Category Archives: Side Dish

October 13, 2010 · 12:41 pm

Apple and Beet Salad

I am always trying to figure out what to do with the other half of the apple that doesn’t get used when I make the boys an apple and peanut butter sandwich or an apple and cheese quesadilla for their lunches. Well, this is what I decided to with it today after seeing it in An Apple a Day in this month’s Food Network magazine.

Ingredients:
1/2 apple, diced
2-3 T diced canned beets (not the pickled variety)
1-2 T plain yogurt
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Makes 1-2 servings.

What did the family think? I just made this for myself since I honestly don’t think anyone else in my house would eat this. It made a nice side with the sandwich I had for lunch and it’s kind of cool because the juice from the beets turns everything pink. 🙂

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Filed under Easy, Salad, Side Dish, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

October 10, 2010 · 9:37 pm

Apple Coleslaw

There was an apple fest at our grocery store today and this was one of the samples.

Ingredients:
12 oz. cole slaw mix
2 tart apples, cored and finely sliced
1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, finely diced
1/3 cup sunflower or vegetable oil
3 T lemon juice
3 T honey
1 1/2 tsp celery seeds
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:
In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon juice, honey and celery seed.

Add the cole slaw mix, apple, celery and green pepper; toss to coat.

Season with salt and pepper

Chill until serving.

We had this as a side with salmon and a baguette.

Did I change anything? I used broccoli slaw instead of traditional cole slaw mix and I didn’t add the celery seeds because I didn’t have any.

What did the family think? Hubby and I liked it. The kids picked out the apples and the carrots. I ended up breaking up my salmon and mixing it in with the apple slaw. It was really good like that. The salmon goes really well with the sweetness/tartness of the apples. It would make a really good summer salad with salmon like we did or maybe with chicken.

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Filed under Easy, Side Dish, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

October 1, 2010 · 12:43 pm

Sweet Potato Fries

You can either buy whole sweet potatoes for this, or cheat and save yourself some prep time and use
pre-cut sweet potatoes.

Ingredients:
12 oz. of Pre-cut sweet potatoes or 3-4 sweet potatoes
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Instructions:
If you are using whole potatoes, peel and cut them into 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch thick sticks. If any of the “sticks” are pointy at the end, chop the pointy part off as it will cook too quickly and burn. You want them all to be uniform in thickness. If you are using pre-cut potatoes, skip this step and move on to the next step.

Next, evenly coat the sweet potatoes with olive oil by placing potatoes in a bowl and drizzling olive oil over them. Toss to coat.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss again.

Spread them out evenly on a baking sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes. Turn potatoes over and cook for another 10 minutes or until crispy and browned. Enjoy!

What did the family think? Hubby and I could have eaten about six more servings of these. My kids don’t know a good thing when they taste it. They ate them, but they certainly didn’t like them. Weirdos. 🙂

adapted from Trader Joe’s recipe

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Filed under After School Snacks, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Side Dish, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

September 23, 2010 · 10:52 pm

Mexican Rice

I love it when I realize that I need a side dish in the middle of making the main dish, scramble to figure out what that might be and then am able to throw something together out of what’s already in the pantry.

Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup Minute Rice
7 oz salsa verde
8 oz tomato sauce

Instructions:
Heat medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and onions. When onions begin to soften, add garlic. After a few minutes add rice, salsa verde and tomato sauce. Stir to combine, cover and simmer for about five minutes, you may want to add more rice to make the mixture thicker. Remove from heat and let sit for about five minutes.

What did the family think? I don’t think they boys ate it, but Sean and I both liked it. I was impressed that I had everything in the pantry to throw this together.

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Filed under Easy, Mexican, Side Dish, Six Ingredients or Less, Spicy, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

September 4, 2010 · 7:25 pm

Roasted Veggies

I haven’t found a roasted veggie I don’t like and these are no exception…

Ingredients:
1 medium zucchini, cut into spears
1 red bell pepper, cut into spears
1 red onion, cut into wedges
2 T olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:
Heat oven to 450 degrees.

Place veggies in a large roasting pan or on a cookie sheet that has sides. Add olive oil, salt and pepper and stir/toss to coat.

Arrange veggies in a single layer for about 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Veggies are done when they are light brown and tender.

We had this with pesto and lemon kabobs, grapes and bread and butter.

Did I change anything? This recipe also called for asparagus, summer squash and a yellow bell pepper, but I knew we wouldn’t be able to eat all of that, so I just chose a few veggies to work with. If you are going to use all of these veggies, then you need more olive oil.

What did the family think? Hubby and I really liked them. My favorite was the red onions. The kids weren’t impressed.

from cooks.com

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Side Dish, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

August 26, 2010 · 7:52 pm

Pintos and Cheese Salad

This was SO much better than I thought it was going to be. My husband wouldn’t even pass me the bowl so I could have seconds because he wanted it for himself. He did eventually give it up. 🙂

Ingredients:
Salad:
3 cups canned pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup corn
1/2 cup red onion, diced
8 oz Monterey Jack cheese, diced

Dressing:
1/4 cup packed fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
3 T lime juice
1 tsp lime zest
1 T apple cider vinegar
1 T honey
1/2 tsp salt

Instructions:
Place all salad ingredients in a bowl and toss to mix.

Combine dressing ingredients in a blender and until cilantro is chopped fine. Pour over salad and serve immediately. (If taking this to a picnic or a potluck, take the salad and the dressing separately.
Pour the dressing on the salad when you get there and it is about time to eat.)

We had this with tacos and grapes. It’s a nice little salad to add to whatever Mexican dish you are having. It’s also good to have with hamburgers, steak or grilled chicken. It’s very summery, too.

Did I change anything? I halved this recipe when making it for my family. If I was taking it to a potluck, I would follow the amounts in the recipe above.

What did the family think? Hubby was hogging the bowl and wouldn’t give it to me so I could have seconds. I think he liked it. 🙂

from Disneyfamily.com

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Salad, Side Dish, Vegetarian

August 25, 2010 · 8:10 pm

Greek Salad

We went to a Greek Festival this past weekend, so there are going to be several Greek recipes on MommaCooks this week. I love Greek food; it’s so fresh and simple.

Ingredients:
Dressing
1/8 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 T dried oregano
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Whisk ingredients together in a small bowl and let stand for about an hour so the flavors have time to mingle.

Salad
1/2 cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/2 red onion, peeled and chopped
1 cup feta cheese, crumbled (more or less to taste)

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, together with the dressing and toss well. Refrigerate for about an hour before serving.

Did I change anything? I left out the Kalamata olive; they’re not my favorite.

What did the family think? Hubby and I loved this; it’s a perfect summer salad. The boys liked the feta.

from Wickedfood Cooking

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Filed under Chicken, Make Ahead of Time, Salad, Side Dish, Vegetarian

August 23, 2010 · 10:38 pm

Black Bean and Tomato Couscous

A perfect summertime salad to take on a picnic…

Ingredients:
2 tsp grated lime zest
2 T fresh lime juice
2 T melted butter
1 T vegetable or canola oil
1 tsp sugar
1 cup couscous
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Crushed red pepper, to taste
Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:
Cook couscous according to package directions. Fluff with a fork when done.

Whisk together lime zest, lime juice, butter, oil, sugar, salt and pepper in a large bowl.

Add couscous to dressing, add remaining ingredients, stir. Chill in frig before serving for best results.

We had this with cheeseburgers from the grill and watermelon….a great summer meal.

Did I change anything? I added the green pepper and the crushed red pepper to the recipe. Also, this was supposed to be made with quinoa, but I didn’t have any, so I made it with couscous.

What did the family think? Hubby LOVED it! I liked it, too. Our oldest ate some, but I think it had too much cilantro for him and our youngest spied the beans and wouldn’t touch it.

from Epicurious.com

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Filed under Salad, Side Dish, Vegetarian

August 14, 2010 · 8:42 am

Parmesan-Crumb Broccoli

In an attempt to get my children to eat broccoli…

Ingredients:
1 bunch broccoli (about 1 lb.), cut into small pieces
1 slice whole wheat bread, ground in food processor (about 1 cup)
2 T butter
1 T fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Instructions:
Cook the broccoli in lightly salted boiling water until crisp-tender, about 2-4 minutes. Drain.

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the crumbs and thyme. Toast until golden and then remove from heat.

Put the broccoli in a serving bowl. Toss in the breadcrumb mixture. Let cool for a couple of minutes or so and then toss in Parmesan.

Did I change anything? Yes, I changed the instructions a little bit. The original instructions had me tossing the Parmesan in while everything else was still really hot, it melted and we ended up with big glops of breading that weren’t coating the broccoli at all. Hopefully by letting things cool down a bit first, that won’t happen.

What did the family think? Thumbs up from everyone but the youngest. Surprised? 🙂

from Real Simple