Copycat Cafe-Rio House Cilantro Ranch Dressing

My children would eat this dressing with a spoon or anything else that I could find.  They LOVE IT!  and that is an understatement.  My daughter literally licks the container clean, I can't believe I'm admitting that.  Yes, it's that good.  Try it, you won't be sorry you did.

3 medium size tomatillos
1 jalapeno, with seeds removed
1 tsp. garlic minced

Place Tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno in a pan with a bit of olive oil and sea salt and roast them on a low to medium heat until soft and slightly brown.

1 cup Buttermilk
1 cup Mayonaise
1 package dry ranch dressing mix
juice of 1 lime
1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped

Place all ingredients, including roasted tomatillo's, into a blender or food processor and blend unil completely blended (about 2 minutes)

Cafe-Rio Cilantro Lime Vinagrette

1/4 c. fresh lime juice (about 2-3 juicy limes)

1/4 c. white wine vinegar or rice vinegar
4-5 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp. Kosher or sea salt
2 tsp. sugar
1 c. canola oil
1/2 c. roughly chopped cilantro, stems removed

In the jar of your blender, combine lime juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, and sugar. Blend until ingredients are completely combined. With the blender running, add the oil in a steady stream. Add cilantro and blend until the cilantro has broken down but still maintains some of its texture. Serve with greens, on any type of Mexican salad, or use as a marinade.

Maddox 1,000 Island Dressing

For any of you locals that like Maddox Resuraunt here is a greast Thousand Island dressing recipie my mom made for us all the time growing up. It's always nice to shake up the ranch routine a little.

2 C. Miracle Whip
1 Can Tomato Soup
1 tsp. Minced Dry Onion
1/4 tsp. Paprika
1/3 C. Vinegar
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 C. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
2/3 C. Salad Oil

Mix together with beaters. Makes 1 quart of dressing.

Won Ton Salad

This salad is a light and delicious. My mom made it for us growing up. It's perfect for a girls night in.

1 lb. Chicken, cooked & diced
1 head lettuce-chopped
4 green onions-chopped
1/2 C. sunflower seeds or 2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1 cucumber-diced
1 avocado-diced
1 pkg won tons-fried

Dressing
1/4- 1/2 c sugar (to taste)
4 tsp. salt
1/2 C. Olive oil
1/4 c. rice vinegar
1/4 c. cider vinegar

Assemble salad, right before serving pour dressing and toss. Add won tons. Serve.

Honey Lime Fruit Salad

At my husbands company pool party this month we enjoyed this refreshing fruit salad, it had a simple dressing that really made all the flavors pop, and it was so good! Thanks to Patty for sharing her dressing.

Ingredients

Salad

1/3 cantaloupe, cut into 3/4-inch chunks (about 2 cups)
1 (16 ounce) container strawberries, quartered (about 3 cups)
5 medium kiwis, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch chunks (about 2 1/2 cups)

Dressing

3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon lime zest
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves

Directions

Cut up fruit and put into a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix honey, lime juice, zest, and mint. Right before serving, pour the dressing over the fruit and toss gently to combine.

Broccoli Salad

This dandy gets devoured at 3-4 family parties every summer.
I get special requests for it from my father in law. It's delish!

1/2 lb bacon cooked and crumbled
4 C. finely chopped fresh broccoli
1/2 c. chopped red onions
1 c. sunflower seeds
1/4 c. sugar
1 c. mayo
1 Tbsp. sour cream
2 Tbsp vinegar

The first four ingredients are the salad makings. Mix the second four together for the dressing. Toss salad and dressing together and enjoy!!

Tam's Chicken Pasta Salad

This pasta salad is delicious, it also makes enough to feed an army. It's perfect for family gatherings or showers. If you're making it for a smaller group make sure to half the recipe.

4 c. chicken, cooked & diced
2 c. purple grapes-halved
2 c. celery diced
20 oz can pineapple tidbits
4 green onions sliced
1 c. slivered almonds
12 oz bow tie pasta-cooked
12 oz cork screw pasta -cooked

Dressing
1 c. mayo
16 oz Kraft coleslaw Dressing

Mix all salad ingredients together. Add dressing right before serving. Start with 3/4 of dressing and see if you need the rest. This makes enough salad to feed 20-30 so half it for a smaller group.

Applebee's Oriental Chicken Salad

I LOVE Applebee's oriental chicken salad. The only thing I change is grilled chicken instead of the fried. If you aren't frying the chicken, this is a real quick and simple copy cat of their original.

Dressing
1 c. honey
1/2 c. rice wine vinegar
1 1/4 c. mayo
1 3/4 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

Salad
Vegetable Oil (for frying)
2 eggs
1 c. milk
1 c. flour
1c. corn flakes
2 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
6 boneless skinless chiken breasts
10-12 c. romaine lettuce
2 c. chopped red cabbage
2 c. chopeed napa cabbage
2 c. shredded carrots
4 green onions
4 Tbsp. slice almonds
1 can rice noodles (about 1 1/2 c.)

For dressing, combine honey, vinegar, mayo and mustard in a small bowl; blend thoroughly. Refrigerate.

Preheat oil in deep fryer or deep pan over medium heat to 30 . In a small bowl, beat together egg and milk. In another bowl combine flour with cornflake crumbs, salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in milk mixture then in crumbs. Fry until golden and cooked thoroughly. ( I always have them give me the grilled chicken on this salad so if you like it that way grill it and omit this step.)

Prepare the salad by tossing the romaine with cabbages and carrot. Sprinkle green onion, almonds and rice noodles on top of lettuce mixture. Cut chicken into bite size chunks and place on salad Serve with oriental dressing on the side.

Spinach Salad

This is my cousin Rachael's recipie, and one of my favorites.

Spinach Salad

1 bag spinach
1 small head iceberg lettuce, torn up
3/4 lb Swiss cheese shredded
1/2 lb bacon cooked and crumbled
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup dried cranberries


Dressing

1/2 Tbsp poppy seeds
3/4 Cup white vinegar
3/4 Cup vegetable oil
1/2 Cup sugar
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp mustard powder


Add all ingredients for salad to a bowl and toss. Mix dressing in a tight container. Stir in dressing right before serving so the salad does not get to soggy.

Variation: to make it more of an oriental salad omit cranberries, bacon and sunflower seeds and add mandarin oranges, chow mein noodles and sliced almonds instead.

Copycat Cafe-Rio House Cilantro Ranch Dressing

My children would eat this dressing with a spoon or anything else that I could find.  They LOVE IT!  and that is an understatement.  My daughter literally licks the container clean, I can't believe I'm admitting that.  Yes, it's that good.  Try it, you won't be sorry you did.

3 medium size tomatillos
1 jalapeno, with seeds removed
1 tsp. garlic minced

Place Tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno in a pan with a bit of olive oil and sea salt and roast them on a low to medium heat until soft and slightly brown.

1 cup Buttermilk
1 cup Mayonaise
1 package dry ranch dressing mix
juice of 1 lime
1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped

Place all ingredients, including roasted tomatillo's, into a blender or food processor and blend unil completely blended (about 2 minutes)

Copycat Cafe-Rio House Cilantro Ranch Dressing

My children would eat this dressing with a spoon or anything else that I could find.  They LOVE IT!  and that is an understatement.  My daughter literally licks the container clean, I can't believe I'm admitting that.  Yes, it's that good.  Try it, you won't be sorry you did.

3 medium size tomatillos
1 jalapeno, with seeds removed
1 tsp. garlic minced

Place Tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno in a pan with a bit of olive oil and sea salt and roast them on a low to medium heat until soft and slightly brown.

1 cup Buttermilk
1 cup Mayonaise
1 package dry ranch dressing mix
juice of 1 lime
1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped

Place all ingredients, including roasted tomatillo's, into a blender or food processor and blend unil completely blended (about 2 minutes)