Not Your Typical Pasta Salad

Hello again! Although I don't have a picture of this DELICIOUS pasta salad, I had to post anyway because it is a recipe that should not be kept secret. I was at a wedding over the weekend for one of my very good friends. In preparation for a day of pictures, it was decided that we would eat light the days prior to the celebration. To help us stay on the wagon, the bride's sister, Molly, made this amazing pasta salad that is an actually an adaptation from D'Amico and Sons in Minnesota, with locations also in Florida. Below is a very open recipe, as when I made it, no measuring cups where used. I just put in each ingredient based on how much I like it - which meant there was a decent amount of EVERYTHING, especially the dried cherries!

Makes 4 Servings.

Ingredients:
2 Cups DRY Multi-grain (if you like) Rotini Pasta (makes 4 Cups cooked), cooked until al dente and rinsed with cold water
1/2 Cup Dried Cherries
1/2 Cup Whole Almonds (or 1/4 Cup Almond Slivers)
1/2 Cup Chopped Celery
1/4 Cup Chopped Red Onion
1/2 Cup Cooked Chicken (or Turkey like D'Amico and Sons uses) - I used Oscar Mayer Louis Rich Chicken Breast Strips Grilled because they were cheap and SUPER easy!
1/2 Cup (more or less) of Poppy Seed Dressing - I used Kraft Creamy Poppyseed Dressing because that's what Molly used, but I'm sure any poppyseed dressing would be just as delicious!

Cooking Directions:
After I made this salad and DEVOURED the entire bowl (not in one sitting :), I got to thinking. As a lover of a VERY specific kind of chicken salad (grapes, minimal mayo, no nuts...), I thought, if you make a chicken breast, shred it up and nix the pasta, you have an even healthier version! Would be great on it's own or even as a sandwich - pita or bread would both be good.

Although I've JUST made this, as in I finished it off yesterday for dinner, I will be making it again VERY soon and hope to have pictures then. Stay tuned!

Hello

As this is my first post, I feel an introduction and explanation are in order. My name is Stacey and I live in Chicago with my boyfriend, well, sort of. He actually currently lives in Houston for his job. Prior to Houston, he was in Minneapolis, Fargo and Wisconsin Rapids, so basically, we have been a long-distance couple for quite some time now. However, it wasn't until recently that I decided it might be a good idea to learn how to cook so when I someday have a boyfriend in the same state and eventually a family, we are not choosing dinner by which place has the best take-out menu (well, at least not all of the time :).

It is my hope that if I start to cook now, I will eventually have recipes aplenty that I can a) actually cook and b) my picky boyfriend will actually eat! I think I'm off to a good start and will soon begin to post what I have compiled thus far.

Another reason I am starting this blog is to assist my sister who lives about three hours away. She doesn't really like to cook and still sometimes struggles with things like boiling water :) My hope is that these recipes are easy enough (and some quick enough!) for her to cook because if I can do it, anyone can do it!

If you have any comments, questions, suggestions, etc. don't hesitate to post. I would love hearing what you have to say!

Recipes to come soon! And hopefully even some pictures once I get my hands on a new, working digital camera!