As the years have gone on, I have become much more inventive cook. I have been cooking since I was in first or second grade, and I have always been one who followed the recipes to the letter. And I also am a cook who rarely makes the same dish twice. My ex-husband always complained about that! He wanted simple meals, and I loved to make gourmet meals.
The years have gone by, and I have become much more realistic. I still often don’t make the same thing twice, but I prefer meals that can be made quickly. And with simple ingredients. Occasionally I throw in something here or there, but mostly it is simple, wholesome food that can be prepared very quickly.
This week, I happened to need another quick meal. My mom and I had just gone to the store yesterday, and we picked up some strawberries. And we already had spinach. We had some bagel bites left over, and so we decided to make things simple–bagel bites and salad.
First of all, I asked my daughter how many bagel bites she would like. She said she didn’t like them. I asked her what she would like for dinner, and she said she didn’t know. I told her I would add more cheese to them, and she said she would try them. I was relieved.
I thought about the spinach, and I thought about the strawberries. I knew that I had made salads in the past that combined these. And so I began to work on the following spinach strawberry salad for 2. (My dad was at a church potluck.)
- spinach–enough for 2
- pint of strawberries, halved
- gala apple cut into little squares
- handful of craisins
- a couple handfuls of flaxseed
- a few squirts of lemon juice
That was the salad. I now knew I needed to make a dressing that would work with this salad, and so I really got creative here.
- 1 container of strawberry Chobani Greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup of milk (more or less)
- 1-2 tablespoons of oil
- 1-2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup of poppy seeds (more or less)
- about 2 Tablespoons of honey
- scant teaspoon of bacon jam (see my review)
- a few squirts of lemon
I have to say that this salad and dressing were fantastic. In fact, the dressing was one of the finest dressing I have ever had. My mom especially loved this.
I will tell you more when I create my recipes for this week as to what changes I made.
