Feta and Vegetable Rotini Salad

Chad had some students over this evening to prepare for the RMC Quiz Bowl. We fixed dinner for them, and I tried this new Kraft recipe my sister had shared with me.

Feta and Vegetable Rotini Salad
3 cups tricolor rotini pasta, cooked, drained and cooled
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 cup chopped cucumbers
1/2 cup sliced black olives (I omitted)
1/2 cup zesty Italian dressing
1/4 cup finely chopped red onions

Combine ingredients and refrigerate for one hour before serving.

It was easy, pretty and delicious! Thanks Jan!

Blueberry Pecan Crumble

I bought some blueberries last weekend at Sam's and have been excited to eat some of them. I was looking for something fast to do with them last night and tried this recipe:

Recipe from Dave Lieberman, FoodNetwork.com

Topping Ingredients:
4 oz. pecan pieces (about 1 cup)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups rolled (old-fashioned, although I used quick) oats
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
1 stick (8 tbsp) butter, cut into small pieces

Berry Ingredients:
2 pints fresh blueberries
1/2 lemon, juiced (I omitted)
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp all purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the blueberries: Mix ingredients together and pour into a 9 x 13" baking dish.
For the topping: Put all topping ingredients in a bowl and rub together with your hands until mixture sticks together in small clumps.
Scatter the topping over the blueberries in an even layer. Bake until the topping is golden brown and the berry juice is bubbling up through the topping, about 45-50 minutes.

I cut the recipe in half and used four ramekins, baking for 30 minutes. It was easy, fast and delicious! I think Chad was a big fan of this recipe, especially since it called for pecans.

Recipe: Blueberry Bread Pudding

Here is a delicious dessert recipe from my friend Rochelle. Chad and I tried it a couple of weeks ago and loved it!

Ingredients:
16 oz bread, cubed (I used french bread)
8 oz cream cheese, cut into pieces
4 cups blueberries
6 large eggs
4 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup syrup
10 oz blueberry preserves

Arrange half of bread in a lightly greased 13"x9" pan. Sprinkle evenly with cream cheese and 2 cups of blueberries. Top with remaining bread. Whisk together eggs, milk, sugar, butter and syrup. Pour over bread mixture, pressing bread cubes to absorb egg mix. Cover and chill 8 hrs. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 30 more minutes or until lightly browned and set. Let stand 5 min. before serving. For the sauce, stir together remaining 2 cups of blueberries and preserves in a saucepan over low heat until warm. Serve over bread pudding.