This post is sponsored by Smart & Final. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

With frozen ingredients ready in minutes to prepared dressings, you can make this simple recipe in minutes. It’s one of my favorites for cutting back on prep time, but not on flavor.

Skipping the complicated recipes for simple ones feels like a summer must.

Another must for last-minute get-togethers: one-stop shopping. I headed to my local Smart & Final so I could get everything needed for a party from produce to paper goods. Hamburgers, fresh fruit, potato salad, and an array of beverages were added to my cart. Because I knew I didn’t have to race around town or spend extra signing up for a membership, I grabbed hamburger toppings like my current obsession: pineapple rings and teriyaki sauce.

Another flavorful dish I added to the barbecue buffet was the easiest pasta salad ever! The vegetarian side dish incorporates easy to uses fresh ingredients like cherry tomatoes, onion, and corn. It’s mixed with a creamy cilantro lime dressing. While you could certainly make it from scratch, I opted for the easy option of using a premade salad dressing to flavor the bowtie pasta.

Easy Cilantro Lime Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

• 16 oz bowtie pasta, cooked al dente according to package directions
• 2 c. First Street cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 ears of corn, cooked and cut off the cob
• 1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped
• 1 jar Brianna’s Home Style Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing

Instructions:

Start by cooking bowtie pasta according to the package directions. Once al dente, drain and set aside.

Separately, cook three ears of corn. Once cooled, cut corn off of the cob.

Time Saver: Pick up frozen First Street corn on the cob. They can be microwaved which cuts down on the prep time considerably.

While cooking pasta & corn, prepare other ingredients.

Now you’re ready to assemble the easy pasta salad!

Combine cooked pasta with tomatoes, onion, corn, and cilantro. Toss with Brianna’s Home Style Creamy Cilantro Lime salad dressing or similar.

Keep cool until ready to serve.

Top with avocado prior to serving.

Findng the perfect salad dressing for this pasta salad at Smart & Final meant the whole thing came together in the same amount of time as it took to cook my pasta (about 12 minutes). It’s a cost effective, time-saver that is seriously delicious.

There are so many great opportunities to enjoy this easy pasta salad. From family gatherings to birthday parties, it’s quickly becoming a must-have menu item at our house. It’s been a challenging year, and I don’t want to miss any celebrations because the idea of hosting sounds daunting.

Smart & Final Celebrates its 150th Anniversary

There’s always a reason to celebrate, but I’m adding one more to your list. Smart & Final, the “smaller, faster grocery warehouse store” is turning 150! The store was originally founded Hellman-Hass Grocery Co. in Los Angeles, and is now 250 stores strong. It’s the oldest and longest continually operating food retailers in the US, so it’s been a resource for party throwers for a very long time!

Join in the Smart & Final 150th Anniversary Party!

Let’s take it way back! Smart & Final will publish a special series of #TBT (#Throw BackThursday) posts highlighting some of Smart & Final’s best historical photos. Trivia buffs following Smart & Final on Instagram (@smartfinal) also will enjoy history quizzes on stories with $25 gift cards being awarded weekly. It’s a fun way to celebrate along with Smart & Final and possibly win!

Looking for more easy recipes?

• Sheet Pan Vegetable Hash with Eggs {Recipe}
• The Best Springtime Farro and Kale Salad
• Easy S’mores Candy Bark

I’m making up time for all the missed celebrations with easy recipes. What’s your go-to barbecue side dish?

I received a complimentary meal to facilitate this review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

There are a handful of meals everyone in my family will eat.  Maybe less than a handful, when I start listing them.  In addition to the normal preferences that accompany a child’s palate, we have a few considerations.  My 10-year-old daughter and I are both vegetarian, bordering on vegan.  My husband and 8-year-old eat meat.  Our preschooler only wants food items presented as snacks.

We make it work by preparing meals that are easily customizable, like tacos or pasta bars.  Trying to find options for our diverse dining preferences can be tough.  So when I was invited to join Stonefire Grill for a tasting party, I was definitely curious.  Would my family be able to find meals that fit our dietary preferences?

I was able to bring along a good friend for the tasting party to sample some of the meat offerings, so I’ll be able to share the fresh options at Stonefire Grill perfect for the whole family (regardless of dietary preferences).

Family-Friendly Vegetarian Options at Stonefire Grill

Pizza & Pasta

Easily made vegetarian, pizza is a great meat-free option.  Try a traditional cheese or roasted veggie pizza.  The pizza dough and pizza sauce are both vegan, so you can easily eliminate any animal products by requesting cheese be left off of your pizza pie.  Pasta is another of our family favorites.  Stonefire Grill offers 4 vegetarian options with marinara, pesto, tomesto, and mac & cheese.  One-third into the menu, and we are already hooked.

Salads & Sandwiches

Substitute animal protein for avocado in any sandwich for a delicious vegetarian option.  Dive into the Roasted Cauliflower Pita or Caprese Sandwich.

Salads do not have to be boring.  With numerous salad dressing options, you can guarantee flavor on your greens.  Try a cilantro vinaigrette or lemon tahini atop a garden salad.  A fun twist available to make these menu items vegetarian is to add quinoa or avocado in place of the meat.  Options other than a boring veggie burger? Yes, please.

One fantastic option I was able to enjoy during our lunch was the Mediterranean Salad Bowl.  The dish came with a nutty farro salad, quinoa, Mediterranean chopped salad, hummus with thick and soft Jerusalem pita bread.

Sides

Complement your meal with Stonefire Grill’s tasty side dishes.  Garlic mashed potatoes, whole roasted cauliflower, and nutty coleslaw are all vegetarian options.

Fish

Pesco vegetarians can enjoy fish options as well.  Try the lemon garlic or sesame glazed salmon.  Our lunch included a Mediterranean Sea Basswith lemon, olive oil, and red chili flakes.  The same farro salad from the Mediterranean bowl was paired with the fish.  I could eat that farro salad by the bucket. So yummy!

Kids’ Menu

Vegetarians kids under 12 can enjoy a variety of main entrees and sides.  Mine will gobble up the cheese pizza, pasta dishes, and cheese quesadilla.

New Snack Menu

A family that snacks together stays together, right? Stonefire Grill’s new snack menu has you covered!  These items are meant to share, so grab your family’s favorites.

Snack Menu Options:

• Traditional hummus–served with cucumber, tomatoes, and pita bread
• Caramelized Onion Dip–served with salt & pepper potato chips or tortilla chips
• Chilaquiles Verdes–a slightly different & fresher version of chilaquiles than I’m used to, these were lightly topped with spicy tomatillo sauce, feta, onion, and cilantro

• Chips and Guacamole
• Mediterranean Chicken Patties–served with lemon tahini and spicy cilantro-serrano sauce; these are also served in the Mediterranean Chicken Bowl pictured below

• Chips and Roasted Tomato Salsa–lightly fried tortilla chips with homemade salsa
• Mesquite BBQ Meatballs – served with our signature or spicy BBQ sauce.

With a few obvious exceptions, the new snack menu offers vegetarians numerous options to dig in before dishing up their full meal.

We finished our meal with Stonefire Grill’s Incredible Carrot Cake.  They really aren’t kidding on this one.  A gigantic serving of layered carrot cake came to our table.  The cream cheese frosting was sweet and just the right amount of tartness.

Happily stuffed with fresh foods and scrumptious dessert, I explored the rest of the Stonefire Grill menu picking out meals perfect for the meat eaters in my family.  With so many unique offerings for everyone, it’s definitely a place we all could enjoy together.  If you’re looking for a meal to share, check out the grill options, perfect for 4 or more.  Tri Tip or the 1/2 chicken and full slab of ribs combo come with a medium salad and freshly baked breadsticks.

Finding locations that are comfortable and present options my family can all enjoy is a gold mine.  You can find your nearest Stonefire Grill location here.

Stonefire Grill offers family-friendly menus for everyone, including your vegetarian family and friends.  Share your favorite Stonefire Grill meals in the comments!

This pumpkin chili recipe is one of my favorite ways to celebrate the season!

This post is not sponsored. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The original recipe comes from Trader Joe’s which is fitting because that’s where I shopped for ingredients.  But I did swap out the ground turkey to make it vegetarian friendly.  It’s become a fall favorite and a recipe I look forward to all year.

It’s got sweetness from the pumpkin, and a little bit of heat from soy chorizo and cayenne pepper.  Soy chorizo comes in casing, like traditional chorizo.  I find it odd whenever meat substitutes are too close in appearance or packaging to actual meat. Weirds me out & makes me think some day I’ll mix them up.  So I always get a little grossed out opening it.  But that’s just me.  This soy version is vegan and gluten-free, making it a great staple to have in your fridge.

The Vegetarian Pumpkin Chili is a snap to make, largely because you can grab so many of the ingredients canned. Less chopping and a few spins of the can opener make for an easy meal to whip up.

Vegetarian Pumpkin Chili Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 white onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 pkg Soy Chorizo
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 2 cans pumpkin
• 1 can kidney beans, drained
• 1/2 can corn, drained
• 1 bell pepper (orange or red), chopped
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Preparation:

In large skillet, saute’ onions and bell pepper in olive oil for 3-4 minutes. Add garlic & saute’ for another minute. Transfer ingredients to large sauce pan.  Add in remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil, with frequent stirring. Turn down heat & simmer for 20-30 minutes.

When serving, you’ve got tons of options for toppings. My husband likes sour cream on his, while I’ll add avocado to anything and everything.

I tend to double recipes because weeknights are crazy.  Since I didn’t have two packages of the Trader Joe’s soy chorizo, I used the one I had at home and also used one package of Morningstar Meatless Crumbles.  The pumpkin chili makes for great leftovers, and could even be served on hamburger buns for a Pumpkin Sloppy Joe.

Vegetarian Pumpkin Chili is a quick and seasonal family favorite. What’s on the menu at your house?