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Sides and such

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Quick Pickled Rhubarb and Pickled Celery Salad with fennel seeds and goat cheese

2024/05/02 By Melinda Leave a Comment

So simple, so delicious. Crisp and salty sweet with just a hint of fennel.

The recipe below is for the pickled rhubarb and pickled celery with fennel. The salad is just those plus a little goat cheese for contrast. Use the pickled rhubarb and celery in salads like this or with lettuce if you insist.

Filed Under: pickled things, Recipes, Sides and such Tagged With: celery, fennel seeds, pickled, refrigerator pickles, Rhubarb

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Roasted Hazelnuts with Olive Oil and Rosemary

2023/02/15 By Melinda Leave a Comment

A simple sort of salty snack, these seasoned oven roasted hazelnuts tossed with fresh or dried rosemary and just a hint of heat and salt are delicious anytime

Filed Under: gluten free, Recipes, Sides and such Tagged With: hazelnuts, nuts, olive oil, rosemary, snacks

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small batch boozy cocktail cherries- better than maraschinos

2019/12/05 By Melinda Leave a Comment

homemade marchino cherry in a martini glass

It’s cherry season. Okay so it’s not actually cherry season but it is Manhattan drinking season and so I’m finally diving into the cherries I made when it was actually cherry season and yum! And in a Brandy Manhattan they are so good and you can use frozen which will be better that the day […]

Filed Under: Fruit, Recipes, Sides and such Tagged With: booze, cherries, cocktails, garnish, luxardo, marachino

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sort of Mexican street corn on the cob or in a skillet

2019/08/22 By Melinda Leave a Comment

inspired by Mexican street corn but definitely not the traditional dish this quick corn recipe takes advantage of the season’s sweet fresh corn. If your grilling have this on the cob or if it’s raining or buggy or you don’t like your corn on the cob try it in a pan- either way this sort […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Sides and such, Veggies Tagged With: cilantro, Corn, grilling, mexican, quick, summer vegetables

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Briouats: Filo triangles stuffed with labneh

2019/06/20 By Melinda Leave a Comment

A labneh take on the classic Moroccan appetizer Briouats bil Jben this savory appetizer topped with just a drizzle of sweet honey (spiced or not) is easier to make than it looks. Briouats: Filo triangles stuffed with labneh to make the spiced honey feel you need a step by step guide on folding filo triangles […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Sides and such Tagged With: appetizer, filo, honey, labneh, mediterranean, moroccan, phyllo, soft cheese

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Basil Butter: a basic recipe and ways to use it.

2019/06/07 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Side dishes are my secret weapon. Pickled things, biscuity bites, sauces, and now- butter. Like this  versatile and flavorful butter compound loaded with fresh basil and garlic.  Radishes! ways to use the basil butter Use this basil butter as a spread for sandwiches, like the cucumber sandwich pictured below or schmear it on spring radishes […]

Filed Under: Condiments, Sauces, and Gravies, Recipes, Sides and such Tagged With: basil, butter, garlic, spreads

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my favorite popcorn w/ nutritional yeast and ghee

2019/02/13 By Melinda Leave a Comment

A big bowl of brewers yeast and ghee popcorn

Using ghee as the cooking oil for this stovetop popcorn gives a layer of delicious buttery flavor that goes so well with crisp (not chewy) popcorn. And Nutritional Yeast is what I grew up with. Carob and Tempeh can stay in the 70s but popcorn just doesn’t taste like popcorn to me without the cheesy […]

Filed Under: gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: gluten free, popcorn, snacks

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spicy sweet potatoes w/cilantro sauce

2019/01/10 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Do you really need a recipe for roasted spicy sweet potatoes? Maybe not. Let this serve as a reminder instead. Sweet potatoes are awesome, sweet potatoes are easy, sweet potatoes are pretty and quick, and, even pretty quick.  And if you do want a recipe I’ve got one of those for you too. If you […]

Filed Under: Breakfasty Brunchy, gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Veggies

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Onion Salad with pomegranate and cilantro

2019/01/08 By Melinda Leave a Comment

The pomegranate seeds fooled him. “It’s dessert,” he said. “I’ll eat it last.” It’s onions,” I said. “Onion salad, try it now.” He waited. He ate onion salad for dessert. I like it with rice. As a side for dumplings or grilled shrimp. Not dessert. Salting the onions and allowing them to sweat it out […]

Filed Under: Condiments, Sauces, and Gravies, gluten free, pickled things, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: gluten free, salad, vegetarian

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easy sautéed mushrooms: chanterelle, shiitake, or cremini

2018/11/13 By Melinda Leave a Comment

easy sautéed mushrooms: chanterelle, shiitake, or cremini in cast iron

Like all the best recipes these easy sautéed mushrooms allow for substitutions and modifications. chanterelles out of season?  shiitakes too darn expensive? cremini cramping your style? switch it out. just follow a few basic principles and you have a most simple, delicious, easy and satisfying side dish or garnish. Bonus points for being vegan and […]

Filed Under: Cast Iron, gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Veggies, Winter Holiday Tagged With: cast iron, easy, garlic, gluten free, mushrooms, stove top, vegan, wine

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Balsamic Roasted Sweet Peppers and (optional) Onions

2018/10/25 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Deliciously easy sweet peppers and onions roasted with balsamic vinegar

Filed Under: gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: onions, peppers, red peppers, roasted, vegan

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savory skillet cornbread: tomato upside down cake

2018/08/07 By Melinda 2 Comments

There is something immensely satisfying about baking something that is both beautiful and tasty, add two notches of oh yeah for using up some garden fresh tomatoes.  With just a whisper of sweet, this mostly savory skillet cornbread does double duty as a summer tomato upside down cake. Whether you call it cornbread or corn […]

Filed Under: Breads Biscuits Buns, Breakfasty Brunchy, Cast Iron, Quick Breads, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: baking, cast iron, cornbread, dill, tomatoes

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Jo-Jos ! gluten free, shiitake mushroom, crispy, baked potato wedges

2018/05/16 By Melinda Leave a Comment

close up of gluten free, shiitake mushroom, crispy oven baked Jo-Jos

Crispy potato wedges breaded with a flavorful mixture of mushroom salt and garbanzo flour then baked to crispy goodness. These Jo-Jos are flavorful enough to eat on their own but oh so addictive when served with ranch dressing (I’ve included my favorite quick and easy off the cuff Ranch dip in the recipe below) Jo-Jos […]

Filed Under: Cast Iron, gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: fries, gluten free, jojos, mushroom, mushroom salt, Potato, potato wedges, vegan

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Homemade Bacon Fat Flour Tortillas

2018/05/01 By Melinda 3 Comments

close up of homemade Bacon Fat Flour Tortillas

Most days tortillas are one of the few items I give myself permission to buy pre-made, but some days call for homemade, for the flavor and slight imperfections of made from scratch. It is a truth universally acknowledged that a perfectly round tortilla lacks the flavor found in a tortilla just slightly off center. Sure, […]

Filed Under: Cast Iron, Quick Breads, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: bacon fat, bacon grease, flour tortilla, tortillas

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Not too sweet Rhubarb Refrigerator Jam

2018/04/28 By Melinda Leave a Comment

close up of Not too sweet Rhubarb Refrigerator Jam

A rhubarb jam where rhubarb is the star. With half the sugar of the recipe that inspired it this not too sweet rhubarb refrigerator jam is addictive on toast or waffles and is the perfect filling for pop tarts or a slab pie. You would think by now I would learn to always write things […]

Filed Under: Fruit, gluten free, Recipes, Sides and such, Sweet Tagged With: ginger, jam, jelly, Rhubarb

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quick and easy garlic ginger asparagus

2018/02/26 By Melinda 2 Comments

garlic ginger asparagus with a squeeze of fresh lime held aloft on a white plate

A simple side, delicious with coconut curry seafood chowder or with any Asian inspired main course. This asparagus came from Mexico because by February buying local kale and collards has become repetitive, boring, blah. I’m ready for spring, for asparagus, strawberries, tulips. For a few days it seemed spring was just around the corner, short […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, spring veggies, Veggies Tagged With: asparagus, baked, cast iron, easy, garlic, ginger, gluten free, oven, quick, vegan, vegetarian

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quick collard greens with apples and acv

2017/12/19 By Melinda Leave a Comment

collard greens with fresh autumn apples, apple cider, and apple cider vinegar Up your luck in the new year by adding greens. If the only collards you’ve ever had have been thick cut and slow stewed it my come as a surprise that they are also delicious barely cooked or even raw, you don’t even […]

Filed Under: gluten free, Recipes, Salads, Sides and such, Veggies Tagged With: acv, apple, collard greens, easy, quick, raw, vegan, whole 30

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Sesame Turmeric Bread with charnushka seeds and onion

2017/10/28 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Sesame Turmeric Bread

  Imagine a fall day when the leaves have suddenly turned and the sky is blue and the ground is a blanket of gold dappled with orange and red. Imagine bread both familiar and exotic, a soft loaf with the nutty hint of sesame, the golden glow of turmeric, a little spice, a little comfort. […]

Filed Under: Breads Biscuits Buns, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Yeast Breads Tagged With: bread flour, charnushka, decorative loaf, nigella, Onion, sesame, turmeric

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Creamy Blue Cheese Grits

2017/10/10 By Melinda 1 Comment

Savory Blue Cheese Grits

Do you want a commentary about grits or blue cheese? How much I love savory grits? How in NYC I would describe grits as southern polenta and when I worked in Arizona I told people polenta was Italian grits? Nah?! I thought not. Accompaniments coming soon.

Filed Under: gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: Blue Cheese, cheddar, cheese, grits, polenta

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Pumpkin Ice Cream

2016/11/21 By Melinda 1 Comment

pumpkin ice cream

Pumpkin Ice Cream adapted from David Liebovitz   

Filed Under: Recipes, Sides and such, Sweet, Winter Holiday Tagged With: ice cream, pumpkin, spice

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Cranberry Pomegranate Relish- quick, low sugar, no cooking

2016/11/19 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Cranberry Pomegranate Relish

Persephone leaves the underworld with four pomegranate seeds in her belly. Seeds of winter. She can still taste the fruit, remember how she struggled to stop at just four, licked the bright juice from her fingers, tasted the red stain on her lips. But without fall there can be no spring, without bare branches there […]

Filed Under: Fruit, gluten free, Recipes, Sides and such, Winter Holiday Tagged With: cranberry, mandarin, no cook, orange, pomegranate molasses, quick, satsuma, Thanksgiving

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Savory Pumpkin Phyllo Tartlets

2016/09/30 By Melinda 1 Comment

Savory Pumpkin Phyllo Tartlets

Pumpkin without the sugar and spice. Savory snacks for short days and long nights. Roast your own squash and heat up the kitchen (plus, bonus! pepitas!) I love it when a plan (doesn’t) come together. I lie. I had a vision of what I was going to make with the tiny pumpkins I’ve been growing in […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Winter Holiday Tagged With: appetizer, fillo, filo, phyllo, pumpkin, squash

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blue cheese macaroni bites with buffalo dipping sauce

2016/02/03 By Melinda 3 Comments

blue cheese macaroni bites with buffalo dipping sauce

Bite sized bits of tangy blue cheese and pasta served with a subtly spicy classic Buffalo dipping sauce. These addictive little bites will be what I bring to the potluck this year. I hear there is a football game this weekend. Football and snacks are intrinsically connected- this could be a scathing commentary on the […]

Filed Under: Pasta, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: appetizer, Blue Cheese, buffalo, macaroni, macaroni and cheese, party food

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Pan Fried Brussel Sprouts with crispy garlic and New Year’s Resolutions

2016/01/16 By Melinda 1 Comment

Free up the oven for holiday meals or any time you want a quick and savory autumn vegetable side dish. Fresh Brussels sprouts cooked in a cast iron skillet are greens that actually stay green with a crisp nutty flavor complimented with a healthy bite of garlic. Pan Fried Brussel Sprouts with crispy garlic and […]

Filed Under: Cast Iron, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Veggies, Winter Holiday Tagged With: Brussel sprout, cast iron, garlic, gluten free, paleo, vegan, whole30

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Fresh Tomato Salsa (Pico de Gallo)

2015/08/07 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Fresh Tomato Salsa or Pico de Gallo A few months ago I realized that even when vine ripened tomatoes were over two dollars a pound it was still cheaper to make my own fresh salsa rather than buy it pre-made. Now that the tomatoes in my garden are coming I don’t even have to do […]

Filed Under: gluten free, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Veggies Tagged With: cilantro, jalapeño, pico de gallo, salsa, tomato

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coleslaw with creamy herb buttermilk dressing

2015/06/16 By Melinda Leave a Comment

coleslaw with creamy herb buttermilk dressing

I rarely make creamy coleslaw; it reminds me of too many unwanted sides at restaurants, sad little plastic dishes filled with soggy mayo coated cabbage of unknowable age. I should know better. Once upon a time people must have asked for slaw on the side because it was fresh and crisp and cool, the perfect […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Salads, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: buttermilk, cabbage, coleslaw, red onion

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Strawberry Honey Skillet Cornbread

2015/06/05 By Melinda 2 Comments

Tender moist cornbread swirled with fresh strawberries and honey. The strawberries, in addition to adding a whole new level of yum to the scent of baking cornbread are also the perfect foil for a tangy vinegar barbecue sauce. Delicious slathered with butter and topped with some of the remaining strawberry sauce. Sub this out for […]

Filed Under: Breads Biscuits Buns, Breakfasty Brunchy, Cast Iron, Fruit, Quick Breads, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such, Sweet Tagged With: cast iron, cornbread, strawberries, summer

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Fresh Strawberry Biscuits with Basil Butter

2015/05/28 By Melinda 2 Comments

Fresh Strawberry Biscuits with Basil Butter Biscuits, tender and buttery: strawberries two ways- roasted, sweet and softly perfumed and fresh, tangy, bright and perfectly balanced with just a hint of finally it’s summer fresh basil. These delicious biscuits are what happens when you want to bake strawberries in something but not something sweet, no muffins or […]

Filed Under: Breads Biscuits Buns, Breakfasty Brunchy, Fruit, Quick Breads, Recipes, Sides and such Tagged With: baked, basil, biscuits, roasted stawberries, spring, strawberries, summer

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Bacon Arugula Blossom Potato Salad

2015/05/20 By Melinda 2 Comments

Bacon arugula blossom potato salad

Crisp bacon and beautiful, delicately peppery arugula blossoms take this herb studded rendition of classic potato salad over the top. Mayo optional. A hummingbird built its nest in a crook of one of the branches of the pine tree out back.  That little Momma Hummingbird is fierce, swooping in to our feeder while keeping an […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Salads, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: arugula blossoms, bacon, Chives, edible flowers, malt vinegar, potato salad, salad

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Vegan Chickpea Salad with roasted onion and dill cream

2015/05/12 By Melinda Leave a Comment

Vegan Chickpea Salad with roasted onion and dill cream

Vegan Chickpea Salad with roasted onion and dill cream- a delicious and refreshing warm weather salad with sweet onion cream and the bright clean flavor of fresh dill. Bonus points for being vegan and nut free without even trying. This onion cream sauce popped up in my twitter feed last week and I was intrigued. As […]

Filed Under: Recipes, Salads, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: chickpeas, dill, garbanzo beans, roasted onion cream, salad, spring, summer, vegan

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Spring Greens Waffle Latkes

2015/04/02 By Melinda 5 Comments

spring greens waffle latkes

Spring Greens Waffle Latkes Peppery heat, three kinds of green and creamy potatoes crisped and creviced in the waffle iron. A variation on a theme. Delicious generously topped with a yogurt chive sauce, so delicious that I never quite got to trying these with an egg on top. Or to sharing. I ate them all and […]

Filed Under: Breakfasty Brunchy, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: arugula, Chives, latke, parsley, Potato, savory waffle, waffle iron, yogurt

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Gluten-Free Honey Graham Crackers

2015/03/11 By Melinda 1 Comment

Gluten Free Honey Graham Crackers

Not too sweet and spiced how you want them these simple to make gluten free graham style crackers are delicious on their own and amazing in pie crusts.

Filed Under: gluten free, Irish Inspired, Recipes, Sides and such, Sweet Tagged With: gluten free, graham crackers, honey

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Cheesy Tomatillo Bread Sticks

2015/01/28 By Melinda 2 Comments

cheesy-tomatillo-bread-sticks

Party snack, dinner side, cheesy accompaniment for chili: bread sticks, made with flaky pastry dough, expected and unexpected all twirled into one addictive savory treat. Bread sticks are often a disappointment. Too much bread and not enough topping, or so overwhelmingly large that committing to even one seems too much. Or they’re thin and brittle, […]

Filed Under: Breads Biscuits Buns, Quick Breads, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: bread sticks, cheddar, flaky pastry, party food, tomatillo salsa

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sliced and slow roasted rosemary potatoes

2015/01/06 By Melinda 1 Comment

slow roasted rosemary potatoes

Sliced and Slow Roasted Rosemary Potatoes Roast these deliciously easy potatoes low and slow for the first 15-20 minutes while assembling the rest of your meal and then pull them out, flip them over and finish them at a higher heat right before you serve. These make a great side or, served with a bit […]

Filed Under: Poems, Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: easy, Potato, rosemary

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Salad Rolls with Lemongrass & Shiitake Mushroom Ground Pork

2014/12/22 By Melinda 1 Comment

vietnamese style sausage rice paper wraps

Bright and tangy Vietnamese style ground pork redolent with the scent of spice and citrus, delicious as burgers or as the filling for rice paper appetizer rolls. Served with avocado and quick pickled carrots and red onions. No dipping sauce required.

Filed Under: Recipes, Savory, Sides and such Tagged With: appetizer, burger, lemongrass, mushroom, rice paper, salad roll, vietnamese

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