Greek Rice Salad

Found a recipe that looks yummy on an index card as I was re-organizing recipes today.  With a little tweaking, I think I've made it a healthier -- and yummier -- version of something we already liked.

Which makes it something yummy we can eat more frequently now that we are trying to eat more healthfully.

Anyway, thought I'd share it with you all, in case you want to give it a try, too.  It's easy and the leftovers make a wonderful salad to bring in for lunch the next day.

Here's the recipe:

Presto! Change-O! Leftover Magic

Yesterday's dinner was a pot roast that I cooked up in the crock pot.  It was flavorful, tender and delicious.

Honestly, I could not survive without our crock pot.  As busy as some days are here, having something I can throw ingredients into in the morning that cooks all day for me and then produces tender, flavorful yummy-ness at the end of the day?

Priceless.

Tonight, though, I'm going to work a little leftover magic, mostly because Mr. ReddHedd had a larger than usual helping of the roast beef yesterday and I don't have three full servings to split out among the three of us now.

So...voila!

I'm making open-faced roast beef sandwiches with gravy and a side of heated up leftover potatoes, onions and carrots, also likely with a smattering of gravy on top.  We like love gravy.

I saved some of the juice from the roast yesterday evening, and I'll skim off the excess fat and then make gravy tonight.

This is one of our favorite leftover conversion tricks.

I also perform this with turkey and roast pork to stretch things out a bit if we don't have a full amount of servings after eating.  It is such satisfying comfort food that no one really notices they have gotten  less meat the second day.  (Shhhhhhhh...)

Just Add Avocado

After years of being fat phobic, I discovered what nutrition science has confirmed: without certain good fats in my diet, my nails start to feel brittle along with my hair, and my skin gets really pasty.  Ugh.

And I just don't feel well overall without them.

So I've been making an effort to get good fats back into our diet on a regular, yet moderate, basis.

One that I love is the avocado.  With its monounsaturated fat and essential fatty acids, avocados help regulate cholesterol, raising the good stuff (HDL) while helping to lower the bad (LDL).   They are also rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for everything from gorgeous skin to heart health.

They also help with the absorption of other essential vitamins and nutrients, including lycopene from tomatoes which pair beautifully with avocados in just about anything.

Plus, they taste super on a sandwich or chopped as a gazpacho topping.  Who doesn't love that?

Jonesing For Fresh Tomato Season

Huzzah! My tomato plants have some blooms on them, which means I'm that much closer to this summer's first ripe tomato off the vine.

Honestly, is there anything better than that first juicy, ready to slice and devour sun-ripened tomato fresh from your very own garden ?

Mr. ReddHedd would say that yes, there are any number of things better than that.  (He's not much of a fresh tomato fan, sadly.)   But for me?  Just the thought of a bowl of fresh tomatoes, sliced basil leaves and some fresh mozzarella tossed with a drizzle of good olive oil and some sea salt?

Heaven.

I found a recipe for a fresh tomato salad dressing that is lovely with a combination of hothouse grape tomatoes and a couple of Romas.  If it's good already with those, imagine the amazing taste of fresh tomatoes from the garden in a month or so.

Ahhhhh....bliss.

Yummy Greek Salad Variation

I stumbled across a great Greek salad recipe on the Weight Watchers website the other day, but I couldn't resist a little tweak to add some more veggies.  Am trying to get more fiber and veggies into my diet to up my antioxidant consumption and help me stay healthier.

I used low-fat feta because I couldn't find the fat free kind at my local store this week.  Do use the roasted red peppers -- they really make the salad, in my opinion.

Here's my version, which is fantastic as a tote-along salad for lunch if you are working (just keep the dressing in a separate container until it is time to eat, or your lettuce will wilt horribly).

Christy's Variation of WW Greek Salad With Chicken And Lemon-Dill Dressing