A unique take on a potato salad…no mayonnaise needed. Instead, I replaced the mayonnaise with oil and fresh herbs!…
side dish
Fennel with Oranges and Red Onion Salad
YUM…simple and easy, a fennel salad with oranges, red onion and a homemade dressing! If you haven’t ever tried fennel, you have no idea what you are missing out on!
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Super Healthy Lentil Salad
I love making side dishes, especially in the summertime as I can eat them as a full meal! This recipe for lentil salad is super healthy, easy (thanks to Trader Joes) and can be made in less than 10 minutes.
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Mediterranean Arugula Salad with Feta and Homemade Dressing
Last week I posted a recipe for my zesty lemon dressing, I received some emails from people asking what salad I would put it on and I knew right away I knew I needed to do a post about the salad.
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Chickpea (garbanzo), Black Bean Salad
Everyone knows I love chickpeas (garbanzo) and making chickpea salads. I made a chickpea salad with very similar ingredients just over a year ago so I’m sorry for an almost repeat recipe but I loved the concept of this recipe that I had to revisit the recipe and create a new dressing.
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Chickpea (garbanzo bean) Salad with Lemon and Parmesan Cheese
I just love love love salads and I could eat them every day and never complain…although I can do the same with soup. This chickpea salad is not something I ever grew up with or a “Patty” original, I found it on Epicurious…here is the link to their Chickpea Salad with Lemon, Parmesan and Fresh Herbs. In reading the write up, you can really change this Chickpea Salad recipe to make it your own. I did minor changes, hmmm, like zested lemon and I didn’t use fresh garlic, I used garlic powder and a pinch of sugar to cut the acid of the lemon.
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Smashed Red Potatoes with Red Pepper Flakes
My recipe for Smashed Red Potatoes is a recipe that is so simple I’m almost embarrassed to all it a recipe. Smashed potatoes are an amazing side dish that everyone will love and you will giggle at how easy it is to make, yet you will sit back and enjoy every single compliment!
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Rapini with Garlic
It’s “tasty Tuesday” and I’m gonna tell you all about Rapini (also known as Broccoli Rabe)…are you familiar with rapini? Rapini is something I grew up with and I just love, love, love love it. It’s definitely has a unique flavor and you may even say it tastes bitter. I will explain how to remove that bitter taste later on so make sure you read the whole post if you are brave enough to make rapini.
I remember when we first moved from Connecticut to California my mother and a cousin would “find” these open fields with rapini growing wild, we’d all get out of the car and quickly cut as much as we could before we would rush off. I would saute some and make a “pizza pocket” type of a snack out of the rapini. What I mean with regards to the pita pocket is is that I would roll out some dough, put some of my rapini (the way I’m demonstrating today) and then fold over the dough, seal it and bake it. It was something my grandmother would make for us growing up and I still make and love today. I made this dish as part of our Easter dinner as I love the way it compliments ham. You can also make some and throw it over pasta…OMG it’s so good that way!!!
Ok for my recipe, I used 2 bunches of rapini from the market (when you are buying rapini, do not buy the bunches that have yellow flowers as that means that the plant is older and more bitter and if the market doesn’t have any without the flowers, I’d pass on buying it). Rapini is like spinach when you cook it, starts off looking like you will have tons and then as it cooks, it withers down to nothing. So if you are trying it out for the first time, you can purchase 1 bunch but be prepared you will not have an abundance.
Anyway, I took my first bunch and cut off the ends from the bottom of the stems, I then cut the rapini into 1 1/12 inch pieces
I wash it in my sink like I would lettuce and remove as much water as possible.
I then put my oil in a pan and add my red pepper flakes
I walked away for like a second and ended up burning my first batch lol so lesson learned…don’t walk away!
I basically cleaned out my pan and started over by putting my oil in my pan and then the red pepper flakes, I then added my chopped garlic
be careful at this next step…I then I added my rapini to my pan…see how high it starts out?
In 5 minutes of cooking it
5 minutes more
and when it’s completely cooked…and remember I did 2 bunches
If you find that the rapini is too bitter for you, you can boil it as boiling it will remove most of the flavors and nutrients. If you boil it, I would recommend putting olive oil, garlic, salt and red pepper flakes on top and serve.
I hope you enjoy!
Rapini with Garlic
Ingredients
- 2 bunches Rapini
- 2 tablespoons Canola oil
- 1 teaspoon Red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
- 2 teaspoons Garlic, chopped
- salt to taste
Directions
- Cut your rapini into 1 1/2" pieces and wash thoroughly.
- In a fry pan, put your heat to high and add your oil and red pepper flakes (watch it or it will burn), add your garlic. Add your cut rapini and cook uncovered for 4-6 minutes.
- Toss your rapini and cook for an additional 4-6 minutes.
- Toss again, cover and cook until it's tender. Can be served hot or cold.
Recipe belongs to Patty @MmGood.com, please contact me to use for personal use
Roasted Butternut Squash Recipe
It’s “Tasty Tuesday”…while I know that butternut squash is not a spring vegetable and usually you only find it in the fall, in today’s day and age, seems like you can find anything anytime. I was shopping in my local Costco and I noticed they had precut butternut squash, my initial thought was it’s out of season but when I picked up the package, it looked so fresh I just had to buy it.
I usually roast my butternut squash, even if i’m making a soup out of it as roasting them brings in a whole new element to any dish. When I roast my butternut squash, I usually toss my butternut squash in some olive oil, then I put it on a baking pan add brown sugar, salt and pepper and I bake it in a 400 degree oven for 50-60 minutes. It comes out amazing!!!
I thought to myself, is there another option? So I searched the web and found a recipe I believe belongs to Ina Garten, although the recipe I got only had the measurements and not the actual instructions. I knew I had two options, I could look up her butternut squash recipe to confirm the ingredients and how to make it or I could take the measurements and create it the way I thought would work. If any of you know her recipe or want to look it up, I’d welcome your feedback.
The biggest difference is is that she uses melted butter instead of olive oil. I know this small change of butter instead of oil would add a lot of flavor and calories but I was up to the challenge. It’s a very rich dish and very easy to make.
I melted my butter with my brown sugar and salt/black pepper
I then placed my cut butternut squash on a baking dish
Coated the butternut squash with the melted butter/brown sugar mixture
I placed it in my 400 degree oven and baked it for about 20 minutes before I tossed my butternut squash
I tossed my butternut squash and cooked it again for 20-25 minutes
I poked my butternut squash and they were cooked all the way through but I still wanted more of that caramelization so I put on my broiler and stuck my butternut squash in for an additional 4-5 minutes (sorry for the blurry photo)
here is one of the butternut squash in a bowl
and here it is plated with my Lemon Chicken with Artichokes and Mushrooms
I will say that while I really enjoyed the butternut squash cooked with the melted butter, they were very rich. I personally think I enjoy them my way. I will do them that way next time so you too can compare.
Nonetheless…enjoy!
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Roasted Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Butternut squash (mine were already cleaned and cut for me)
- 8 tablespoons Butter, melted
- 1/4 cup Brown sugar, packed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Black pepper
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 400, put your cubed butternut squash on a baking sheet.
- Melt your butter with brown sugar, salt and pepper
- Once your butter is melted, coat your butternut squash with the melted butter and spread your butternut squash out in a single layer on your baking sheet. Place in your oven.
- After 20 minutes toss your butternut squash, toss again in 20 minutes. Your butternut squash is probably cook through if you are happy with the outcome then you are all done. For me, I put my broiler on and broiled it for an additional 3-5 minutes.
Recipe belongs to Patty @MmGood.com, please contact me to use for personal use
Quinoa and Black Rice Cakes
I love grains…there I said it! I could eat them everyday with veggies…if I could be a vegetarian I would but it just doesn’t work for me. Last week at work, we served both a quinoa (pronounced “qin-wah”) and a black rice (which is in the grass family) dish so I thought I’d create a combo meal with two of my favorite types of grains and include some veggies I had around the house.
Keep in mind you can switch out any veggies or grain so let yourself be creative…you can also add your favorite cheese if you want to add a cheese to this recipe but I was trying to keep it healthy.
Based on my program (excluding the jalapenos), here are the facts per cake…Calories 74, Total Fat 1g, Total Carb 10g, Protein 4g
Quinoa and Black Rice Cakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup Quinoa, uncooked
- 1 cup Black rice, uncooked
- 3 large Eggs
- 2 whole Zucchini, shredded
- 1 whole Carrot, shredded
- 1/2 Red onion, small chopped
- 1 whole Jalapeno, with seeds if you want it hot, minced
- 3 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1/2 Red bell pepper, small chopped
- 1/4 cup Cilantro, chopped
- Salt & pepper, to taste
Directions
- Make your quinoa and black rice based on how package describes to make it. Drain from water, mix together and place in refrigerator to cool down.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with a cooking spray...time to start shredding, shred and chop all your veggies.
- In a large bowl add your quinoa, black rice, eggs and all the rest of your veggies. Stir until well mixed.
- I used a 3" ring and placed my mix in the ring, slightly pressing down, this way they are all the same size.
- I placed them all on a baking sheet and baked for 20 minutes...I removed them, flipped them and baked for an additional 5 min as I like them crispy...and YUMMMY!
These can be placed in a container and warmed up in a toaster oven or microwave to enjoy at another time...or you can freeze them to eat at another time.
Recipe belongs to Patty @MmGood.com, please contact me to use for personal use