Creamy Dill Potatoes

A warm helping of dill potatoes is true comfort food to me. My mother used to make them every summer with dill fresh from the garden.

My recipe is a little different than mom's--I add sour cream. I was blessed to be able to make this particular batch with fresh dill and potatoes from my dad's garden after my last visit home.

Creamy Dill Potatoes

Ingredients
4-6 cups new potatoes (any variety), quartered
2 tbsp. margarine
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup skim milk
Handfull of fresh dill, roughly chopped
Salt
Pepper

Directions
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.
Add potatoes and boil until very tender (I like mine falling apart).
Drain water from potatoes, turn down heat to simmer, return potatoes and pot to stove.
Add margarine, sour cream, skim milk, dill, salt and pepper.
Stir until creamy; remove from heat.

Roasted Cabbage

Cabbage is nutritious--and cheap! I recently found this recipe for roasted cabbage on Pinterest. I feel like I've made cabbage a thousand different ways, but I had never tried roasting. It was full of flavor and so ridiculously easy.





Roasted Cabbage Wedges
A Martha Stewart Recipe via Pinterest

Yield: Serves 6

Ingredients
1 tablespoon plus 2 more tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium head green cabbage, cut into 1-inch-thick rounds
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 teaspoon caraway or fennel seeds

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush a rimmed baking sheet with 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil. Place 1 medium head green cabbage, cut into 1-inch-thick rounds, in a single layer on sheet and brush with 2 tablespoons oil. Season with coarse salt and ground pepper and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon caraway or fennel seeds. Roast until cabbage is tender and edges are golden, 40 to 45 minutes.


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Orzo

I wanted to share my new-found love for orzo. It's such a versatile, satisfying side dish. I can't believe I've waited so long to try it.

So far, we've made it adding Italian cheeses; served it cold as an orzo salad; and prepared it (as seen above) mixing roasted red peppers, olive oil, sea salt and feta.

I don't generally follow a recipe, but I plan to do so and share them here. I simply follow the cooking suggestion on the package and get creative with whatever add-ins I happen to have in my fridge and pantry.

I hope you'll find this suggestion useful, as the same old sides can leave a lot to be desired. Do you have any orzo recipe suggestions? I would love to hear them.

Asian Slaw

I found this recipe in the Parade section of my Sunday newspaper. It was simple, delicious, healthy and pretty. I thought it was even better the next day.

Asian Slaw

Ingredients:

4 cups shredded cabbage

1 cup shredded carrots

1 small onion, finely chopped

Pinch of salt and pepper

1½ Tbsp seasoned rice vinegar

1⁄3 cup fat-free mayonnaise

1¼ tsp Asian sesame oil

½ tsp sriracha (see below)

¼ tsp sugar

1 Tbsp sesame seeds or chopped peanuts (optional)

1. Toss cabbage, carrots, onion, and salt in a bowl. Season with pepper.

2. Whisk together vinegar, mayonnaise, sesame oil, sriracha, and sugar until smooth. Taste; add pinch of salt if needed.

3. Pour dressing over shredded vegetables and toss to combine. Serve slaw immediately or chill for a few hours, tossing again before serving. Finish with a shower of sesame seeds or some chopped peanuts, if desired.

Serves: 4

Per serving: 70 calories, 8g carbs, 1g protein, 3g fat, 360mg sodium, 2g fiber, no cholesterol

Thanks to Parade for the great recipe.

We served ours as a side to grilled Asian chicken kebabs with red peppers. My husband used Hoisin sauce to brush them with before grilling.















I must have been too hungry after we grilled them, because the only photo I took was before they went on the grill!

Simple Brussels Sprouts

Brussels sprouts are a misunderstood vegetable. To many, their name evokes thoughts of strong-smelling, mushy, over-cooked little veggies their mother (overcooked) and fed to them as a child.

If it's been a while since you've met a Brussels sprout, I challenge you to do so with the following recipe. Easy, delicious and quick, this recipe will change the way you think about these tiny, green friends.

If that isn't enough convincing, Brussels sprouts are also a great source of nutrition. Check out these stats from fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org. Nutrition benefits: Low fat; saturated fat free; very low sodium; cholesterol free; low calorie; good source of dietary fiber; high in vitamin C; good source of folate.

Simple Sauteed Brussels Sprouts

1 pound fresh Brussels sprouts, sliced (remove the hard end with your knife first)
1 large shallot, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in non-stick skillet on medium heat . Add Brussels sprouts, shallot and garlic . Sautee for approximately five minutes, stirring frequently until sprouts are slightly softened but still hold a bit of crunch (they should retain a pretty green color) . Be careful not to overcook . Add salt and pepper to taste . Serve and enjoy

Mini Eggplant Parmesans

This Eggplant Parmesan recipe was inspired my a trip to my local farmers market. While visiting one of the stands, my husband and I spotted the most unusual vegetable we had ever laid eyes on. Purple-streaked, u-shaped and skinny. The vendor assured us that it wasn't some mutant vegetable, but indeed an Oriental variety of eggplant. I must have appeared to be quite intrigued by the nature of this plant--the woman sent it home with me for free. Because of the delicate nature of its variety, this particular eggplant does not need to be skinned.

This dish was great. It was easy to prepare and had incredible flavor. My husband even went so far as to say he felt like he was eating at a restaurant. Another great thing about these mini pots o' eggplant is that traditionally, this dish is served as an entree, not a side. I served mine with Italian-seasoned chicken breast and a slice of toasted, buttered french baguette.

Ingredients

Makes four individual servings

2 medium eggplants, Oriental variety, sliced into rounds (If using a normal eggplant, use one small, remove skin and cut into 2 inch, flat discs)

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

1/3 cup Italian-style bread crumbs

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1 tbsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. olive oil

Cooking spray

2 cups tomato sauce

1 cup mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees . Grease cookie sheet or baking stone with olive oil . Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning and garlic powder in small bowl . Dip each eggplant round (top and bottom) in egg white and then coat thoroughly with bread crumb mixture . Lay each round on a cookie sheet . Bake for 25 minutes, flipping each round over half-way through . Spray four baking ramekins with cooking spray . Layer eggplant, then tomato sauce and then cheese and repeat until each ramekin is 3/4 full (ending with a layer of cheese) . Bake ramekins in 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or until cheese/tomatoes are bubbling . Serve in ramekins . Top with extra Parmesan cheese, if desired