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Category Archives: Vegetables

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes Everyone at the Table Will Want to Gobble Up | Real Simple

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes Everyone at the Table Will Want to Gobble Up | Real Simple.

More and more people today are having a gluten-free diet, so if you are having guests this year that eat gluten-free you want to make sure you have dishes that they can enjoy. Real Simple has put together some great Thanksgiving recipes that are gluten-free and taste great so that everyone will enjoy them. Check it out!

 

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Super-Simple Thanksgiving Sides – Photo Gallery | SAVEUR

Super-Simple Thanksgiving Sides – Photo Gallery | SAVEUR.

Side dishes can be the stars of your Thanksgiving meal and you can make some great sides that are really easy to put together to make your Thanksgiving meal spectacular. Saveur has put together 33 Thanksgiving side recipes for you check out that are uncomplicated and delicious. Check it out!

 

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Thanksgiving Recipes Across the United States – NYTimes.com

Thanksgiving Recipes Across the United States – NYTimes.com.

The New York Times used their Food section of the newspaper and online today to post a particular recipe related to Thanksgiving for each of the 50 states and Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. This gives you a chance to try a lot of new things for your Thanksgiving this year or try something from your home state that you may never have thought of before. Check it out!

 

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A Great Thanksgiving Side Dish (or Any Time) – Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Squash and Apples

While making the turkey is certainly the centerpiece of your Thanksgiving adventure when you are cooking, the side dishes can be more fun and even more memorable. You get the opportunity to really try out some new things if your willing to break from tradition a bit. Sure you can still have mashed potatoes and stuffing, but you have a lot of options with the ways you make both and with your vegetables, the combinations seem almost endless. Since we will be away this Thanksgiving and I won’t be cooking the meal this year, I wanted to try out some dishes and recipes I have seen recently for sides for Thanksgiving. A personal favorite of mine is always Brussels sprouts and I love them roasted, so when I came upon this recipe from Tasting Table for roasted Brussels sprout with squash and apples, I had to give it a try. The original recipe also tops it all with candied walnuts, which I omitted because Michelle and Sean don’t eat walnuts, but you can certainly include them back in to give you some extra crunch to your vegetables.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Squash and Apples

1 pound Brussels sprouts (about 30 sprouts), trimmed and halved

2 pounds butternut squash (about one small squash),cut into 1-inch chunks

1 apple, cut into 1-inch chunks

2 shallots, thinly sliced

15 sage leaves

3 tablespoons butter, melted

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the Brussels sprouts, the squash, the apple, the sliced shallots and the sage leaves. Add the melted butter and the maple syrup and season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Toss all of the ingredients until all of the vegetables are well coated with the butter-maple syrup mixture.

Spread the vegetables in an even layer on a parchment paper-lined sheet tray. Roast, turning the vegetables occasionally, until the Brussels sprouts are golden brown and tender and the butternut squash is tender, about 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer the roasted vegetables to a serving dish, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve, topping with walnuts if you desire.

It is a nice and simple combination of vegetables that provides you with some great fall flavors. You get the taste of the sprouts and the squash combining nicely with the apple and the hint of maple syrup throughout the dish adds a nice glaze and flavor to the vegetables overall. We all loved the dish when I made this past weekend and I think it would go really well not just with turkey, but with any poultry, pork or beef meal where you wanted some nice roasted fall vegetable flavor on your plate. It’s definitely one I will make again this fall since it all comes together pretty quickly.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 17, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Holidays, Side Dishes, Vegetables, Vegetarian

 

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Thanksgiving: Recipes, Tips, Menus and Techniques | SAVEUR

Thanksgiving: Recipes, Tips, Menus and Techniques | SAVEUR.

With Michelle’s birthday this weekend, I have a lot of planning, prep work and regular work to do so I’ll be posting some great links for Thanksgiving ideas from some popular websites, such as this one:

It’s never too early to start planning out your Thanksgiving menu and Saveur magazine has you covered with lots of great recipes, tips, menus you can make, techniques to help you and videos to watch to help you with everything from gravy to carving the turkey to leftovers. Check it out!

 

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Fall Soups and Stews – Photo Gallery | SAVEUR

Fall Soups and Stews – Photo Gallery | SAVEUR.

It is definitely that time of year when my attention (and perhaps yours) turns to warm, comforting meals like soups and stews. These make great tasting, nourishing meals that are perfect for you to make any time, like on the weekend to get ready to have for lunches or dinner during the week. Saveur Magazine has put together 60 soup and stew recipes so you can try just about anything that you like. Check it out!

 

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A Crowd Favorite to Go With Anything – Broccoli Slaw

I know for many it may not seem like a coleslaw time of year and it might be something you only consider to be a summertime dish to go with your picnics and cookouts, but I like to have coleslaw just about any time of the year and I am always trying all different kinds. Coleslaw is a pretty versatile side dish that can go great with hamburgers and hot dogs for sure, but I really like it with all types of pork and chicken dishes. I often make it when we are just going to have sandwiches for dinner as an easy side dish. As I said I try to do different things with it, using different cabbage or changing up the dressing so it has mayonnaise or without mayo for more of vinaigrette style, but I also really like to try broccoli slaw now and then. Broccoli slaw is basically shredded broccoli and carrots and cabbage mixed together to get a unique flavor. You very often see it in the produce section of your store by the other bagged coleslaw options, though you could certainly make your own mix if you like. Last time I was at the store I decided to pick up a bag and give this recipe a try from Add a Pinch for a very simple broccoli slaw.

Broccoli Slaw

2 (12-ounce) bags of broccoli slaw

1/2 red onion, chopped

1/4 cup mayonnaise or Greek yogurt

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

Juice of 1 lime

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Pour the broccoli slaw into a large bowl and add the chopped red onion. In a 2-cup measuring cup, add the mayonnaise or yogurt, the apple cider vinegar, the sugar and the lime juice. Whisk the ingredients together with a fork or whisk and then pour about half of the dressing over the broccoli slaw in the bowl. Toss the slaw together to make sure it has all become well-dressed. Add any additional dressing as may be needed. Season the slaw with salt and pepper to taste and mix the slaw together well. Add the chopped parsley as a garnish, if using, and serve the slaw with any remaining dressing on the side.

You can easily make this ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator for a couple of days if you are planning to use it for a party or to take to someone’s home as part of a meal or a buffet. It goes really well with any type of sandwiches and I first served it with the steak sandwiches that we made recently and it was perfect. We have also used it for a side dish to go with lunches for the week and it goes really well with dishes like spare ribs or pulled pork, where you can put it right on the pulled pork sandwich as a topping. It is definitely easy and gives you a nice alternative to traditional coleslaw recipes.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day, have a happy and safe Halloween and enjoy your meal (and your candy too!).

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Fun and Frightful Halloween Recipes : Cooking Channel

Fun and Frightful Halloween Recipes : Cooking Channel.

Halloween is just around the corner and if you want to make some tasty treats that are fun and Halloween themed, Cooking Channel has put together 31 fun and frightful recipes perfect for Halloween fun.Check it out!

 

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Simple and Satisfying – Butternut Squash Polenta with Sausage and Onion

I always seem to forget about polenta. It’s not something I do on purpose, it’s just not a dish that I think of very often to make and then I realize just how versatile and great-tasting it can be. Sean was just saying to me the other day that we had not had polenta in a long time and he was right. I couldn’t even remember the last I made it and we always have some around the house to make. Polenta, much like it is with rice, oatmeal, grits and the like, is so great because you can add lots of things to it to bring out even greater flavors. That’s what I really liked about this particular recipe from the New York Times for butter nut squash polenta with sausage and onion. It makes great use of one of my favorite fall vegetables by incorporating it into the creamy polenta, adding another great layer of flavor and texture to the polenta itself.

Butternut Squash Polenta with Sausage and Onion

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed

1 bay leaf

1 cup fine polenta (not quick cooking)

1 cup seeded and peeled butternut squash, coarsely grated

3 tablespoons butter

Freshly ground black pepper, as needed

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, more as needed

1 1/2 pounds sweet or hot Italian pork sausage, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds

2 teaspoons minced rosemary

2 onions, peeled, halved and sliced into 1/4-inch half moons

1 teaspoon fennel seeds (optional)

Rosemary sprigs, for garnish (optional)

In a large pot set over medium-high heat, combine 4 1/2 cups of water, the kosher salt and the bay leaf. Bring the water to a boil and then slowly whisk in the polenta. Stir in the butternut squash to the polenta. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, until the polenta and the squash are very tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. If the mixture is getting too thick while cooking, add a little bit more water to the pot to thin it out. Stir in the butter and the black pepper. Taste the polenta and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper if it is needed.

While the polenta cooks, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the Italian sausage, the rosemary and the fennel seeds (if using). Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is golden and cooked through, about 7 to 10 minutes. You can cook the sausages in batches if necessary, adding more olive oil to the pan if the pan looks dry. Transfer the sausages to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.

Add more olive oil to the skillet if it looks dry and then add the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are tender and golden, about 10 to 15 minutes. Return the sausage to the pan and stir it together with the onions to heat the sausage through. Spoon the polenta into bowls and top it with the sausage and onion and garnish with the rosemary sprigs if you like.

It’s a very simple meal that packs some great flavor and is very satisfying. I love the way the squash and the polenta worked together here and it gave the polenta great texture and color. The sausages went really well with the polenta and the whole meal only takes about 30 minutes to cook. If you have polenta left, it sets really nicely when it is chilled and you can cut it into squares and saute it up as a side dish for all kinds of meals if you like. This is a great easy meal for a busy weeknight when you want something quick to put together and I think it would work well with just about any type of fall squash that you might want to use.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on October 17, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Vegetables

 

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Back to Cooking with a Great Fall Side Dish – Cider-Glazed Root Vegetables

Now that my oven is up and running again I was able to do some actual cooking over the past weekend and a few different things that I can share on the blog. One of my favorite things about fall cooking is all of the great root vegetables that seem to go so well with fall meals come out. You can do great things with carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, turnips, beets and more and while I personally love to roast all kinds of vegetables, I also thought it would be great to bring all of these flavors together and use another great piece of fall produce – apples. Apples are pretty plentiful in this area of New York this time of year so it’s a great time to take advantage of them as well. This particular recipe for cider-glazed root vegetables was in the latest issue of Cook’s Country magazine and uses the cider to give the vegetables some added flavor and punch. The original recipe uses hard apple cider in it, which I did not have on hand. Instead I used some local apple cider as a substitute.

Cider-Glazed Root Vegetables

4 tablespoons butter

1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

12 ounces parsnips, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch pieces

12 ounces turnips, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch pieces

3 shallots, peeled and halved

2 1/2 cups hard cider or regular cider

3 tablespoons sugar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 apple, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon

2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, parsnips, turnips and shallots and cook until lightly browned, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the apple cider, sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and the remaining 3 tablespoons of the butter and bring the entire mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover the skillet. Cook the vegetables until they are just tender, about 7 to 10 minutes, stirring the vegetables occasionally.

Uncover the skillet and increase the heat to medium. Cook the vegetables until they are fully tender, about 13 to 15 minutes, stirring them occasionally. Stir in the apple and continue to cook the vegetables until the cider starts to become syrupy and the apple is just tender, about another 2 to 3 minutes. Take the skillet off the heat and stir in the chopped tarragon and the apple cider vinegar. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the vegetables to a serving dish and pour any of the remaining glaze over the vegetables before serving.

Other than substituting regular apple cider for the hard apple cider, I also used golden beets instead of turnips since I already had the beets on hand. You can use pretty much root vegetables that you really like and I think they would work pretty well here. The original recipe as it is posted here is also designed to serve 8 people, so I cut the recipe in half when I actually made it for just the 3 of us and we still had plenty of leftovers. You get some really great flavor with all of the vegetables mixed together with the cider and the apple, though I have to admit that using the regular cider probably creates a bit of a weaker tasting glaze than if you use the hard cider, but it was still really good. I made this as a side dish to go with meat loaf, but I think it would go really well with any pork or poultry dish as well.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on October 13, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Side Dishes, Vegetables, Vegetarian

 

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