What's On The Side??

SERVED ON THE SIDE

I am ALWAYS looking for new, yummy side dishes all year long.  I have my tried & trues, the holiday sides, the summer sides, etc but I like to discover new ideas along the way too.  And if they are easy to assemble or can be prepared ahead...EVEN BETTER right?

Southern Living & Pinterest seem to be the two places I most often find yummy recipes that my family will love.  The past issue of Southern Living (1 of my fave magazines) had some very yummy looking side dishes that I wanted to try out.  So I did this past weekend & thought I'd share them with you too...in case you missed this last issue.  

HOWEVER I did add or change a few things to each to my liking...soooo if you want the original recipes you will have to buy the issue or look on their website. 

 I promise my versions were REALLY GOOD!!  

Both of them work perfectly during the summer months and with fresh produce!

 Zucchini-Potato Casserole

(yes I altered the recipe a bit, because that's just what I do)

4 TBS Butter

2 medium onions sliced

2 medium potatoes sliced THINLY

1 zucchini sliced THINLY

4 tomatoes sliced

kosher salt

black pepper

1 clove of crushed/diced garlic

1/2 cup shredded/fine Parmesan Cheese

1/2 cup of shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Instructions:

**I used a mandolin to cut my potatoes & zucchini slices thinly & quickly

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Cook onions with 2 TBS butter until tender & starting to caramelize.

Grease a round/oval dish and layer cooked onions on bottom.

Slice zucchini, potatoes & tomatoes thinly and start arranging them around your pan on top of the onions, alternating as you go.

Sprinkle everything with kosher salt & ground black pepper, then drizzle 2 TBS of melted butter on top. COVER WITH FOIL!

BAKE AT 375 degs for 35 mins

****

REMOVE FOIL and sprinkle with cheeses.

Bake again for 35 mins UNCOVERED this time at 375 degs.

Let stand for 5-10 mins before serving!

YUMMMMM!

Looks so yummy right? It was really good!

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Caprese Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing
(again I added/changed a few things to the original recipe)

2-3 large tomatoes 

(I used a yellow heirloom as well)

16 oz fresh mozzarella cut into 1/2 inch slices

fresh basil leaves

6 bacon slices, cooked & coarsely chopped

3 TBS balsamic vinegar

2 TBS rice vinegar

2 TBS Olive Oil

kosher salt

ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

Slice tomatoes and cheese; then arrange in a circular pattern on your platter/dish.

Place basil leaves in and around as desired.

Sprinkle with salt & pepper to your liking.

Cook bacon until crispy, remove bacon from pan and let stand for a minute.

Reserve drippings in pan and add vinegars and oils, scraping brown bits from bottom of pan while mixing. Add in salt and pepper.

Drizzle warm bacon dressing over tomatoes and cheese.

Serve, Eat & Enjoy!

Aren't the colors just gorgeous?  I used some local fresh mozzarella and LORDY-BE was it good...so flavorful!!  Basil is from my herb garden so it was super fresh :)

Look at those yummy layers and bits of crispy bacon (I used thick sliced maple bacon for mine)!

Perfect side dish for summer I tell ya!

BON APPETIT!

Winter Belly Pleasers!

Happy 2014 everyone! 

 Hope your new year has started off well, you've made your resolutions and goals and are looking forward to a fresh, happy & healthy new year!  I know a lot of you are suffering from this Polar Vortex weather system...sounds like a word in a Thor movie if you ask me...and its COLD here in Virginia.  Supposed to feel like 20 below tomorrow and I'm not digging it, it can go back to the South Pole for all I care...I'm ready for spring already.  

However I am thankful to be in my warm house cleaning up Christmas decorations and cooking some good foods this week.  Once I get my Christmas stuff all packed away and the house cleaned good I will have some new projects and posts for you...my goal is by Friday to have all that done.  It takes awhile to pack up all these trees and then clean and I'm not rushing it this year...in the past I've rushed and usually put my back out..not this year. I've learned my lesson :)

So stay tuned for some fun Valentine projects, some new recipes and some more DIY projects. I hope to be in full working mode next week!  But I gathered some recipes for some home-cooked COMFORT FOOD goodness...I included some of my faves, some of my own and some I haven't tried yet.  So if you need some ideas for your winter menus I highly recommend some of these belly-pleasers.

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COMFORT BELLY PLEASERS

Fancy Mac 'n' Cheese ~ Pioneer Woman

I'm not a big fan of mac-n-cheese...gasp...I guess the kind in a box just turned me

off over the years. But I do highly recommend this one, its the only one I will eat & so easy to cook up!

Chicken & Dumplings ~ Pioneer Woman

I'm a BIG fan of Ree aka Pioneer Woman...she's real, down to earth and one of the first blogs I ever started reading years ago.  And her recipes always rock...period. And her Chicken & Dumpling recipes is the BEST I've ever tried hands down...you will thank me and her when you make this LOL..trust me!

Guinness Beef Stew ~ Brown Eyed Baker

I love beef stew in the cold weather months...its hearty and just tastes soooo good when the cold is chilling your bones.  There are lots of recipes out there but this is the basic one I follow...but I add a bit of garlic, cayenne pepper and either pearl onions or large chunks of onions to mine. I also top mine with some homemade mashed potatoes. Next time I make mine up I will share the full recipe but you gotta have some Guinness for it..I hate beer..but I like cookin' with it :)

Shepherds Pie ~The Candid Appetite

This is my hubby's fave dish in the winter! And given my Irish roots its no surprise I make it so much...so grab more of that Guinness cuz' you will need it. I add a bit more tomato paste and skip the peas because we don't like them...but we do add the cheese on top too. Its so yummy!

Tomato Bisque ~ Southern Living

I love, love tomato soup...make it tomato bisque and even better served up with a grilled cheese panini and mmmm..mmmm good stuffs.  This recipe I tore out of my Southern Living Magazine in November and haven't made yet but the reviews were good and it sounds so flavorful.  Think it will be on my menu this week!

Hamburger Soup ~ Pioneer Woman
I haven't tried this one yet...its a new recipe that Ree just posted but it sure does look good and easy to get simmerin' on the stovetop.  Definitely on my menu this week!

My BBQ Mini Meatloaves ~ Suzanne

This is my recipe...it is the ONLY meatloaf I and my teens will eat..its really that good. Stuffed with cheese makes it even better I tell ya!  Lots of flavor and even better the next day on a sandwich..mmmmmm!

Potato & Leek Soup ~ Robert Irvine

This is one of my fave soups in the cold months...the hubby and I love soups and we eat them all year.

I follow this recipe pretty much to a T---except that I set some potato chunks aside before blending and then add them. I just like the bit of chunkiness they add to it and I top it off with a bit of swiss cheese or parmesan under the broiler too but you can skip that or use cheddar.  Everything is better with some cheese right?

Chicken Pot Pie ~ From the Kitchen of Mama Harris

I have my own recipe for pot pie but I found this one that was pretty close to mine. I skip the peas and use mushrooms, onions, carrots and asparagus in mine.  Its another one of my husband's fave recipes to eat although the teens are big fans LOL.

Cheesy Tex-Mex Pasta Bake

This is a newer recipe I found and adapted a bit...but we love Mexican based foods and this one is easy to make ahead on a busy day.

Ham & Bean Soup ~ Chow.com

This is a soup I make on occasion for the hubs and myself...the teens don't like it and that's ok because I HATED it when I was younger too LOL.  But its easy to get going on the cooktop and simmer all day and serve up with some biscuits...makes you all warm and toasty. This recipe is similar to what I use again except I add leeks instead of celery.

My Comfort Food Recipes:

Other dishes I make a lot in the winter are below. I have my own special recipes for them but just haven't had time to type up the recipes because I don't know the measurements really...I'm a dash of this & a dash of that kind of cook...tastes good but hard to tell someone how much of each.  So they will be coming real soon...I have pictures taken but have to figure out the measurements for you all.

Chili...my chili is award winning good, no lie...its the bomb diggety and I will 

have a recipe up soon I promise.

Spaghetti Patties...a recipe I came up with as a newlywed on a budget 18 years ago. Its still

a hit in our house & super inexpensive and easy to make.

Chicken Corn Chowder...easy to make even if you only have 30 mins.

recipe soon to come

Proscuitto, Carmelized Onion, Tomato and Cheese Paninis...so good you will slap yourself after making them! hahaha

Mexican Lasagna...good stuff and easy to make as well!

BON APPETIT!!

Love French Onion Soup?

Then you'd love this French Onion Bake!  

It has quickly become a family favorite of ours and I've made it three times already.  I have doctored up the original recipe a bit from what I originally pinned because that's how I roll when I cook :)

{via}

But its super easy to put together and lemme tell ya it tastes even better the next day. 

If you make it a day ahead of your event or dinner do NOT put the bread or last layer of cheese on it....leave that off until you are ready to bake. You don't want soggy bread...yucky.

Ingredients:

- 3-4 lg/med yellow onions

- 3-4 TBS butter

- 2 cloves of diced/crushed garlic

-a splash of red wine or sherry (optional)

- 1 can of Cream of Chicken Soup

- 1 bag of shredded Swiss Cheese

- 2/3 cup milk

- 3 TBS Worcestershire Sauce

-1 TBS Soy Sauce

- Salt & Pepper to taste

- Sliced French Bread Slices

Instructions:

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees

- Slice onions thinly and sautee in pan with butter till onions are clear...slightly brown is fine too

-In sauce pan heat up milk, soup, Worcestershire Sauce, Soy Sauce, and salt/pepper till heated and mixed well.

-In square or oval baking/casserole pan add your cooked onions in an even layer

-Then pour your heated soup mixture over the onions

-Add half a bag of shredded Swiss Cheese over the onions

-Take your bread slices and lay over your mixture

-Cook at 350 degs for 15 mins uncovered to toast the bread

-After that pull out & flip over your bread & add rest of cheese to top of bread

-Cook for 15-20 minutes more or until cheese and sauce is warm & bubbly

(if you make ahead and refrigerate make sure to set out until its room temperature before cooking)

Its so good I want some more right now :)

Let me know if you try it and love it!