya milk with a coagulant. There are three types of tofu. The firm tofu is dense and can be cubed and stir-fried, grilled, scrambled, pickled, smoked, baked, barbecued or served in soups. This tofu is high in protein fats and calcium. The soft tofu is more suited for recipes in which tofu needs to be blended. Lastly, the silken tofu has a creamy structure and is also used in blended dishes.

Tofu For Me

Here I have ordered this healthy meal from my favorite restaurant in Japan. I have been fascinated with tofu these days. I have learned that tofu is rich in nutrients. Tofu is rich in both high quality protein and B-vitamins. It is an excellent substitute for meat in many vegetarian recipes. Aside from that tofu contains a lot of calcium, which originates from the coagulant. The soy proteins are precipitated with calcium, providing tofu with a ready source of calcium, when making tofu. And this calcium contributes to the prevention of osteoporosis.

Aside from the nutrients we got from tofu, it is also easy to digest. How? The soybean’s fiber is removed during the manufacturing process. Furthermore, tofu reduces cholesterol. It reduces heart disease by lowering the level of the "bad" LDL cholesterol, and as the result maintaining the level of "good" HDL cholesterol.

Japanese Ice Cream

We all know that ice cream is a frozen dessert that is loved by everybody. The image below is a Japanese ice cream I have eaten while I was in Japan before. Well Japan has a fine history of taking Western products and producing innovative new versions. Indeed, they have gone too far with ice cream.



Have you tried eating these ice creams, like abalone (shellfish), basashi (raw horse meat), brown rice, cherry blossom, curry, charcoal, chicken wings, deep sea water, dried kelp (seaweed), garlic, goat, lettuce, natto (fermented soy beans), noodle, oyster, persimmon, potato, red wine, sesame, shark fin, spinach, stout (beer), tulip, wasabi, whale, and wheat?

Tempura

Do you like crispy Tempura? Tempura is usually termed for the popular Japanese dish of deep fried battered meats, seafood, or vegetables. Shown below is my favorite tempura, deep fried seafood!



Well, it is not so hard to make delicious tempura at home. As a matter of fact, you can easily found all the ingredients at your grocery stores.

Here I want to share the basic steps for cooking tempura:

1. You must first prepare the ingredients you prefer like vegetable, seafood, banana or anything you like.
2. Make the tempura batter.
3. Heat vegetable oil in a deep pan to 340-350F degree.
4. Lightly dip ingredients in batter and immediately fry them until crisp. Take note that it takes longer to fry vegetables than to fry seafood.
5. Drain tempura on a rack.
6. Serve right away with tempura dipping sauce, which is called tentsuyu, or salt.

Remember that tempura is best served when hot.