Ah! What a weekend? Does it really have to be over? P.S. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there – hope you all had an amazing day!
Our weekend started with a jaunt over to Chicago – Shea had a weekend lined up with her uncle and my parents and hubby and I had a weekend lined up with my bff and her boyfriend. We got to see their new house and enjoy a WONDERFUL meal out at The Dawson – definitely check it out if you’re in Chicago. It’s a shame I can’t drink because their cocktails looked amazing. Fortunately for me, however, the food was amazing, too. A BBQ pulled pork cupcake with cream cheese “frosting”? Yeah, it was pretty much out of this world good.
On Saturday we survived the heat of the day, hubby and I went out for a little day date of shopping (Trader Joe’s, etc!) and lunch out (this salad – uhhhmazing). We met back up with bff for the Cubs game which was pretty much perfection – the weather, the win, the company (hubby and I & bff and I). Yeah, it was incredible…especially as a die hard Cubs fan. I even made it up until 1AM, people. And that’s 2am EST! Yep…my body will be in MAJOR shock come tomorrow morning.
Father’s Day was spent with my family – a grilled out linner (lunch/dinner) and a walk for gelato. There was some sprinkler action, a jog with hubby, and some other fun stuff thrown in, too. The weekend wrapped up with a quick ride back to Michigan with absolutely no traffic leaving the city…and that never happens.
On the ride back, hubby took the wheel so I could get caught up here and on our weekly menu. I’d spent all weekend being spoiled by the great food of Chicago’s restaurants and ballpark that I was drawing a blank on what actually sounded good…while also factoring in when I could possibly make it to the grocery store. It’s a sad day when you can see the back of my refrigerator.
So, here we are. Monday will be here in no time, but at least I can complete the weekend by offering up this embarrassingly simply, yet totally summer-perfect and absolutely delicious BLT Pasta Salad. It’s the best of both a pasta salad and green salad with summer’s best tomatoes, beloved bacon, and of course, ranch (in lieu of mayonnaise because that would be weird as a stand-alone dressing). Enjoy!
- 4 oz (~3½ cups) uncooked bow tie pasta
- 1 small head romaine lettuce, washed and copped/torn
- ⅔ cup low-fat ranch dressing
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
- 6 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
- Bring a medium pot of water to a rolling boil over high heat. Add pasta, stir, and cook about 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain pasta and rinse under cold running water.
- Put washed and prepared romaine in a large bowl; drizzle with ½ cup of the ranch and toss well to coat. Add the cooked pasta, top with remaining ranch dressing, and toss well to coat.
- Add diced tomatoes and crumbled bacon; toss well and serve immediately.
- Sunday: grilled steak and chicken, asparagus & portabellos, twice baked potatoes
- Monday: leftovers
- Tuesday: Slow Cooker Pineapple Pulled Pork Tacos
- Wednesday: BBQ Pasta Salad with grilled chicken
- Thursday: enchiladas verde with carnitas from the freezer
Be well,
