end of summer salad

Prep time: One hour and 25 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients:
1 ½ cups cooked black beans
1 ¼ cups cooked red beans
1 cup cooked corn kernels
¾ cup pitted and sliced black olives
1 cup cubed raw yellow summer squash
1 cup cubed raw zucchini
1 cup salsa (your favorite)
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
4 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
8-10 romaine lettuce leaves
Sea salt
Black pepper
Cilantro sprigs for garnish

Gently mix beans, corn, olives, and squash with salsa (be careful not to mash up the beans). Add olive oil and cilantro.

Chill for one hour.

Wash, dry, and plate romaine leaves. Spoon bean mixture onto the leaves. Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.

berry banana smoothie

Prep time: 10 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:
1 cup strawberries
½ cup blueberries
1 cup vanilla yogurt
½ cup milk
½ cup grape juice
¼ cup crushed ice
1 banana
1 tbsp. maple syrup

In blender, add strawberries, blueberries, yogurt, milk, grape juice, and ice. Blend on medium. Then, add banana, cut in thirds, and add maple syrup. Blend on low.

Pour in juice glasses with slice of strawberry on rim.

rigatoni melanzana

Prep time: 35 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients:
5 small eggplants (Japanese)
2 tsp. sea salt
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 small onions
2 cloves garlic
½ tsp. crushed red pepper
¼ cup red vino
1 tsp. oregano
6 fresh basil leaves
1 cup whole black olives (with pits removed)
¾ cup grape tomatoes
1 lb. rigatoni (your favorite)
Parmesan cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 400°.  Wash and slice eggplants in halves, leaving stems. Coat with 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tsp. sea salt. Place in a glass baking dish or roasting pan and roast for 25 minutes in the oven.

While the eggplants roast, sauté (on medium heat) 1 tbsp. olive oil and 2 sliced small onions, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tsp. sea salt, and ½ tsp. crushed red pepper.  Once onions are translucent, pour in ¼ cup vino, 1 tsp. dried oregano, 4 fresh basil leaves, black olives, and sliced grape tomatoes. Lower heat and allow this to simmer. Once eggplants are roasted, gently toss them in with the sautéed vegetables.

Boil rigatoni. Set aside.

Add the sautéed vegetables over the rigatoni in a pasta serving bowl. Garnish with 2 fresh basil leaves and Parmesan cheese to your liking.

baked broccoli frittata

Prep time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients:
1 ¾ cup chopped broccoli
Extra virgin olive oil
2 -3 slices of your favorite bread
8 large eggs
½ cup milk
2 tsp. dill
1 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. pepper
8 oz. Colby-Jack cheese
Fresh parsley to garnish

Steam brocolli. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350°. Drizzle the bottom of a deep-dish pie pan with olive oil. Slice and arrange bread slices to fit the bottom of the pan (one layer). Spread broccoli over the bread.

In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and seasonings. Add shredded or finely chopped cheese and pour the egg mixture into the pie dish, spreading the cheese and broccoli evenly. Bake on the middle rack for 35 minutes.

Garnish with fresh parsley.

cannellini basil salad

Prep time: 10-15 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:
1 ½ cups cannellini beans (one 15.5 oz. can)
1 cup grape tomatoes
4 scallions
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
½ tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. pepper
10 fresh basil leaves

Rinse the cannellini beans and place in bowl. Slice tomatoes in halves. Remove roots from scallions and slice ¾ the way up from the bulbs. Mix tomatoes and scallions with beans. Add olive oil, red wine vinegar, sea salt, pepper and 8 chopped fresh basil leaves. Garnish with remaining basil leaves and serve. Optional: sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.