Spinach Salad with Blackberries

In the summer I make salad for dinner.

Ingredients:

spinach

chicken strips

blackberries

avocado slices

red onion finely chopped

candied pecans

mini mozzarella balls

tomato slices

Vinaigrette:

10 blackberries, mashed

2 tablespoons balsamic 

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons mustard

1 teaspoon soy sause

1 teaspoon minced garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Put all of the vinaigrette ingredients in a jar with a lid. Shake the ingredients to combine.  Set aside.

Place a few large handfuls of spinach in the middle of each plate. And add small handful of blackberries and some sliced chicken breast. 

Add small amounts of mozzarella balls and candied pecans. Slice some tomatoes and avocado. Add the diced red onion, 

Drizzle the salad with the blackberry vinaigrette. Enjoy! 

Spinach Salad with Apples

Because you eat with your eyes. Salads should be colorful and full of flavor.

Ingredients:

spinach

finely sliced apples

candied pecans

crumbled feta cheese

crumbled bacon

chopped red onion

Mustard Vinaigrette:

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Add a big handful of spinach to the middle of your plate. Place some thinly sliced apples in the middle of the plate.

Add a small handful of candied pecans (from Trader Joe's) and some crumbled feta.

Add a few pieces of crumbled bacon and chopped red onion. 

Combine all of the vinaigrette in a jar, Shake vigorously and drizzle over the salad. 

Enjoy!

You Are My Sunshine - for Meals on Wheels

I made 50 of these little felt suns for Meals on Wheels. I am going to package them with lyrics to "You are my Sunshine."

I have been in vacation mode all summer - so whenever I am home doing vacation laundry I work on this little project.  I know that they will love this little gift.

I found the instructions and template on bugsandfishes.blogspot.com.es Unfortunately, because I was making 50 of these I  had to delete some of the steps. Laura's at bugs and fishes are so much cuter than mine. I didn't sew the orange pieces to each other and I didn't  stuff the yellow sun face before sewing them shut.

This would be a good service project for pre-teen and teenagers to make for a senior center.

Supply List:

yellow felt

orange pen

orange felt

brown pen

black Sharpie pen

yellow embroidery thread

black embroidery thread

needles

black seed beads

small sharp scissors

template from bugsandfishes.blogspot.com.es

glue stick

thin piece of cardboard

Directions:

I used a glue stick to adhere the template to a thin piece of cardboard. Each sunshine needs two round pieces of yellow felt. Trace them with an orange pen.

Each sunshine also needs two pieces of orange felt sun rays. Trace them with a brown pen.

Once the sun rays have been cutout the front is stitched like the above picture with yellow thread.

Using a black Sharpie pen lightly make a face. The front of the sun will get black seed beads sewn onto the black dots and a tight running stitch for the mouth with black thread.

So this is what each sunshine needs and sewn in this order.

Using yellow thread sew the top pieces onto the bottom pieces. This is the front.

And this is what the back looks like!

This is such a cheerful project! Tomorrow I need to print out 50 copies of the "You are my Sunshine" lyrics and find cellophane bags for packaging. My goal is drop them off at Meals on Wheels by Tuesday!