Evie's Chick-un Salad (Vegan)

1 8-oz. can chickpeas, drained (and, optionally, rinsed)

2 stalks celery, finely chopped

3 green onions, thinly sliced

1/4 C. finely chopped dill pickle (Bubbie's brand has good probiotics!)

1/4 C. finely chopped red bell pepper (or other colored pepper)

2-3 Tbsp. vegan mayonnaise

1 clove garlic

1 1/2 tsp. yellow mustard

2 tsp. minced fresh dill (opt)

1 1/2 - 3 tsp. fresh lemon juice, to taste

1/4 tsp. fine sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

toasted bread, cracker, tortillas, or lettuce, for serving

1) In a large bowl, mash the chickpeas with a potato masher until flaky-chunky in texture.

2) Stir in the celery, onion, pickle, pepper, mayo, and garlic until combined.

3) Stir in the mustard and dills (if using) and season with lemon juice, salt, pepper to taste.

4) Serve.

NOTE: For a different flavor, Evie makes this sometimes with just mayo, sweet bell pepper, curry powder, and raisins.

* This recipe is from Angela Liddon's Oh She Glows cookbook, which I highly recommend!

Aunt Kim's Tuna Salad

This recipe was given to my sister by her personal trainer as a good lunch choice. In her words, "I'm addicted." Sorry for the lack of quantities. She just adds the ingredients according to her preferences.

canned tuna
mayonnaise
Clausen dill pickles, chopped
walnuts, chopped
Craisins
black pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients. She says it gets better the next day—a rarity for tuna!

Mediterranean Cheese Spread (for Dip or Cucumber Sandwiches)

These were served at Evie's wedding on the table with the finger sandwiches and the hot hors d'oeuvres. They are gluten-free if gluten-free bread is used, so we served both. 

Mediterranean Cheese Spread

2 pkg (8oz) cream cheese, softened

2 pkg (4oz) crumbled feta

1 clove garlic, pressed

10 oz frozen spinach, thaw and drain well

7 oz roasted red peppers

Mayo or sour cream (optional – to make spreading consistency for sandwiches)

Combine cream cheese, feta, and garlic.  Mix well.  Stir in spinach.  Chop red pepper into small bits and mix in.  Refrigerate until ready to use for dip or sandwiches.

Cucumber Sandwiches with Mediterranean Cheese Spread

Light, refreshing sandwiches made with the above were served at Evie's wedding on the table with the other finger sandwiches and the hot hors d'oeuvres. So yummy!

Ingredients:

2 English Cucumbers

1 loaf bread of your choice (we served regular and gluten-free)

Mediterranean Cheese Spread (see below)

Preparation:

1. Wash and cut cucumbers with food processor or mandolin for thin uniform slices.  

2. Use cheese spread on both slices of bread and layer cucumbers.  

3. If removing crusts, do it after the sandwich is assembled.

4. Slice square sandwiches with large X to create triangular sandwiches for serving at an event.

Cheri's Chicken Salad for Sandwiches

This chicken salad was served on the table at Evie's wedding with the tea sandwiches and hot hors d'oeuvres. For that event, Cheri cut off the crusts of the bread after spreading with the chicken salad. (This is very important, she notes, because if you don't spread them first, then cut off the crusts, the bread won't hold up to the spreading.) The sandwiches were then sliced into fingerling rectangles. Presentation matters just as much as taste, and this was so lovely!

I left the recipe exactly as Cheri sent it to me. This is the only one that came with both sets of measurements still on it. The set to the right is the size of the recipe one would make at home. The measurements on the left represent her conversions for our wedding quantity. I still stand in awe that she managed all of that food the way she did! It makes me smile, and fills me with humble gratitude, to see those numbers on the left.

40       Makes 8 sandwiches

20       4 C. chicken—baked, seasoned, cut in chunks, pulsed in food processor

3         1/2 C. celery, thinly sliced 

5         1 C. mayo

1 ½     1/8 C. yellow mustard

2 ½     1/3 C. dill pickle (food processor)

1 ½     scant pickle juice

7 ½    1 ½ tsp. dill

          salt and pepper to taste

80       16 slices of bread

Process chicken, add all ingredients, and stir.  Season to taste. Chill. 

This recipe is gluten-free if gluten-free bread is used, so we made both.

Cheri's Turkey-and-Spinach Wraps

(Original: Turkey-and-Spinach Wraps with Cranberry-Walnut-Cream Cheese Spread)

These were served at Evie's wedding on the table with the tea sandwiches and the hot hors d'oeuvres. They were cut into rounds after having been rolled up. Yum!

Ingredients

1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened 

2 (4-oz.) packages goat cheese, softened 

3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts

2 teaspoons honey 

1 garlic clove, minced 

1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary

1/4 teaspoon pepper 

Salt to taste

8 (10-inch) flour tortillas 

1 pound thinly sliced turkey 

4 cups fresh baby spinach 

Preparation

Stir together cream cheese, goat cheese, cranberries, walnuts, honey, minced garlic, rosemary, and pepper. Season with salt. Cover and chill up to 3 days. Spread 2 Tbsp. cream cheese mixture onto each tortilla, leaving a 1/2-inch border around edges. Divide turkey and spinach among tortillas. Roll up, tightly, and cut in half or into slices.

Katie's Lemony Cucumber Cream Cheese Sandwiches

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. fresh dill, chopped
1/2 large lemon (zest and juice)
Softened butter for spreading on bread slices (prevents sogginess)
Salt and pepper
6 slices of hearty white or whole-grain bread
1/2 large cucumber, seeded and thinly sliced, dried with paper

1. In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, dill, lemon. Add salt and pepper to taste.

2. Butter each slice of bread (prevents sogginess). Lay slices with butter side up on a work surface.

3. Evenly distribute the cream cheese mixture onto each slice. Arrange towel-dried cucumber slices on top of the first three slices of buttered bread. Top with remaining bread. Slice off the crusts.

4. If not serving immediately, wrap tightly in cling wrap and chill for up to 24 hours.

5. When ready to serve, slice into 4 triangles per sandwich.

This was modified from the original recipe at the Chew Out Loud blog.

Katie's Tomato Pesto Tea Sandwiches

This yummy appetizer was served by Katie C. at Evie's bridal shower. So yummy and easy!


1/4 C. + 1 Tbsp. basil pesto, or to taste
1 block cream cheese, softened
1 container cherry or Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 small French baguette, sliced to desired thickness

Combine pesto and cream cheese well. Spread onto slices of French bread.

Add a slice of tomato to each, and either a small blob or a piped, decorative swirl of cream cheese mixture on top.

Garnish with sprig of parsley or basil, if desired.

This recipe was adapted from this recipe for Fancy Tomato Pesto Tea Sandwiches on the Pink Piccadilly Pastries blog. (The original recipe used sliced white bread and cut out shapes with a cookie cutter.)


These were such a hit that we served them again on the passed appetizer trays at Evie's wedding. Again, we used slices of slightly toasted French bread as the base. They looked lovely on the trays and tasted delicious!

Tracy's Sloppy Joes

This is the only Sloppy Joe recipe my family will let me make. Most others are "way too sweet," they say. The original recipe (see beneath) is compliments of Mike's mom.

Large Batch:
2-3 lb. ground beef (use 70% lean - drain off grease that cooks out)
1 large onion, chopped
16-24 oz. canned tomato sauce
3-4 Tbsp. yellow mustard
salt & pepper to taste

Brown onion in butter and remove to plate. Brown the ground beef and drain if needed. Mix in other ingredients and bring to a boil. (I tried not doing this, and just cooking the onion at the same time as the hamburger, but it isn't as good!)

Serve on hamburger buns or potato rolls.

Small Batch (Original Recipe):
1 lb. ground beef (use 70% lean then drain off the grease that cooks out)
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 Tbsp. yellow mustard (make a little pinwheel instead of measuring)
salt & pepper to taste