Summer Fruit Salad

1/2 tsp orange zest
1/2 tsp lemon zest
2/3 c fresh squeezed orange juice
1/3 c lemon juice
1/3 c brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla

About 8 cups of fresh fruit (strawberries, blueberries, grapes, bananas, pineapple, orange, etc)

Simmer all ingredients, except vanilla and fresh fruit, in saucepan until thickened and reduced (about 5-10 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool. Pour cooled mixture over fresh fruit and refrigerate for 2-4 hours before serving.

Basic Potato Salad (Hawaiian inspired)

4 large potatoes
2-3 pickles, chopped
3-4 TBSP pickle juice
3-4 TBSP zesty Italian dressing
1/2 c mayonnaise
1 TBSP prepared mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
Dash curry powder
Ground black pepper to taste

Optional add-ins:
3-4 slices of ham, chopped
2-3 hard boiled eggs
1 c. frozen peas
2 celery stalks, chopped
1-2 carrots, chopped
2-3 thinly sliced green onions
1/4 cup finely diced red onion

Bake and then peel & chop the potatoes (or peel, chop, and then boil the potatoes). Once cooked, and cut into cubes, top the potatoes with pickle juice and Italian dressing while still warm - stir to coat. Allow potatoes to cool and then mix in the remaining ingredients.

TIP: I like the basic version without add-ins (as does my daughter) - the add-ins require more time and more ingredients, but it also tastes great with some or all of the add-ins.
TIP: Add 1 c. of cooked macaroni (measured dry) to make a potato mac salad. You will need to increase the amount of mayo, pickle juice, and dressing accordingly (perhaps even doubling the.amounts of each).

Wild Rice and Arugula Salad

1 c wild rice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c toasted sliced almonds
4 c arugula
1/2 c chopped fresh basil
1/2 c dried sour cherries, chopped
1/2 c crumbled feta

Dressing:
3 TBSP olive oil
3 TBSP lemon juice
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground pepper, or to taste

Cook wild rice according to directions on package, adding 1/2 tsp salt to water when cooking the rice (or boil rice in about 2 cups of water for 35-45 minutes until tender, drain any excess water). Let rice cool. Combine all ingredients of dressing. Mix rice, almonds, arugula, basil, sour cherries, feta, and dressing.

Potato Salad

4 med potatoes
1/2 lb bacon
2 large pickles, finely chopped
1/4 onion, finely chopped
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1/2 c. pickle juice (pour from pickle jar)

Cook potatoes (I microwave them using the potato button on my microwave), then peel them and cut them into bite-sized pieces. (You can also peel and cut the potatoes first and then boil them for about 15 min.) While the potatoes are cooking, fry bacon in a frying pan until crispy.
Pour pickle juice over potatoes while they are still warm and stir. Add pickles, onion and mayonnaise and mix well. Crumble bacon into potato salad and mix again. Refrigerate until serving.

TIP: I like to wait until I am ready to serve the potato salad before adding the bacon, so the bacon will still be crispy.
TIP: You may need to add more pickle juice or mayo after the salad has cooled to obtain the right consistency.
TIP: The bacon will cook more quickly if you cut it into small pieces before frying it.

Tuna Salad

1 (6oz) can of chunk white tuna or albacore
1-2 tbsp mayonnaise
1-2 tsp vinegar (or pickle juice)
1 tbsp pickle, finely chopped (or dill relish)
1 tbsp onion, finely chopped
dash black pepper
(optional: 1 tbsp celery, finely chopped)

Mix all ingredients.

TIP: Serve between two slices of bread to make a tuna salad sandwich. Or place on one slice of bread, sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and cook in toaster oven or oven to make a tuna melt. Or serve on a bed of lettuce with fresh sliced tomato.
TIP: I use tuna or albacore packed in water, if you use one that is packed in oil, you may want to use less mayonnaise.