Rice Pilaf

This dish is so so good! As soon as we tasted it, both Nate and I knew it was an instant favorite. In fact, this side dish may make another appearance on the table next week, and I rarely make the same thing inside the same month! So good. I saw this idea over at Allrecipes and it is delicious. The only change I made was to add some salt. I served this alongside some island chicken kabobs and it was perfect. Make this soon!

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup Orzo pasta
1/2 cup uncooked white rice (I use basmati)
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chicken broth (I use low-sodium)
1/4 tsp. Lawry's seasoned salt (optional, depends on your preference)

Preparation:
In a skillet (one that has a good fitting lid), melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted add the orzo pasta, stir and cook until golden brown. Add diced onion, stir and cook until translucent and softened, about 4-5 minutes. Next add the garlic, mix well and cook mixture for an additional minute. Now add the rice and chicken broth. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 20-25 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and the mixture is tender. After cooking, remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes before fluffing. Serve hot and enjoy! This makes 4 servings.

Grilled Potato Planks

First of all, a happy anniversary to my sweet husband! Love you Nate! Last night to celebrate our anniversary we made one of our favorite entrees. We made The Best Garlic Steak and I decided on these potatoes as a side dish. They turned out really good. Before we were done eating Nate requested they be made again! Nate loved the crisp exterior and the soft interior, he said they reminded him of a giant french fry. They are so simple to prepare too! I saw the idea over at Real Mom Kitchen, we just adjusted the seasonings to our preference.

Ingredients:
2 medium russet potatoes, scrubbed clean
1 1/2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
kosher salt to taste
A1 brand garlic and herb seasoning to taste

Preparation:
Cut clean potatoes lengthwise into 1/4" planks. I recommend using a mandolin but a sharp knife works too. Stick the potatoes in a gallon size ziploc bag and add oil. Seal bag and toss potatoes to coat. Then add the seasonings to the potatoes and again seal bag and toss to evenly coat. To cook, place the oiled and seasoned potato planks right on the grill heated to medium-high heat. Grill for about 5 minutes a side. You want the potatoes to be slightly crisp on the outside and tender on the inside when pierced with a fork. Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce and enjoy! Serves 2-3.

Garlic and Butter Steamed Baby Red Potatoes

We are a potato kind of family. We love them. I needed an accompanying dish for our pork chops last night and these stood out to me. I saw them over at Deep South Dish. I cut back on the butter and added some garlic and a bit more salt. The dish takes a little while to cook, but it is really simple to get going. I hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 lbs. baby red potatoes (or you can cut up regular red potatoes)
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup butter
1 clove garlic, minced
seasoning salt to taste (I used about 1 1/2 tsp.)
black pepper to taste
parsley to garnish

Preparation:
Clean potatoes and peel a strip around the center of each potato. In a skillet add water, butter, garlic, salt, and pepper. Melt butter over medium low heat. Add the potatoes to the skillet, cover, and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Shake the skillet every so often as they cook, but don't remove lid. Once cooked, sprinkle the potatoes with parsley and serve.

Parsley Rice

This is such a simple side dish. Both hubs and I really enjoyed the flavor, it was savory and not overpowering. It was a great accompaniment to our grilled simple marinated chicken. Nate commented on how it was nice and light tasting, a good side dish for summertime. I saw this idea over at Taste of Home. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked long grain rice (I use basmati)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. dried parsley flakes
1/4-1/2 tsp. salt (really it's to taste, I used low sodium chicken broth so I did need the 1/2 tsp. salt)

Preparation:
Add chicken broth, butter, salt, and parsley flakes in a medium saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil. Once boiling stir in rice, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand still covered for 5 minutes. Fluff and serve.

Bacon and Onion Fingerling Potatoes

This is a re-post of a recipe from late 2010. It's so good and I finally got a semi-decent picture so I think it warranted a re-post.

Oh goodness, these are good. This recipe is a special occasion recipe at our house. We made these potatoes as part of our anniversary dinner. My husband loves these potatoes, I mean they have bacon, what's not to love? I saw this idea over at Picky Palate. Enjoy!


Ingredients:
3 lbs. fingerling potatoes (my store didn't have any fingerlings so I used Dutch baby potatoes that I cut into quarters)
½ lb. bacon, sliced into ½” pieces
1 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. reserved bacon drippings
½ cup onion, diced
kosher salt to taste
black pepper to taste
½ - 1 Tbsp. parsley flakes

Preparation:
Wash and cut potatoes. Add potatoes to pot then add water to cover. Bring pot to boil and boil potatoes for about 10 minutes or just until fork tender.
Cook bacon until crispy in a deep pan. When browned and crisped transfer bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Discard all but 3 Tbsp. of bacon drippings. Place the 3 Tbsp. back into the pan at medium heat, add the butter and melt. Add onions; saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add sliced potatoes, cooked bacon, salt, pepper and parsley. Stir then reduce heat to low to keep warm. Taste check the seasoning and adjust as needed.

Football Fries

This is a great way to jazz up boring old french fries. It only takes an extra minute or two, but really makes a difference. I think you'll really enjoy these, and like the name implies, these would be great for watching football. I saw the idea over at Ma What's For Dinner.

Ingredients:
1/2 bag Ore Ida steak fries (or whatever kind of french fry you like)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 Tbsp. steak seasoning
2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt (if your steak seasoning doesn't have any salt in it)

Preparation:
Whisk together olive oil, steak seasoning, and garlic in a mixing bowl. Add frozen french fries and toss well to coat evenly. Spread out fries on a tin foil lined baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees F for 17-20 minutes or until they've got a nice gold brown crust (or however the bag instructions direct). Serve up with your favorite condiments for dipping.

Garlic Herb Potato Wedges

This was a great side dish to the pulled pork Nate made on Saturday. He did such a great job and it was his very first time using that smoker! When Nate makes up his mind to try something new, he puts 110% into it. I lucked out, Nate did the main part of the meal and I had to do was side dishes. We had these potato wedges and a green salad with the pork. I saw this idea here, and I just used herbs that Nathan and I like. They had a nice crisp exterior and were soft on the inside, so good!

Ingredients:
4 medium russet potatoes, scrubbed and rinsed
3 Tbsp. olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dried chives
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tsp. salt (I used Lawry's seasoning salt)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine the olive oil and all the seasonings in a large mixing bowl. Mix well. Cut each potato in half lengthwise. Cut each half, lengthwise, into 4 equally sized wedges. Add the potatoes to the mixing bowl and toss really really well so that everything gets well coated. Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Arrange the potato wedges skin side down on the sheet. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown with crisp exterior and soft interior. Serve hot and enjoy!


Here's a pic of the awesome pulled pork Nate made.

Asian Slaw

Nate's family is in town and one of the dinners I made was shredded teriyaki chicken sliders topped with this Asian slaw and pineapple slices. I think it was a hit. Several people commented on the slaw and that they really enjoyed it. I based the recipe on one I saw at East Village Kitchen. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 (14 oz.) package coleslaw mix
1 package ramen noodles, crunched up (toss the flavoring packet)
2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
2 Tbsp. sunflower seed kernels
3 Tbsp. butter

Dressing-
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce


Preparation:
In a skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Then add the sesame seeds, sunflower kernels, and crunched up ramen noodles. Stir frequently and cook until golden brown. Once finished, spread onto a baking sheet to cool. Mix up dressing. Add dressing slowly to coleslaw mix, tossing as you go. You may not need all the dressing. Once the dressing is mixed in add the sesame seed/sunflower kernel/ramen noodle mixture. Serve immediately. This doesn't keep well, so make it just before you intend to serve it.

Spicy Sesame Asparagus

I love, love, love asparagus! Such an awesome vegetable. I look forward to it being in season each spring. I saw this asparagus variation over at My Name Is Snickerdoodle and it was a definite hit with last night's dinner. We'll definitely use this recipe again and again. It has just a subtle hint of heat, not too much that I can't handle it, but feel free to add more sriracha if you like lots of spice! Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1 bundle fresh asparagus
1/2 purple onion, thinly sliced (I forgot to buy an onion, but I'll definitely include this next time)
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce (I used Lawry's teriyaki marinade)
1/2 - 2 tsp. sriracha (an Asian hot sauce found in the ethnic aisle of most any grocery store, I used a heaping 1/2 tsp.)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. sesame seeds

Preparation:
In a small bowl prepare sauce. Combine teriyaki sauce, sriracha, garlic, ground ginger, and sesame seeds and set aside. Wash asparagus and cut off the woody end, about 1/4 off the bottom of the stalk. Heat olive oil in large pan over medium heat. Once hot add in asparagus and onions. You'll saute them for 4-5 minutes, or until they get just shy of your desired tenderness, stirring occasionally. Pour sauce over asparagus. Mix to coat all the asparagus, and make sure you scrape off any bits from the bottom of your pan. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes until sauce is slightly thickened, garlic cooks, and your asparagus reaches your desired tenderness. Serve immediately.

Copy Cat Lo Mein

I loved this dish! It was so good. Asian is always a top favorite of mine. This is a great side dish for Asian meals, and bonus, it's quick and easy to prepare too. I saw this idea over at Favorite Family Recipes. It's a copy cat version of Panda Express' chow mein. This version tastes so much better than Panda Express! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 (7 oz.) package refrigerated Yaki Soba noodles (found in the produce section of my grocery store)
1/3 cup celery, sliced diagonally (about 1 stalk)
1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
1 cup napa cabbage, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
1/8 - 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. black pepper (we love Lawry's seasoned pepper)
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Preparation:
Whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and pepper. Set aside. Open Yaki Soba noodles, throw out seasoning packet. Place noodles in a colander, rinse well and drain. Set aside. Over medium heat, heat oil in a wok. Once hot, add celery and onion and saute for a couple minutes until they start to soften, 2 - 3 minutes. Add cabbage and then saute another minute or so. Add in Yaki Soba noodles and sauce, toss well to combine. Cook for another few minutes until noodles are heated through and at your desired consistency. Taste and add any additional soy you like. Serve immediately.

Nate's Spicy Roasted Red Potatoes

My husband loves spicy food. He seriously adds sriracha hot sauce to everything! We were making these garlic and butter roasted red potatoes the other night and he decided to make half of the potatoes spicy. He loved them and informed me they were nice and hot, so I didn't dare try them. :) Here's what he came up with.

3 good sized red potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
1/8 cup butter, melted
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
1/8 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. dried parsley flakes
1/2 tsp. garlic, minced
1 - 2 tsp. chili powder
1 - 2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 - 2 tsp. Cajun seasoning

Preparation:
Mix the diced potatoes, melted butter, and seasonings. Spread evenly into a glass baking dish. Bake at 400 degrees for about 40 - 45 minutes or until soft. Serve hot.



I shared this over at High Heels and Grills.

Crunchy Onion Mashed Potato Bake

Nate decided today that he wants to have Comfort Food Wednesdays from now on. I aim to please so here we go! In honor of our inaugural CFW I made this mashed potato dish. Nate loves those French's fried onions so I figured he'd really enjoy this. I had all the other ingredients on hand so it was a super easy dish to prepare. Nate totally loved these potatoes and is so glad to have leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I saw the idea at Betty Crocker and just tweaked a couple things. I also think this would be good with green beans added instead of corn, kinda like a meatless shepherd's pie. Or if veggies aren't really your thing, leave them out all together. Enjoy!


Ingredients:
4-5ish cups leftover mashed potatoes (I simply made 2 packages of Idahoan's butter and herb instant potatoes)
2/3 cup frozen corn
French's french fried onions
shredded cheese
paprika

Preparation:
Prepare mashed potatoes if using instant, or reheat leftover potatoes. Once hot, mix in frozen corn. Spread potatoes/corn into an 8x8" glass baking dish that's been sprayed with a light layer of non-stick spray. Top with a sprinkle of paprika, then add shredded cheese, and finally the french fried onions. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees F for 10 or so minutes or until the cheese is nice and melted and everything is piping hot. Serve hot.

-I baked it at 400 F because I had chicken baking at that temperature. You can really cook these at any temp, just adjust the bake time. The potatoes are already going in warm and you just want to get the cheese melted and everything nice and hot. So if you've got meat in the oven, just go with that temp and make it easy on yourself!

Salsa Rice

I made this rice as a side dish to these crock pot chicken fajitas. It was part of a dinner taken to Nate's cute aunt who recently had a baby. I know she's a big fan of Mexican food and it doesn't seem like you can go to most Mexican restaurants without getting a side of rice. I saw this recipe over at Life as a Lofthouse. This is a really easy and tasty rice recipe. If you use mild salsa, it makes a nice mild rice dish which is nice for spice wimps like me. Try this out next time you have Mexican night. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked long grain rice (I always use basmati rice)
2 cups chicken broth (I make my own low sodium broth using Better Than Bullion brand chicken base)
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup salsa
1 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Preparation:
Add broth, butter, salsa, garlic salt, and cumin to pot. Stir and then add rice. Bring mixture to a boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer the rice for 25 minutes. Remove from heat (keep lid on) and let stand for 5-10 minutes. After standing, fluff rice and serve as a side to your favorite Mexican dish!

Photo updated 06/13/13.

Roasted Smashed Red Potatoes

So good! I've been meaning to make these for a long long time. I'm bummed I waited so long to do it, we could have been enjoying these potatoes for a while now! They have this great crispness on the outside and are yet still soft on the inside. This recipe is adapted from America's Test Kitchen, which always has awesome recipes. They only need a couple of ingredients too, which is always great in my book. Potatoes are such comfort food for me, I'm sure you will enjoy these as much as we did.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. small red potatoes (try and get ones all about the same size)
6 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt or seasoning salt
freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:
Put your oven rack at the top and bottom positions. Heat oven to 500 degrees F. Place your potatoes on a rimmed baking sheet. Make sure your potatoes are all right around the same size. I had a mix of small and big so I cut the big ones in half to match the size of the smaller potatoes. Pour 3/4 cup of water into the baking sheet and then tightly wrap the sheet with tin foil. Cook the potatoes on the bottom rack until fork tender, about 25-30 minutes. Remove the foil and let cool for about 10 minutes. If you have any remaining water, blot it dry. I didn't have any water left. Drizzle 3 Tbsp. of olive oil over the potatoes and then roll to coat. Use another baking sheet (or a potato masher) and press down firmly to flatten potatoes to about 1/3 - 1/2 inch thick. Generously season potatoes with salt and pepper and then drizzle the remaining 3 Tbsp of olive oil over the top. Bake potatoes on the top rack for 15 minutes or until they get a nice crisp crust and then transfer to the bottom rack for another 10-15 minutes to crisp up and brown the bottoms. Serve immediately. ATK instructs you to remove the potatoes from the baking sheet as soon as they are done browning—they will toughen if left too long.

This picture is from the America's Test Kitchen site.

Garlic Soy Broccoli

Nate only enjoys broccoli two ways; covered in alfredo sauce, or tasting like soy-such as in a stir-fry. That's it. Otherwise, he is not interested. I however really love broccoli. I'm not a huge fan of it raw, but I love it cooked to a nice tender crisp so it's not soggy and still has a little bite to it. I was craving some broccoli and figured this recipe might work for the both of us. It was a success. I saw the idea over at Recipes We Love, they also have the option for doing a foil packet of broccoli on the grill. We will definitely be trying that! I didn't make tons of broccoli for just the two of us, so you will need to adjust accordingly if you are making more broccoli. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
3 small heads of broccoli
1 Tbsp. butter
pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 - 1 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
water

Preparation:
Wash and cut your broccoli into bite sized pieces. In a pan melt butter over medium heat. I go just barely above medium heat. Add broccoli, pepper, and garlic powder making sure everything gets evenly coated. Pour a small amount of water over broccoli. Pop the lid on your pan and let the broccoli cook/steam for a few minutes until it's near the done-ness you like, stirring frequently. Add the soy sauce and finish the last minute or so of cooking. Serve warm and enjoy!

Simple Pan Roasted Asparagus

I LOVE asparagus! And yes, I am well aware that it is not in season, but I don't care. I love it, it is a wonderful vegetable. When I was little one way my mom could convince me to come home from the park was to promise me asparagus for dinner. I also remember picking fresh asparagus from the canals by my grandma's house when I was young. My grandma would cook it for us right when we got back. Seriously, dirt to dish in less than a half hour, you can't beat that! Anyway, the best asparagus I've ever had is this grilled asparagus. This recipe is the same idea, just made stove-top. It was delicious, even Nate ate some and you know how he feel about veggies!

Ingredients:
1 small bundle asparagus
1 Tbsp. butter
kosher salt
pepper
steak seasoning, optional (if your steak seasoning has salt and pepper in it, you may not need to add additional salt and pepper)

Preparation:
Melt butter in pan over medium heat. I had it turned to just past medium. Once butter is melted add asparagus and seasonings to taste. Cook for 5-8 minutes, rotating stalks as needed. Cooking time depends on how thick your stalks are and how crisp you like your asparagus, I like mine to still have a nice bite to it so I cooked it for about 6 minutes. Serve hot and enjoy.

Spaghetti Salad

Since I tried pasta salad for the first time this summer, I've made a couple different variations. I enjoy pasta salad as long as there isn't too much dressing on it. So if you need to, go ahead and add more Italian dressing to this dish, I won't be offended. Nate and I are headed to a family function and I thought this would be a good little dish to bring along. I am really pleased with the flavors. I first saw the idea over at Miss Information and just adapted it for our tastes. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
16 oz. angel hair pasta
6 oz. fat free Italian dressing (again, add more if you like a really strong dressing taste)
McCormick Salad Supreme seasoning to taste (I think I added 1/2 Tbsp.)
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1/2 can of diced tomatoes (or you can use fresh, I just don't like raw tomatoes)
1 small can of sliced olives
olive oil

Preparation:
Boil pasta until al dente. Rinse noodles with cold water and drizzle with a tiny amount of olive oil, toss well. Your noodles should be cool. Mix pepper, onion, olives, noodles, Italian dressing, and salad seasoning. Taste as you go, and add more seasoning and dressing as needed. Add tomatoes in last and gently mix those in. Refrigerate salad until serving.

Grilled Corn on the Cob

Yum, I love corn on the cob. It is one of those quintessential summer foods. I remember growing corn in our garden growing up, and I also remember swearing that when I grew up I would never make my kids work in the garden. Oh goodness. So if you're growing corn in your garden and making your kids do the weeding, here is a yummy recipe for you and for them. :)

Ingredients:
2 ears of fresh corn
salt
pepper
butter, softened
herbs of your choice (I used a little parsley and Italian seasoning)

Preparation:
Carefully peel down each layer of corn husk to expose your ear of corn. Remove and discard silk. Mix your softened butter and herbs and generously rub all over corn kernels, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fold corn husks back up to encase corn. Wrap entire ear in a sheet of tin foil. Grill over medium heat for 20-30 minutes or until corn is cooked through. Unwrap, and slice of husks and tip of corn cob and serve warm!

Cajun Roasted Potatoes

Here's an easy variation for you on roasted potatoes. We've been grilling tons this summer with our new grill. I'm always on the hunt for new side dishes. So if you like a little heat, here is a fun dish for you.

Ingredients:
4 medium yukon gold potatoes (or 2 large russet potatoes)
1/2 - 1 tsp. Cajun seasoning (depends on how hot you like it)
salt to taste
olive oil

Preparation:
Wash and chop potatoes into bite sized pieces. Drizzle olive oil over potatoes and season, mixing well. Spread out evenly into a baking dish. Bake at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes, turning halfway through, or until fork tender.



Sorry about the dark picture. Nate and I didn't end up eating dinner until about 9:30pm.

Chinese Fried Rice

Okay, Becca has been busy cooking up a storm! She sent me this recipe for fried rice that she saw over at Six Sisters' Stuff. How can you go wrong with fried rice?! Both Becca and her whole family loved it!

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked white rice
3 Tbl. sesame oil
1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)
1 small onion, chopped
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/4 cup soy sauce


Preparation:
On medium high heat, heat the oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the peas/carrots mix, onion and garlic. Stir fry until tender. Lower the heat to medium low and push the mixture off to one side, then pour your eggs on the other side of skillet and stir fry until scrambled. Now add the rice and soy sauce and blend all together well. Stir fry until thoroughly heated.

Optional: You could add diced ham and green onions to this depending on your preference.