It is almost Memorial Day weekend! The unofficial start of summer and summertime fun! We all know it is harder to make healthy food choices during the summer. Between beach days, boat rides and BBQs, sometimes a burger and fries is your only option. One way to stop temptation before it happens is to have healthy options with you – that means bringing fruit to the beach and healthy snacks on the boat! The family BBQ doesn’t have to ruin your diet either. There are so many delicious side dishes you can bring to any BBQ that will compliment whatever is cooking on the grill!
I found this great link to 27 Healthy BBQ Side Dishes and can’t wait to make them throughout the summer!
Have you seen our Memorial Day schedule and sale yet? Learn more here!
A few recipes that caught my eye:
Skinny Mexican Corn
Ingredients:
- 4 ears of fresh Sweet Corn (shucked)
- 2 T plain Greek Yogurt
- 2 T lite sour cream
- 3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp Fiesta Lime Mrs. Dash (opt)
- Dash of salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
- Light Olive Oil or Olive Oil Spray
Prep time: 14 minutes
Steps:
- In a small bowl, mix together greek yogurt and sour cream. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix together chili powder, Mrs. Dash (opt), and salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Spray or brush each ear of corn lightly with olive oil
- Grill for approximately 10 minutes, turning often to avoid burning. The corn should brown in places and be cooked through.
- Take corn off of grill and brush with Greek Yogurt mixture.
- Sprinkle with spice mixture, cheese, and cilantro
- Squeeze lime wedges over each piece of corn.
BBQ Ranch Quinoa Salad
Ingredients:
- ½ cup ranch dressing
- ½ cup bbq sauce
- 4 cups cooked quinoa
- 4 cups chopped kale
- ½ red onion, diced
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- ¼ cup cilantro, roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese
- 2 avocados, diced
- optional: tortilla strips or crushed tortilla chips
Prep time: 15 minutes
Steps:
- In a small bowl combine ranch and bbq sauce and mix well.
- In a larger bowl toss together remaining ingredients.
- Drizzle bbq-ranch over salad. Top with tortilla strips/chips if desired. Serve with lime wedges for drizzling.
Greek Summer Salad
Ingredients:
- 3-1/2 cups sliced cucumbers (about 1 large English cucumber or 2 regular-sized cucumbers)
- ½ cup sliced yellow onion
- 2 cups chopped tomatoes (about 4 Roma tomatoes)
- 1 small can sliced black olives, drained (2.25 ounce drained weight)
- 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- ⅛ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt (more or less, to taste)
- 1 teaspoon pepper (more or less, to taste)
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon poppy seeds
Prep time: 15 minutes
Steps:
- Place salad ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently to combine.
- Place dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Drizzle over salad. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Mexican Chopped Salad
Ingredients:
For the dressing:
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- freshly ground black pepper
- taste and add salt if needed
For the tortilla strips:
- 6 6-inch corn tortillas
- 1 ½ tablespoons canola oil
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
For the salad:
- 1 medium head romaine lettuce , chopped in approximately ½ inch pieces
- 1 medium bell pepper, diced in ¼-inch pieces**, I used small orange-hued peppers (the mini ones). Feel free to use whichever color you want.
- ½ medium red onion, diced in ¼-inch pieces**
- ½ medium jicama, peeled and diced in ¼-inch pieces**
- 1 medium zucchini, diced in ¼-inch dice**
- 4 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced into ¼-inch dice**
- 4 ears corn (if fresh corn is not in season, substitute 1½ cups of sweet, tiny frozen corn)
- 1½ cups canned black beans, drained and rinsed
- ½ cup finely chopped cilantro, plus whole cilantro leaves for garnish, if desired
Prep time: 45 minutes
Steps:
- For the dressing, combine lime juice, honey, cumin garlic and salt. Stir to combine. In a slow, steady stream, add the oils, stirring continuously with a fork or small whisk. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Set aside.
- For the corn tortilla strips, preheat oven to 400˚F. Stack corn tortillas on a cutting board. Cut in half. Cut each stack of halves into thin strips, crosswise, about ¼ inch thick.
- Transfer tortilla strips to a sheet pan. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with salt and toss to coat.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, or until light golden brown and crisp. Set aside to cool.
- For the salad, place corn, two ears at a time, in the microwave and cook for 3½ minutes. Remove from microwave with a hot pad and allow to cool for 5 minutes. After cooling, cut bottom end of corn off, about 1½ inches from end. Pull back husk and silks (almost all of the silk should easily pull away). Cut kernels from husks and set aside.
- Combine corn and other salad ingredients in a large bowl. Stir to combine. Add dressing and stir to coat all ingredients. Garnish with cilantro leaves, if desired.
- Serve with tortilla strips on top or place a bowl on the side and let guests help themselves.
Lightened Up 7-Layer Dip
Ingredients:
- 2 cans pinto beans
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 avocados
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 jalapeno, seeded, chopped
- 1 tablespoon lime juice, about 2 limes
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt, nonfat
- 2 cups salsa
- 16 ounces light sour cream
- 2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
- 2 1/2 ounces or 1/4 cup sliced black olives
- 1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro
- In a food processor place layer one ingredients and blend until combined.
- Spread bean mixture into a 9 by 13 dish.
- Clean food processor before adding layer 2 ingredients.
- Blend layer 2 ingredients until smooth.
- Spread on top of bean mixture.
- Spread the rest of the layers on top of each other and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Cheesy Sweet Pepper Poppers
Ingredients:
- 1 pound mini sweet peppers, halved
- 8 ounces smoked Gouda cheese, grated
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1/4 cup grated onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Prep time: 30 minutes
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- In a bowl mix all ingredients together.
- Fill each pepper halve with cheese mixture.
- Bake 15-18 minutes until cheese is melted and slightly browned.
Check out the other 21 recipes and if you try a dish for your BBQ this weekend – send me a picture and let me know how it is! Enjoy a long weekend of remembrance and celebration! Hope to see you at the barre before the beach!
Cheers, Michelle
Town Barre 