Creamy green beans and mushrooms are nestled beneath crispy onions in this Fresh Green Bean Casserole. If you’ve been looking for “the one” new recipe to make this holiday season, look no further. I may be biased, but it doesn’t get any better than this!
My friends, there is no bigger meal at our house than Thanksgiving. Each year, it gives me an opportunity to re-make and tweak all of our favorite recipes. And this fresh green bean casserole recipe is one improvement that I’m particularly proud of. This year, it will find a home on the table between my versions of mom’s corn pudding casserole and Aunt Judy’s strawberry pretzel salad.
Fresh Green Bean Casserole
At our house, we have a tradition with Thanksgiving. All of us get to pick one “favorite” dish for the lineup, and I promise to make everything on that list. And, at this point, my love of checklists and systems has really nailed down the process of how to make Thanksgiving dinner stress-free.
But, here’s the secret… it doesn’t matter what the favorites are. They want them all. If something gets overlooked, there’s a mutiny in the kitchen that starts with a chorus of “But, we have to have that!”
Believe me, I’m not complaining. I love knowing that my family loves eating these dishes. Thanksgiving is a holiday that I remember fondly from my childhood. There were times that we struggled, but my mom never failed to make this opportunity to practice gratitude feel like a feast.
You probably already know your way around a green been casserole. But, I’m convinced that this version is my best one yet. It starts with fresh beans, giving it the texture upgrade that keeps them tender crisp instead of becoming mushy.
It’s the classic side dish you already know and love, but with a little more life in every bite. A little more effort? Sure. But it’s so, so worth it.
Fresh, crisp vegetables, creamy dressing, AND chicken and bacon? I never really have to sell this Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad to get someone to try it. With all this and more, it’s no wonder that it is consistently a hit at our table.
I love pasta salads. They’re so versatile, supporting a seemingly endless array of ingredients. And I’m always experimenting with new versions. I was making my bacon pasta salad the other day and on a whim I tossed in some grilled chicken. It turned out soooo good! I knew I had to recreate it as it’s own recipe asap. So, here we are.
Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad
When I was developing this recipe for chicken bacon ranch pasta salad, I couldn’t stop coming back for more. It’s so snackable! Light enough to enjoy in the summertime, but hearty enough to feed a crowd. And what little leftovers we had were just as good for lunch the next day.
Don’t have homemade ranch dressing in the refrigerator? Don’t worry! I’ve included some instructions below on how to make it from scratch. It’s well worth a few minutes to make the dressing yourself. Once you taste the difference from store-bought, you’ll never want to go back.
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Fresh greens, nutty edamame, sweet cranberries, plenty of cheese, wonton crisps, and a handful of fresh mushrooms tossed in a tangy sweet honey mustard dressing add up to this unforgettable Crunchy Spinach Salad. Inspired by one of my favorite restaurant salads, this salad never fails to remind me of road trips with family.
As you already know, I grew up in New Mexico and I have loved Dion’s Pizza for as long as I can remember. There’s no such thing as a trip back home that doesn’t include a stop there for at least one meal. Even my green chile ranch was inspired by our love for their dressing, since we couldn’t get it after moving out of state. So, I’m thrilled to share another Dion’s copycat salad today.
Dion’s Crunchy Spinach Salad
I fell for the crunchy spinach salad the very first time I tried it. I was visiting my sister Jenny in NM and she ordered this salad along with our pizza. I had always ordered their chef salad, so when this one showed up, I wasn’t sure what to think about it.
It’s hard to believe that was almost ten years ago. I can not believe it took me until this summer’s road trip to Arizona to finally try my hand at this recipe. But, I am proud of myself for remembering to put the ingredients on my shopping list while I was still eating it. How’s that for thinking ahead?
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This crunchy, cheesy Sauteed Cauliflower has me over here make the same side dish on repeat multiple times a month lately. It’s jaw-droppingly easy to pull together, and my boys like it so much they snag pieces right out of the pan.
If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that I’m a longtime fan of simple, satisfying, and just downright tasty side dishes that I can throw together on busy nights, and sides like sauteed broccoli and asparagus are often seen on my meal plan.
Sauteed Cauliflower
And this cauliflower? It falls right in line with that: hearty, cheesy, and just plain easy to make. From start to finish, all the prep and cooking for the dish can be done in less than 30 minutes with a minimum of fuss.
I love the contrast of textures in this dish, too. The cheesy cauliflower and crunchy breadcrumbs pair together so well. One of my boys, normally a fierce critic of any dish containing cauliflower, even came back for seconds!
Ingredients and Substitutions
Creamy ranch dressing meets crisp vegetables and tender bites of pasta in this Ranch Pasta Salad. It’s a cool, easy dinner to beat the heat, and with a total prep and cook time of 20 minutes, it’s my kind of summer meal.
This simple pasta salad has already been made several times this summer, especially when I’ve happened to have several of the ingredients already prepped. (If you happen to have some homemade ranch salad dressing already, you can substitute half cup of ranch dressing for the dressing ingredients listed below, making this meal even easier to pull together!)
Ranch Pasta Salad
Pasta salads have been frequent favorites on our dinner table for years now. They’re hearty enough to be a meal on their own, and they also pair well with almost any entree for a heartier meal.
My whole family loves the bacon ranch pasta salad that I’ve been making for years now. It is a seriously hearty pasta salad – definitely a meal on its own. But for this salad, I wanted that ranch flavor we love, but I wanted to keep the salad a bit lighter and fill it with crunchy fresh vegetables.
