Salads

Recipe for salad is a family heirloom

Heidi Pimm of Arnold won the salad category with her Grandma Myrtle’s 24-Hour Frozen Fruit Salad

“I couldn’t let your Holiday Recipe Contest pass without submitting the following family recipe and story,” she wrote in her entry.

“When I was a girl growing up in Beaverton, Ore., I was fortunate enough to have both sets of grandparents in attendance for Sunday dinners and holiday meals. During Thanksgiving, Christmas and the Fourth of July, my Grandma’s Frozen Fruit Salad was always requested. 

“As the story goes, my grandmother had attended a ladies luncheon where one of the guests had brought this unique salad. Everyone thought it was delicious and the recipe was shared among the group. 

“My grandmother began bringing this salad to church events and potlucks where it was quickly devoured and, inevitably, someone always requested the recipe. When my parents married, my grandmother began to bring the salad to holiday dinners. 

“This recipe became a family favorite. When my grandmother passed away in 1970, my mother carried on the tradition of making the fruit salad for special occasions. When I married in 1985, my mother shared the dish with my in-laws. Before long, the salad became a part of my husband’s family holiday meals as well. 

“Now that my mother is gone, each of her three daughters continues to bring out this beloved dish for their holiday tables.” 

Grandma Myrtle’s 24-Hour Frozen Fruit Salad

Heidi Pimm, Arnold

FINALIST

1 (15-ounce) can fruit cocktail, drained

1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple, do not drain

1 (10-ounce) bag of mini marshmallows

1 (8-ounce) brick cream cheese, softened

1 cup mayonnaise

1 (8-ounce) tub frozen whipped topping, thawed in fridge

1 small jar of maraschino cherries 

Spray an 11-by-13-inch cake/casserole dish with nonstick spray and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, add drained fruit cocktail and pineapple (with juice). Mix in softened cream cheese. Fold in marshmallows, mayonnaise and whipped topping. Pour mixture into the baking dish. Slice cherries in half. Space 20 cherry halves around the cake so there is at least one for each of the 20 servings. Cover the pan lightly with plastic wrap and put in the freezer for 24 hours.

Remove pan from freezer and let soften for 10-15 minutes. Cut into 20 pieces, leaving a decorative cherry in the center of each serving. Remove each slice with a spatula and place on your holiday serving tray. This salad should be softly frozen when served.

Leftovers (if there are any) may be refrozen and served again.

Note: For a lighter-calorie recipe, substitute plain vanilla yogurt for the mayonnaise and low-fat cream cheese in place of the standard brick of cream cheese.

Leafy Berry Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

Melissa Mantl, Festus

6 cups fresh spinach leaves, torn into bite-size pieces

6 cups fresh kale leaves, shredded

1/2 cup crispy bacon, chopped into bite-size pieces, reserve fat

1/4 cup craisins or cranberries

1/4 cup fresh raspberries

1/3 cup white sugar

1/2 cup lemon juice

2 teaspoons onions, diced

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup olive oil

Reserved fat from cooked bacon

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

1/4 cup pecans or walnuts

In a large shallow serving dish, mix leafy greens; add bacon, craisins and raspberries. In a blender, combine sugar, lemon juice, onion, mustard, and salt and blend until smooth. Stream olive oil in a thin stream into the mixture while blender is running. Add reserved bacon fat. Add poppy seeds and pulse blender a few times, just to mix seeds into the dressing. Pour dressing over salad when ready to serve. Top with crispy bacon pieces and garnish with pecans or walnuts.

Raspberry Holiday Salad

Ethel Lewis, De Soto

2 (3-ounce) packages raspberry Jell-O

1 can pineapple

2 1/2 cups boiling water

1 can whole cranberry sauce

Use blender or food processor to turn cranberry sauce into thick liquid. In separate bowl, dissolve Jell-O in hot water. Add pureed cranberry and pineapple, mix well. Pour into 9-by-13-inch pan or large bowl and refrigerate until firm.

Holiday Salad

Debbie Greff, Hillsboro

Dressing:

1-2 cloves of crushed garlic

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

3 tablespoons local honey

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup olive oil

4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Salad:

16 ounces fresh spring greens

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup feta cheese crumbles

4 seedless mandarin oranges, peeled and separated

Mix dressing and set aside.

Mix salad ingredients in a large bowl. Toss salad mix and dressing together just before serving.

Serves 10.

Fresh Fruit Salad

Lynne Doty, Imperial

1 pound strawberries, sliced

Red and green grapes, sliced

1 red apple, cut up

1 green apple, cut up

1 can mandarin oranges, drained

2 bananas, sliced

1 can chunk pineapple, drained (reserve juice)

1 package instant vanilla pudding

Put all fruits in large bowl.

In another bowl, mix vanilla pudding and pineapple juice together. Pour over fruit. The pineapple juice preserves the fruit.

Fresh Cranberry Salad

Ann Wedel, Arnold

This recipe has been in my friend’s family for years, and even the kids like it. 

2 cups fresh cranberries

1 apple, with skin

1 orange, without skin

1/2 cup diced celery

1/2 cup walnuts or pecans

1 cup sugar

1 box strawberry Jell-O

Chop cranberries, apple and orange. Mix together. Add celery and nuts. Mix in 1 cup sugar and let stand. Dissolve 1 box strawberry Jell-O into 1 1/2 cups hot water. Let cool. Mix other ingredients into Jell-O and refrigerate.

Sweet and Sour Carrot Salad

Barb Luhrsen, Barnhart

1 can tomato soup

1/2 cup salad oil

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup vinegar

1 teaspoon prepared mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon celery seed

1 teaspoon basil leaves

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 pounds (about 5 cups) carrots, sliced

1 medium onion, sliced

1 green pepper, sliced

Cook first 10 ingredients together for 5 minutes on low. Cook and cool carrots until tender (10 minutes in microwave). Mix everything together and chill for 12 hours or more. This recipe keeps for a long time.

Dilly Cucumber Salad

Claudia Foran, House Springs

3 cucumbers, thinly sliced

1 small sweet red pepper, julienned

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dill seed

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour. Stir before serving.

Sweet and Fast Slaw

Karen Emerson, Florida, formerly of Hillsboro

7 cups shredded cabbage

2 medium red apples, shredded

2 medium carrots, shredded

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 tablespoon celery seed

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground mustard

1/2 cup canola oil

In large bowl, combine cabbage, apple, carrot, dried cranberries and celery seed.

In food processor, combine vinegar, sugar, onion, salt and mustard; cover and puree while adding oil in a steady stream.

Drizzle dressing over cabbage mixture and toss to coat. Refrigerate at least 2 hours. Toss again before serving.

Hillbilly Cobb salad

Shonda Jenkins, Hillsboro

You’re going to love this salad.

1 large clamshell container spring mix lettuce blend

Precooked bacon of your choice, diced or crumbled

6 boiled eggs, diced large

Green onion bunch (or two if you're a fan like me), chopped

6 ounces bleu cheese crumbles

1 can sweet corn, well drained, or 1 small bag frozen corn, thawed but still cool

Multicolored tortilla strips (optional)

Dressing of choice

Add all the ingredients together, making sure the bacon is crispy but room temperature before adding. Also, make sure the cheese is crumbled and the corn is nicely drained. Top with your favorite dressing and a few tortilla strips. Serves 6.