I forgot how deliciously rewarding it is to prepare and eat a Chef’s Salad.   You get your protein. You get your cheese. You get your veggies. You get your crunchy little croutons. You get a healthy, easy-to-make meal that is tied together with a bouncy light vinaigrette.

Traditionally a Chef’s Salad is made with smoked ox tongue, fresh roasted ham and chicken or turkey cut off the bone and carefully sliced “julienne” style. I’m fine with the ham and chicken or turkey, but the smoked ox tongue is definitely NOT happening in my salad bowl. You go right ahead, and thank you very much.

But what do you do if you don’t have a roasted ham or chicken or turkey hanging out in your refrigerator? You follow my recipe for Super Easy Chef’s Salad. Buy the meat and cheese at the supermarket deli and ask (nicely) for them to cut into ¼-inch thick slices.

You’ll still need to cut the meat and cheese into strips, aka julienne, but that doesn’t take much time. Just stack the slices and cut them all at once. Boiled eggs are easy (and you may already have some in your fridge).

You can use romaine lettuce, but I like to mix it up with iceberg and whatever other leaf lettuce looks good. In this recipe, I used only cucumbers and tomatoes, but you can add whatever veggies you like because, after all, this is a CHEF’S Salad… and you’re the CHEF!

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Here’s a great summertime dish you can “cook” without turning on the oven: Ceviche.

Ceviche (also known as cebiche, sebiche or seviche) is a Latin American dish made with raw fish that is marinated in citrus juice, herbs and spices until the translucent flesh turns opaque and becomes firm.

In Peru (where many people believe this dish originated), tangy ceviche is traditionally eaten in the morning as an eye-opener (read that: hangover cure). Its ingredients are pretty simple: bitter orange juice, onions and thinly sliced hot peppers, like aji amarillo.

I prefer to make my ceviche the Mexican way, with lime juice, cilantro, jalapeños and a little garlic. I serve it on top of fresh crunchy greens. The taste is so fresh and healthy it’s one of my feel-good meals. It’s very easy to learn how to make ceviche!

A few ceviche tips:

• Buy fresh firm-fleshed ocean fish like halibut, grouper, flounder or red snapper that won’t fall apart in the marinade.
• Marinade until the fish loses its translucency, or for about 4-hours.
• Soak the onions for a little bit to take the “bite” out, so they don’t step on the other flavors.
• Remove the seeds and veins from the chili peppers to control the heat.

Funny how the thought of eating raw fish doesn’t sound as absurd as it did a decade ago because, for many of us, sushi and sashimi have become a regular part of our diets!

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Mama doesn’t believe in tricking picky eaters into eating healthy food… especially vegetables.

There are books and blogs dedicated to doing just that, I know. But if you introduce veggies early enough, and in small quantities, you have a better chance of bringing them into the tent.

Kale, the darling of the leafy vegetables world, is the perfect example. Kale used to be hidden in winter soups or boiled to death with other hearty greens.

Now, it’s roasted, sautéed and shredded into salads. There are entire Pinterest boards dedicated to Kale recipes.

Kale chips are even being tucked into lunch boxes. Guess what? Kids love them… even the picky eaters. The other day I saw a kid with a green smoothie… WHAT? Kudos to the parents (or the kid) for venturing into territory my kids would NEVER have explored. 

This all goes back to introducing kids to greens early… as soon as their little tummies can digest the fiber.

Mac and cheese, a kid favorite, blends beautifully with finely chopped kale, broccoli or spinach. Start with just a little bit, a teaspoon or two per serving is about right.

Another idea: sauté the chopped leafy veggies in the same pan that you fry bacon. Top with chopped bacon and a little cheese. Easy and delicious and goes great with a meaty main course.

Do your best to get them to eat their veggies. But at the end of the day, DON’T WORRY… they’re not going to starve if they turn their nose up at a dish.

Have you ever been shopping and seen something you just had to have?

Some people are like that with when they go shoe shopping. Mama’s like that at the farmer’s market. Weird, I know.

Last week I saw this gorgeous Bright Lights Swiss Chard and couldn’t resist. Look at those colors! Ruby red, vibrant yellow, shocking orange. I didn’t even think about a recipe or how to cook it… I JUST HAD TO HAVE IT.

Well, that’s an impulse purchase if I’ve ever heard of one. The Bright Lights Tacos were the perfect answer for our Meatless Monday night dinner… and it only took about 30 minutes to pull together.

Everyone built their own tacos. No complaints (even Miss Picky liked it!). And in the long run? Waaayyyy cheaper than falling in love with a pair of Jimmy Choo pumps!

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