Scrumptious Sandwiches Salads and Snacks
Simple, healthy recipes, for school, work and home

Review by: Linda Kissam & Adrianne Morrison

Scrumptious Sandwiches Salads and Snacks , Simple, healthy recipes, for school, work and home written by Patricia Greenberg and Gabriella Grunfeld  belongs in the quick, tasty and beautifully photographed hall of fame.  Finally, a collection where every recipe has a picture.  Not just ordinary pictures, but descriptive, educational and mouth-watering. Add that to yummy recipes having just a few ingredients and you have our vote for a great cookbook.

Scrumptious Sandwiches Salads and Snacks is a great gift especially for new cooks (like when your kids move out on their own), moms with school-age kids, seniors, and all the rest of us who want to eat something delicious and simple to make when we’re hungry and short on time.

Here are the chapters in this book along with recipes) that caught our attention right away.

1) Breakfast Sandwiches: Mustard Egg Salad and Roma Toast. (Pg. 25)

2) Lunch Sandwiches: Hummus, Pickles and Red Peppers on Olive Bread (Pg. 36)

3) Salads: Sautéed Corn and Blueberry Salad (Pg. 58) (see recipe below)

4) Appetizers and Side Salads: Pineapple Caprese Salad (Pg. 63)

5) Main Dish Salads: Asparagus and Tomato Pasta Salad (Pg. 77)

6) Snacks: Cucumber Submarines (Pg. 93) ((see recipe below)

The recipes are all very easy to make with simple ingredients and they all look beautiful plated.

Adrianne

First flip through: Yum! I’m tempted to try every recipe—they all look really good and easy.

How many home cooks fall into the routine of making the same dishes over and over again? It’s easy to do—we know what we like, what our family will eat, we can make it by heart, and we’re busy. Why change what’s working? But, what if there’s a healthier way to serve frozen waffles, eat bananas, or use our on-autopilot-grocery-shopping ingredients in new combinations for a meal that everyone will enjoy—why not give it a try?

For instance, do you combine corn and blueberries into a salad? If you do, I commend your creativity. If you don’t, then grab some fresh basil and make a fun, new, easy, colorful summer salad. I know I’m going to grill some extra ears of corn for this very dish. And, since you grabbed that bunch of basil, get some pineapple and mozzarella cheese so you can make the Pineapple Caprese Salad. Serve with grilled chicken or fish. Finish with Frozen Chocolate Banana Bites. For breakfast, grab an Oat Bran Scone and you’re good to go. Sound like a plan? I think so. These are must-have recipes that won’t break the budget, your waistline, or stress a busy schedule.

With this new cookbook, it will be easy to move away from those hot dogs, frozen pizza, and drive-through fast-foods to instead choose beautiful, colorful, appetizing, healthy meals with less processed foods and more fruits and veggies. You’ll save yourself and family from excess calories and dis-ease. Each recipe is accompanied by an appetizing photograph to guide you to the finish and a “Nutrition Facts” label, plus it includes essential healthy-eating guidelines in the introductory pages. It’s a little pricey but overall a win-win all the way around.

Linda 

I’m not over exaggerating here when I tell you that when this book arrived I showed everyone in proximity what a good cookbook looks like. I marked all the recipes that I immediately wanted to try.

This book contains 50 light and nutritious recipes using ingredients you most likely already have in your pantry. I love the new flavor combinations authors Greenberg and Grunfeld have come up with.  I mean who would have ever thought to do a Pineapple Caprese Salad? Those of us who love high tea, now have a whole new way to present our favorite tea sandwich.  The Cucumber Submarines (see recipe below) are a contemporary way to revisit the traditional cucumber sandwich.

Don’t expect big fancy meals.  Do expect bite-size morsels perfect for the home cook who wants to produce simple pleasures in his/her kitchen.

Recipes
Courtesy of The Fitness Gourmet

Sautéed Corn and Blueberry Salad

Corn and blueberries are freshest in the summer making this the perfect hot weather combination salad.

1 15-ounce can corn, drained and pat dry

1 pint of blueberries

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

In a sauce pan on medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and saute the corn until lightly browned. Cool completely.

Mix the corn kernels, blueberries, and basil. Add a drizzle of olive oil.

Season lightly with salt and pepper, and toss just before serving.

Serves 4

Cooking note: Keep frozen corn and blueberries in the freezer, and this quintessential summer salad can be enjoyed in the winter as well. 

Cucumber Submarines

This scrumptious treat doubles as a sandwich, and you will never miss the bread!

3 medium cucumbers

6 tablespoons guacamole

12 ounces white fish salad

garnish with capers and dill

Cut cucumbers in half lengthwise, and half again to equal 12 pieces. Scrape out the seeds with a spoon and place open on a platter.

Fill the cucumbers with guacamole, top with white fish salad, and garnish with capers and dill.

Serves 12 as a snack, or 6 sandwiches

Cooking note: Persian cucumbers work well for this recipes, because of their small size, and you can use tuna fish if that s what you have on hand.

Resources 

Scrumptious Sandwiches Salads and Snacks
Simple, healthy recipes, for school, work and home
by Patricia Greenberg and Gabriella Grunfeld

The Fitness Gourmet
http://thefitnessgourmet.com
Twitter & Instagram: @thefitnessgourmet