July 2016 Recap

All of a sudden it was Independence Day. Now all of a sudden it is August. I’m so ready for the heat to be over but I hate to rush through any season. I truly didn’t cook much.

One of my fav’s this month was this peanut sesame sauce for noodles
The Three Bite Rule - Peanut Sesame Noodles
And the little one would definitely agree. He was slurping them up while we were eating after already having dinner.

Also, summer means fresh sides and this pineapple, cucumber, and mint salad was sooo refreshing.
The Three Bite Rule - Pineapple, Cucumber, Mint Salad
Also, don’t miss the Californian Burger with In-N-Out Sauce, avocado, and lots of herbs.
The Three Bite Rule - Cali Burger
The Little One: 
He is speaking so much more! He has so many thoughts and feelings. He eats sooo much! His favorites are fruit, cheese, and whatever I’m eating. He was really into pulled pork I made and he loooves long spaghetti. In August we’ll have a trip to the beach and he’s going to have a blast.

This Year’s Goals: 
The Year of the: Seasonal Decor: I got an awesome watermelon welcome mat. love it.
do something a different way: 
drink more water: yes, that might be the only good thing about this heat
make more interesting side dishes: yes, I made maple bacon creamed corn which was delectable.
cook more soups & sauces: Ehh. Maybe the condiment for In-N-Out sauce counts?
watch more movies: we watched Room
make working out a higher priority: Running has been going pretty well a few times a week. I’m up to 2 miles.

Pineapple, Cucumber & Mint Salad

This salad served to clients at work made me want to make it ASAP. I love fresh pineapple and since the little one will always eat cucumbers, it means we always have some around. My mint plants are going gang-busters so poof! This salad was born. I planned to make pulled pork int he crockpot so this was perfect alongside it! I also would definitely chop it up more and use it as a relish. Yum!
The Three Bite Rule - Pineapple, Cucumber, Mint Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 cucumber, mostly pealed
1 cup fresh pineapple
1/2 shallot
8-10 mint leaves
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon olive oil

Directions:

Chop the cucumber & seed, if necessary. Chop pineapple, shallot, and mint. Add it all to a bowl.
The Three Bite Rule - Pineapple, Cucumber, Mint Salad
Add in the lime juice & olive oil. Toss well.
The Three Bite Rule - Pineapple, Cucumber, Mint Salad
Refrigerate until serving, or serve immediately.
Enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Pineapple, Cucumber, Mint Salad
I thought this was perfect with the pork. I was so glad to have something zippy and fresh. This salad was so fast to throw together. The pork cooked all day in the crockpot and it was the fastest dinner to get together. Uhh it was just. so. ideal on a hot hot hot night. The leftover pork will be frozen and probably will go inside tacos. I’d really love this cuke & pineapple all diced up as a relish on a taco or sandwich.

Seriously, make this for your next BBQ and everyone will appreciate this cool, sweet, light, refreshing salad.

Margarita Pasta Salad

I road tested this pasta salad out and turned it into a meal by making it a vehicle for taco salads. It features flavors of a margarita, lime, with a touch of salt. I heard a tip of tossing the pasta in vinegar while it cools so I wanted to try it out. I think it works a bit, I don’t know that is changes the pasta salad to out of this world, but it totally has more flavor than many run-of-the-mill pasta salads.
The Three Bite Rule - Margarita Pasta Salad
Ingredients:
1/2 pound rotini pasta
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup margarita mix
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tomato chopped
1 cup roasted corn
1/2 cucumber
Green onions, chopped
fresh lime squeezed & zested (optional)

Directions:
Boil the pasta and drain then toss with the apple cider vinegar. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before dressing it.
Whisk together the mayo, sour cream, margarita mix, chili powder, and salt.
The Three Bite Rule - Margarita Pasta Salad
If the pasta hasn’t completely chilled, then cover the dressing and mix later. If the pasta has already been chilled, then toss in the dressing.
Add in the veggies and herbs.
The Three Bite Rule - Margarita Pasta Salad
Enjoy!

I think this would be great at a BBQ. I think it could have had more lime-ness. Next time I’ll juice a lime and zest it up. We topped them with taco-salad toppings like taco meat, avocado, and salsa. It was great for a bit of change from the usual taco salad. I used up some taco meat from the freezer and it involved very minimal cooking…many birds, one stone!
The Three Bite Rule - Margarita Pasta Salad

California Burger

I know. Long time no see. I honestly haven’t cooked anything worth blogging. I’ve been capitalizing on the fast-cooking, low-oven use dinners that can be on the table fast and easy. There are always a few burgers on my list and I threw this one together to feature avocado, lots of herbs, and a zippy sauce like In-N-Out. Let’s preface with the fact that I’ve never been to In-N-Out but apparently the sauce is pretty fab and there are 1,000 versions so I whipped one up.

The Three Bite Rule - Cali Burger
Our herb garden is going hard-core so I chopped up a whole bunch for these to keep the burgers feeling fresh. The sterotypical choice would be avocado, red onion, and sprouts but I’m not so into sprouts and I really wanted to pickle some red onions, but not enough to make a trip to the grocery store just for those.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup mayo
1 tablespoon sour cream
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1 teaspoon relish
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
sprinkle salt
sprinkle salt
2 burger rolls
~1/2 pound ground meat (I used pork, Mr. J used beef)
1/2 white onion
1 tablespoon fresh herbs chopped each (I used chives, lemon thyme, oregano, & par-cel)
2 slices white cheddar
lettuce
avocado

Directions:

Mix together the sauce: mayo, sour cream, yellow mustard, relish, vinegar, wocestershire sauce, lemon juice, salt & pepper. Then let it hang in the fridge until serving.
The Three Bite Rule - Cali Burger
Chop the onion & herbs and add to the meat with some salt & pepper.
The Three Bite Rule - Cali Burger
Form into patties and preheat the grill or grill pan.
The Three Bite Rule - Cali Burger
Serve the burgers with lettuce, avocado, and plenty of sauce!

These were great. They were totally herby and the sharp cheddar was a good contrast to the sweet almost-thousand-island-dressing. I liked how much flavor the burgers had and I love the slight crunch onion still has while cooking mixed into the burger.

The Three Bite Rule - Cali Burger

Edible Gifts for the Summer

I’ve been working on some favors/parting gifts for some of my summer work events with a foodie crowd and was just so jazzed about them that I a) want to be a Pinterest-aficionado in my personal life and b) want to host all the food themed parties! Until either one happens, here are some favorites should you be in the market for a hostess gift, a party favor, or a consumable treat!

Infused sea salts:
I saw so many out there if you’re looking to purchase them already to give: This sampler looks great to tie a Thank You note to & let guests guests choose their own flavor!
Etsy SullivanTeaShop
I also totally want to make my own for personal use. Pinterest seems to think it is super easy…we’ll see how THAT goes. Sea Salt + dried herbs from my garden seems pretty fun to me! Can I dry my own herbs? We shall see! They’re flourishing so I might tackle it!

Grilling Rub: 
I’m giving grill rub out at 2 work events this summer. Because of the quantities, I got fun tiny tins & baggies for packaging of the house rub Chef uses on meat, fish, and vegetables. There are tons of recipes that are super cheap to make yourself (versus buying pre-made rub). Measuring & mixing dried herbs seems pretty foolproof!

Cookies:
My co-worker made these chocolate dipped shortbread cookies for a Bridal Tea Party. Sooo cute! I’m not really a baker, but what a lovely touch if you are baking inclined!
Tea Party
Mr. J’s birthday present included a “year of snacks/treats”. June’s theme was “hot & cold” which translated to ice cream sundae toppings of sea-salt caramel sauce, hot fudge, sprinkles, cherries, whipped cream, etc. July was “shareable” and I made loaded waffle fries that we enjoyed for dinner one night. I looove the gift of food!

Happy eating! Maybe this is the nudge I need to whip up some of my own BBQ rubs & spice mixes.