Archives 'Side Kicks
Kick your meal up a notch with one of these sensational sides!
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Young & HungryIf you can't take the heat, get outta the kitchen! |
| 4 August |
A perfect slaw!
How do I love thy cooking, Tyler Florence? Let me count the ways….delicious food, fresh ingredients, and interesting spins on classics. When my mom had the opportunity to attend one of Tyler’s cooking demonstrations, I was green with envy.
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Good mom that she is, she brought me home an autographed copy of his new cookbook, Real Kitchen. Here is one of his recipes for a delicious, tangy, and surprisingly light slaw that is ridiculously simple to make but yet stands apart from the run-of-the-mill slaws that always seem to be bogged down with too much mayo and not much flavor. Once again, Tyler delivers an “ultimate”!
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| 11 May |
Contrary to stereotype, my mother was always the parent manning the grill in my household. Even in a rainy drizzle, she would risk frizzy hair to ensure that we all had the quintessential BBQ-ed dinner. Here is her famous potato recipe; the grill/foil packet method makes the potato skin crispy on the outside, tenderly steamed on the inside, and all around delicious. They’re the perfect accompaniment to any and every warm weather meal.‘
Grillicious!
| 3 March |
I actually made these while I was experimenting for the Master Chef casting call. They seemed a unique combination of sauces and flavors and they are! Alas, my taste test panel concluded that they are better warm so they didn’t make the cut. Speaking of making the cut, I’m pretty sure I, like the mushrooms, did not make the cut. While I haven’t gotten the “we didn’t choose you for Master Chef, but come try out for our new Biggest Loser Bride” rejection email I also haven’t received any positive feedback or inquiries into the cavernous depths of my past which is rumored to be part of the background check. Wasn’t a 12 page application enough?!
I’m going to chalk it up to just not meant to be, this year anyway. I at least got to try some good recipes and meet some interesting people! With the Academy Awards coming up this weekend, this recipe would make a great pre-show nibble and it’s just as fancy as all the glowing movie stars that will be in attendance. We don’t all end up on the big (or small) screen, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy those who do. Life outside of the spotlight can be just as fabulous and that’s just how I intend mine to be!
| 11 January |
I made this recipe for the first time last Christmas Eve. Having enjoyed fennel salads for years, I was looking for a recipe composed of simple ingredients and clean flavors, and, of course, Craft fit the bill. Since then, I’ve made this salad time and again, particularly as a counterbalance for heavy meals. The light, refreshing flavors and crisp texture are the perfect way to end a meal, much as the Italians do. On occasion, I’ve also added orange segments and black olives, lovely compliments to the fennel’s licorice flavor, but this salad is simply divine as is, no frills necessary.
| 28 December |
In my Corporate America parallel universe, I work daily with space and merchandising quandaries. The opportunity cost of one product sitting on shelf is, of course, another, different product sitting on shelf. And, since space is constrained, trade offs must always be made.
- Rich, delicious, and (a tiny bit) healthy!
| 6 November |
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again….sometimes the best recipes are the most simple. Case in point: these delicious, juicy tomatoes Provencal, based off of a recipe I found in an Alice Waters cookbook. Just a few main ingredients and a little bit of time in the oven produce a side dish so succulent, you’ll swear that the recipe had to have been dramatically complex. While tomatoes meet their peak during summer months, this recipe is a great way to “doctor” winter tomatoes, as the basil and cheese add herbal and umami notes that help enhance the tomatoes’ subtle flavor. I served mine alongside a fillet of salmon and Mrs. Cochran’s roasted potatoes that I prepared for friends and received rave reviews, tomatoes polished off in no time.
- A quick, healthy, delicious accompianiment.
| 8 October |
What’s not to love about the fluffy doughy deliciousness that is focaccia bread. Even in its purest state, seasoned simply with herbs and a drizzle of olive oil it leaves nothing to be desired. Kicked up a notch, baked with sun-dried tomatoes or olives for example, leaves even less to be desired and enables one to take a little creative spin on this classic Italian bread. There’s nothing I like more than a twist on a classic, so when I found this recipe for “focaccia” that’s not merely topped but stuffed I just about had a conniption. I was, in fact, so excited that I made it the very next night.
Now for the disclaimer. I’m not sure if I failed at this recipe as there was no picture to validate my results, but it does not result in the aforementioned fluffy doughy bread to which you and I have become accustomed. It is not dimpled with oil wells and charred herbs. It is more dense than airy and thus not quite suitable for soaking and dipping. Disclaimer aside, this so called “focaccia” is quite delicious! It makes for a great appetizer, is a clean cut finger food, and complimented my Cuban Chicken Fricase quite nicely. Yes I mixed genres, but the two recipes shared just enough ingredients to make it work.
| 30 September |
Once upon a college semester, my partner in crime Christine took off for the magical land of Florence and, during that time, I occasionally visited her Mom, much to Christine’s great jealousy (but that’s another story.) On one of these visits, Mrs. Cochran made for me the most amazing, most mouth-watering roasted potatoes I have ever tasted, delighting my taste buds with all of their crispy, puffed up, steamy glory.
Thanks, Mrs. C!
Luckily for me (and now you,) she shared her recipe with me, a recipe that I find myself making again and again, always to great delight. It’s perfect for fall, a snap to make with ingredients you most likely already have on hand, and super easy to double or triple. And it’s roasted potatoes! What could be better?
Thanks, Mrs. Cochran!
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| 22 September |
With both fall and a park just around the corner, what better way to take advantage of the waning daylight hours than with a picnic? This recipe, which I modified from an old Bon Appétit recipe is a simple yet unique way to spice up your usual chicken salad. It’s perfect for a picnic because Tahini, unlike mayo, doesn’t immediately spoil when out of the fridge. For those that aren’t familiar with Tahini, it’s sesame seed paste (think sesame peanut butter) and is generally found in hummus. So, if you’ve recently experimented with homemade hummus, this is a perfect way to put all that leftover Tahini to good use. Additionally, since there isn’t any cheese or dairy in this recipe, the yogurt and feta dip is a nice compliment to the sandwiches and can be used to make avocado, sprout, and feta pitas the next day.
Katy and I originally made this recipe for an anniversary party we catered. While it made for a pretty and easily assembled appetizer, the amount of prep work involved in deboning and shredding 20 chickens was an experience I am ok never to repeat. One chicken, however, is a breeze in comparison!
| 25 August |
It’s the salad that made us (kind of) famous when we were featured alongside it in the The Atlanta Journal Constitution’s “In the Kitchen With…” column. The genesis of this insanely delicious salad is that, en route to a sorority dinner in college, I realized that I had nothing to bring and no time to shop. Panic! I therefore assembled before me what few ingredients I had stocked in my fridge, held my breath, and viola!….a salad so delicious that both Christine and I continue to make it—to rave reviews—to this day, proof that sometimes we must throw a bit of caution to the wind and put our faith into life, and food, turning out ok, despite life seemingly throwing us a curveball.
Kind of ugly but really yummy!
I love this salad so much that I cannot even begin to do it justice on this blog. For any and every goat cheese fan out there, this is a must try. And though the result is not the most beautiful salad of all time, I promise that it is (at least in my opinion) one of the most delicious. The wilted lettuce mingles with sweetly caramelized onions and the goat cheese melts into the acid, enveloping the whole thing with an ethereal, creamy dressing.
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