Amy's Pasta Salad ***

This was wonderful once again.  I love the pepperonis after they've soaked up some of the dressing.  I really didn't make any changes, other than never using the last 1/2 bottle of dressing.  The 1-1/2 was plenty, in my opinion.  I think that any more would have surely overpowered the veggies.  I also used frozen broccoli florettes and cauliflower.  I didn't know if it would work as well, but I steamed them, and it came out just as well as the fresh.  This makes a TON of salad, though.  Perfect for our Memorial Day get together!  It was absolute deliciousness! (For the record, I'm not the "Amy" in the title.  That's pure coincidence, lol.)

AMY'S PASTA SALAD
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Cooks.com)

2 bottles Paul Newman Italian salad dressing
2 tomatoes
1 white onion
1 green pepper
1 head cauliflower
1 head broccoli
1 can black olives
1 pkg. tri-colored pasta corkscrew noodles
1 pkg. small pepperoni
1 small-medium container feta cheese
Garlic powder
Pepper
Oregano
Parmesan cheese

Cook noodles as directed on package. Steam broccoli and cauliflower until crisp. Cut up all other vegetables, cheese and pepperoni. Mix all of the above in very large bowl. Add 1 bottle dressing, mix well. Add seasonings to your liking. I add it 2-3 times while mixing. Add 1/2 of the second bottle of dressing and mix well. Refrigerate overnight before serving. Add rest of dressing. Great for picnics and large groups!

Caesar Tortellini Salad ***

This was actually really good.  Hubby hates avocado as a general rule, but he said that he couldn't taste it at all in here.  Once it's been refrigerated, the flavors all kind of blend together, and the avocado serves more as a means of adding to the creaminess than as a flavor of its own.  I refrigerated it for about 8 hours, but it was even better the next day.  I'll definitely be making it again.

CAESAR TORTELLINI SALAD
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ TasteofHome)

3-1/2 cups frozen cheese tortellini
3 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 can (3.8 ounces) sliced ripe olives, drained
1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup creamy Caesar salad dressing
8 thin slices hard salami, cut into 2-inch strips

Cook tortellini according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water. In a large bowl, combine tortellini and remaining ingredients. Refrigerate until serving.
Yield: 5 servings.

Ranch Corn Salad ****

This is one of my favorite salads.  I've doubled the recipe before for family gatherings, but for just the 4 of us, the quantities are perfect as written.  The first time I made it, I only used 1/4 of a jalapeno and picked it out of the kids' servings.  Since then, I just skip the jalapeno and use a can of green chilies.  It works perfectly for us.  I don't know what it is, but the corn and ranch blend together so well in this.  Then you add in the bacon, and I am just in heaven.  Big time favorite here.  I actually get cravings for this one fairly often in the summer.  :)

Photo courtesy of Recipezaar

RANCH CORN SALAD
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Recipezaar)

1 (16 ounce) package frozen whole kernel corn, partially thawed
6-8 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
2 cloves garlic
1 fresh jalapeno, chopped
¼ cup chopped black olives
2-3 chopped green onions
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or Colby/Jack, etc.)
1 cup bottled ranch dressing (more or less, according to your taste)

Combine all the veggies.
Add the dressing, just enough to coat the vegetables well.
Gently stir in the cheese and bacon.
Refrigerate until serving.
*Amy's notes: I always replace the jalapeno with a can of green chilies.

Avocado Tuna Salad ****

Absolutely brilliant.  I am in shock how easy and yet yummy this is.  I've had it pinned for ages, but I kept forgetting to make it.  I am so glad I finally got around to it!  I didn't have any hard-boiled eggs and didn't have time to make them, so I just omitted those for now.  I also added a spoonful of dill pickle relish, since that's how I like my tuna.  I mixed it up and ate it straight out of the bowl, but it would be delish on toast with lettuce and tomato.  Or even spread on crackers.  She mentions on the blog that she has it for a snack, but I used a whole avocado and had it for lunch.  Very filling, in my opinion.

Photo from Girl Who Loves Everything

AVOCADO TUNA SALAD
(GirlWhoLovesEverything)

One hard-boiled egg
1/2 avocado
1 can light tuna
Salt and pepper, to taste

Mash ingredients together in medium bowl.  Serve on toast or with crackers.

Mexican Macaroni Salad **

I loved that this was a spin on the traditional macaroni salad.  I normally gag when thinking about macaroni and mayo, but the fact that this used rotini and ranch really interested me.  Sadly, the kids didn't like it at all.  Dh and I thought it was okay.  It really could have been smoother, in my opinion.  I'm thinking about maybe subbing sour cream for half the ranch next time.  That would help it "blend" more, I think.  I really did like the flavors, though.  I made the mistake of using whole grain noodles, which didn't go well in here at all.  Regular would have been much better.  I'll definitely try it again.  It's possible if I cut down on the taco seasoning, I might be able to get the kids to eat it as well.  I let it refrigerate for about 2 hours, but I'll bet it would be even better if you could do it overnight, to give the flavors more time to soak in.

MEXICAN MACARONI SALAD
(Amy – amylz ~ Pillsbury)

6 cups uncooked rotini pasta (1 lb)
1 to 2 tablespoons grated lime peel (from 2 medium limes)
3 to 4 tablespoons lime juice (from 2 medium limes)
1 cup ranch dressing
1 package (1.25 oz) Old El Paso® taco seasoning mix
1 large avocado, pitted, peeled and finely chopped
1 pint (2 cups) cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (4 oz)
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 medium green onions, sliced (including tops)
1 can (19 oz) Progresso® red kidney beans, drained, rinsed
1 can (6 oz) pitted large ripe olives, drained, cut in half
1 can (4.5 oz) Old El Paso® chopped green chiles, drained

1. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package. Rinse with cold water to cool; drain well.
2. Meanwhile, grate peel from limes; place in small bowl. Squeeze juice from limes; add to peel in bowl. Stir in dressing and taco seasoning mix. Stir avocado into dressing mixture.
3. In large serving bowl, toss pasta with all remaining ingredients. Pour dressing mixture over salad; toss gently to mix. Cover; refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving to blend flavors.
Makes: 8 servings (1 1/4 cups each)

Grape Salad ***

I got this recipe from a coworker years ago, and I'm still crazy about it.  I crave grapes all summer long anyway, so it's a perfect way to curb the cravings.  The kids love this one too.  The first time I made it, I worried that it would be too sweet, but the cream cheese and sour cream really tamper down the sweetness.  I've also subbed low-fat and fat-free sour cream and cream cheese, and it's still delicious.  This is one of my favorite things about summer!

GRAPE SALAD
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy)

3 lbs grapes (any color or mixture)
½ cup sugar
1 (8-oz) Philadelphia cream cheese (softened)
1 (8-oz) sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup walnuts or pecans

Mix sugar, cream cheese, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth. Fold the grapes into mixture. Mix brown sugar and nuts in separate bowl – put on top of grape salad and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Cole Slaw with Beans and Bacon ***

Man, I love this stuff!  We've had it before, but it's pretty much just a summer thing.  Tonight was the first time we've had it this year.  Oh man, it's good!  Even anti-kidney bean dh likes it.  The kids aren't all that crazy about the cabbage part, but they compromised and ate all the beans in their portions.  Since there are quite a lot of beans to it, it was a fair trade.  ;)  It's pretty near perfect on its own, so I don't really make too many subs.  I use dehydrated minced onion, so that the kids won't notice.  I just make it ahead of time and throw it in the fridge.  It's better cold anyway.  I also used the "real bacon pieces" from the bacon bits aisle and preshredded coleslaw mix.  I like that the mix has carrots in it as well as the cabbage. 

Photo courtesy of Recipezaar

COLE SLAW WITH BEANS AND BACON
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Recipezaar)

2-1/2 cups shredded cabbage
1/2 cup diced celery
1/3 cup diced onion
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
15-1/2 ounces red kidney beans, drained
4 slices crisply cooked bacon, crumbled
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon sugar

Lightly mix together the first 6 ingredients.
Whisk together the 5 dressing ingredients and pour this over the salad mixture.
Toss all lightly and serve.

Chicken Club Pasta Salad ***

Dh and I both loved this one.  The kids were kind of so-so on it.  They liked the noodles, but they didn't care much for the rest of it.  I expected that, though.  They're not fond of any pasta salad that involves anything other than noodles, Ranch dressing, and Parmesan, lol.  The best part of it was that DS2 asked for a bit of avocado as I was cutting them up, and he ended up having me cut up an entire avocado just for him to eat!  Pretty dang cool, if you ask me.  :)
Back to the salad, though.  I used the "real bacon pieces" that are in the salad dressing aisle (by the bacon bits), just because that's what I had on hand.  I love how many veggies are thrown into this thing.  I did end up using quite a bit more dressing that it called for, though.  It was just still too dry after the directed amount.  I used the tri-color pasta, so I don't know if that made a difference.  It was great, though.  It kind of tastes like a pasta made from chicken salad, so it's pretty obvious that I would love it, lol.

CHICKEN CLUB PASTA SALAD
Sandy~Bettyinthekitchen

8 oz corkscrew or spiral pasta
¼ cup mayonnaise
¾ cup Italian dressing
2 cups chopped cooked rotisserie chicken
1 cup cubed Muenster or Monterey Jack cheese
12 strips crisp-cooked bacon, crumbled
1 avocado, cubed
1 cup each chopped celery and green bell pepper
8 oz cherry tomatoes, cut in half

Cook and drain the pasta according to the package directions and rinse it with cold water. In a large bowl, pour a small a mount of the Italian dressing into the mayonnaise and whisk to incorporate, then whisk in the remaining dressing. Stir in the pasta and the remaining ingredients.

Aunt Pat's Cream Cheese Lime Jello Salad ****

AUNT PAT’S CREAM CHEESE LIME JELLO SALAD
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ from my Aunt Pat)

3 oz box Lime Jello
1 cup hot water
16 oz crushed pineapple
8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup whipped cream
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup small marshmallows

Dissolve Jello in hot water. Drain pineapples and reserve juice.
Add marshmallows and fruit juice to Jello. Chill until partially set.
Blend cream cheese into Jello.
Add whipped cream to Jello mix.
Add drained pineapple and nuts.
Return to fridge to gel.
* Amy's notes: I use fat-free Cool Whip and sugar-free Jello.