Creamy Dill Cucumber Salad

This is one of those dishes that remind me of Grandma's.  Not a particular Grandma, but Grandmas in general.  Every time I make this salad for anyone but my family, I always hear "My Grandma used to make this!" but interestingly enough, they never made it for themselves.  So, here is the super simple recipe for this cool, refreshing salad.  ENJOY!

Ingredients:

• 3 English Cucumbers, thinly sliced.  You could use regular, but I prefer the taste of the English Cucumbers 
• ½ cup onion, thinly sliced (optional, which I optioned out of)
• ¼ cup white vinegar
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup mayonnaise, not to be confused with Miracle Whip
• 1 TBSP dried Dill

Place sliced cucumbers in a serving bowl.  In a separate bowl or 2-cup measuring cup, combine vinegar with sugar and salt.  Stir briskly to combine.  Add mayo, again stirring to incorporate with vinegar mixture until smooth.  Add Dill, stir some more, and viola!  Pour over sliced cucumbers, toss to combine and let sit in fridge for a few minutes to allow flavors meld and make friends.

This recipe is linked up at:
Mommy's Kitchen Sunday Potluck
Eat at Home

German Chicken Paprikash

Happy Thursday! We made our first trip to the beach on Tuesday, and I got a bit crispy. The kiddos and I are total water rats, so it was great for us to get our toes wet. On a happier note, though the plants are still sexing all over the place (yes, I just used the word sexing), my allergies are well under control now...hip, hip hooray! Apparently, this is the highest pollen count EVER in the big NC. Oh what our neighbors must think at us bringing all these records with us. Record snowfall, record cold, record pollen.

I thought I would be the odd one today and give you a non-Easter, or should I say, non-Easter leftover recipe. Not that this is what we are having...heck I have Ham and Bean Soup in the crock pot as we speak, haha! BUT, I did make this last week and it was delish! This is another authentic German dish from my Aunt Ingrid, though I did do some very minor tweaking. German Chicken Paprikash....."Waiiiiter, there is too much peeppper in my Paprikash..." Name that movie. It is really good and a breeze to put together. The leftovers are GREAT, in fact, I think this would be a good dish to make a double batch of and freeze one for a simple meal at a later time....you know like when you get back from the beach ;)



Ingredients:

• 2 TBSP oil of canola or olive oil
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 3 TBSP Hungarian Paprika
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 TBSP corn starch
• 1/2 cup sour cream

In a deep skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and cook just until tender. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over chicken and add to skillet, cooking chicken just slightly, do not brown. Add paprika, garlic, and green pepper, stirring to combine. Turn heat to low, cover pan with lid and allow to simmer for 1 hour. The chicken will render its own cooking juice, which is divine!
After an hour, dissolve cornstarch in water and add to chicken mixture, stirring to combine. Once thickened, stir in sour cream and remove from heat. At this point, start adding salt and pepper to taste. Go slow, you can always add more. Serve over rice, noodles, mashed potatoes, or spaetzle. ENJOY!!!

I just had to share my favorite picture of our beach day. My sweet kiddo C LOVES being buried in the sand. I caught her as she was laughing hysterically when I shouted "EEEKKK! A head in the sand!" Give your soul a smile today, go kiss the ones you love twice, just because!


This recipe has been linked up at:
Mommy's Kitchen Sunday Potluck!
Eat at Home