Tag Archives: Side dishes

May 15, 2013 · 11:11 am

Truffle Garlic Oven Fries

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I know I’ve harped on this before, but this time of year always drags on for me, food-wise.  Grocery store produce sections look unbearably pathetic, and the farmers’ market (which I know I’m lucky to have this early) has barely anything better.  Potatoes.  Some limp kale.  Once again I have to appease myself with potatoes until I can find something more interesting to spark some creativity in the kitchen again.  And frankly, there are only so many ways to dress up a potato, even a yummy farmers’ market potato. Continue reading →

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January 29, 2013 · 5:12 pm

Smoky Black Bean Ragout

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“I made something vegan!” This is what I exclaimed about an hour after I piled all of the ingredients for this dish into the  slow cooker, just as the delicious smoky smell of paprika and cumin began wafting into the living room.  Frankly, I was taken by surprise.

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You can probably tell by my reaction that we don’t do too many vegan meals around here.  The truth is that sometimes I find delicious-sounding vegan recipes, and then inevitably  un-veganize them by adding a pat of butter, or substituting chicken stock for water, or heck, adding a few pieces of bacon. Just a few. But this time I had actually done it.  I made something completely chock-full of non-animal based goodness. Continue reading →

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January 26, 2013 · 3:40 pm

Dijon Roasted Brussels Sprouts

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Sometimes you think you know how much you love something or someone, and then they do something that surprises you and makes you love them even more.    Like when you come downstairs in the morning and discover that your husband has done all of last night’s dishes and taken out the garbage and made you a pot of coffee.  (Yep, it doesn’t take much for me, folks.  It’s the little things.)  Well, these Brussels sprouts are like your husband doing the dinner dishes.

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Last year, I told you all about how I made these amazing simmered Brussels sprouts and I kind of thought it was crazy how good they were.  Because it seemed so simple, and yet… they are so good.  They tasted so different from any Brussels sprout I had ever known.  I kind of fell in love with them.  And these are the same, but the opposite.  Where the steamed ones were light, buttery, and fresh, these are nutty, rich, and a flavor explosion.  Both delicious and mind-blowing, but in a totally different way.   Continue reading →

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January 8, 2013 · 10:57 am

Quinoa Salad with Oranges, Avocado, and Almonds

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Are you sick of quinoa yet?  No?  Not quite?  ME NEITHER!  I love this stuff. I love the flavor, texture, and how it makes anything you add it to into a filling meal in itself.  Now, some of you may think I need to move on from quinoa, and you might be right, seeing as this is my 4th quinoa recipe in a year.  (See: Little Quinoa Patties, Tabouleh Salad, and Quinoa with Corn, Scallions and Mint)  But, they’re all so different!  Which, I think, just goes to show how versatile of an ingredient it is, no? Continue reading →

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April 17, 2012 · 1:13 pm

Green Bean Salad with Fried Almonds

Where to begin… where to begin… there are so many great things about this salad, I don’t know where to start.

First, it as fennel in it. Raw fennel. And some of you may recall that I was pretty sure I hated fennel until I made this, when I decided that maybe I only hated raw fennel, because fennel baked in cream was probably one of the best things I’ve ever had. But now I’ve made this salad, and it turns out I don’t hate raw fennel either. So if I don’t hate cooked fennel and I don’t hate raw fennel… hey, I don’t hate fennel! I actually like it. If I can like fennel, that means you can, too! For some reason, this feels like a huge milestone for me.

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Filed under Gluten Free, Salad, Side Dish, Vegetables

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