Southern Green Beans

Ingredients

6 slices of bacon

3 Tsp butter

1 red onion

2 lb fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped

8 small new potatoes, diced

1 large clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup chicken broth

1 and 1/2 tsp white balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper

Cook bacon, and drain on paper towels.

Melt butter in a skillet with a lid over medium-low heat with onion, until onion is translucent.  Stir in the bacon, green beans, potatoes, garlic, and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over low heat until the green beans are tender (about 10 minutes.)  Sprinkle with vinegar, salt, and pepper.

Our Review

I'm not sure why I keep finding recipes that claim potatoes will cook quickly.  I ended up cooking it for over 20 minutes and even then, some potatoes weren't done.  Overall, it was good, it just needs to have much smaller potato pieces or to cook longer so they are finished.

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Roasted Butternut Squash with Rosemary, Pecans, and Gorgonzola

Ingredients

1 butternut squash of about 2.5 pounds (peeled and cubed)

1 tbsp olive oil

Fresh rosemary (2 tsp, finely chopped)

Salt

Pepper

1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup Gorgonzola cheese (or blue cheese)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  

Toss the squash, oil, rosemary, salt and pepper together.  Grease the baking sheet and then arrange squash in a single layer and roast for 20 minutes.  Turn squash over and then bake for 15 more minutes.

Turn the squash again and spring pecans over the top.  Roast for 10-15 more minutes until the nuts are fragrant and the squash is soft and caramelized.  Put squash into a bowl and toss with the cheese.  Season with salt and pepper.

Our Review

Overall, it was good.  No complaints.

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Zucchini, Mushrooms, and Onions Bake

Ingredients

One huge zucchini and one small zucchini

Two good size onions

2 cups of mushrooms

Olive oil

Cheese - Cheddar and Mozzarella 

Basil

Salt and Pepper

Slice all of the vegetables and put them into a baking dish.  Sprinkle olive oil and then sprinkle the seasoning.  Top with cheese.  Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes and then uncover and bake for 10 more minutes.

Our Review

Okay so this was our recipe.  I had the oldest son look up some ideas on Yummly and he found something along these lines, but we changed things a bit as we were making it.   The directions above are what we did to make the meal.  We did add more oil and cheese as it was cooking.  It definitely smelled mushroom-y but it also tasted pretty good.  The onions could have used more time, but they weren't bad at all.  Final review, we will make this again.

Quick Potatoes

Ingredients

1/2 lb small red skinned new potatoes

1 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/2 tbsp olive oil

coarse salt, to taste

fresh ground pepper, to taste

1 tsp chopped fresh dill leaves

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the potatoes and cook until tender, but not mushy, about 8-10 minutes.  Drain the water and then toss with butter and oil.  Season with salt and pepper and toss with dill.

Our Review

I actually didn't follow this recipe but I used to to help me figure out how to make a quick potato side dish.  I boiled the water, added the potatoes and cooked them for about 10 minutes.  I drained them and then I added salt, pepper, garlic, and a little olive oil into a bowl and tossed the potatoes to coat everything.  The kids asked for second so it must have tasted good.  They were quick and easy and I did enjoy them as well.

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Roast Potatoes

Ingredients

2 pounds red potatoes cut into quarters

2 Tbsp vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

1 Tsp salt

1/2 Tsp freshly ground pepper

1/2 Tsp dried rosemary, crushed

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Place potatoes in a large roasting pan and toss with the other ingredients.  Spread into a single layer and bake for 20 minutes, tossing occassionally.

Our Review

These were good but I had to cook them for almost 40 minutes.  I also didn't measure any of the ingredients.

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Honey Grilled Pineapple

Ingredients

1 fresh pineapple - peeled, cored, and cut into 1 inch rings

1/4 Tsp honey

3 Tsp melted butter

1 dash hot pepper sauce

salt to taste

Place pineapple in a large resealable plastic bag.  Add all of the ingredients, seal bag, and shake to coat evenly.  Marinate for at least 30 minutes, or overnight.

Cook over a high heat grill that has been lightly oiled.  Grill 2-3 minutes per side until heated through and grill marks appear.

Our Review

I'm not a fan of cooked/warm pineapple, but the boys ate it.  We had triangle slices of pineapple, so that is what we used instead of rings.  We also didn't put hot pepper sauce or salt on it.

Parmesan Red Potatoes

Ingredients

• 3-4 cup Red potatoes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 clove garlic
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• ½ cup Parmesan
• 2 tablespoon Fresh chives
• In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add in garlic and potatoes and saute until potatoes begin to soften, Sprinkle in cheese and oregano and continue to cook until potatoes begin to brown on both sides. Remove from heat and serve warm.

Our Review

This was pretty bad.  The directions are not complete, the potatoes need to be cooked much longer than the recipe says – BEFORE adding the seasoning.  They were still raw and hard and we tried to put them back in the pan with more oil but the seasoning would just burn… maybe we’ll try again someday – with a lot more time spent letting the potatoes cook.

Baked Asparagus with Balsamic Butter Sauce

Ingredients

1 bunch of fresh asparagus, trimmed

salt and pepper to taste

2 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tsp balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Arrange the asparagus on a baking sheet.  Coat with cooking spray, season with salt and pepper.  Bake asparagus for 12 minutes, or until tender.  Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Remove from heat and stir in soy sauce and vinegar.  Pour over the baked asparagus to serve.

Our Review

It was pretty good.

Balsamic Glazed Carrots

Ingredients

• 3 cups baby carrots
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  
  Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Saute carrots in oil for about 10 minutes, or until tender. Stir in balsamic vinegar and brown sugar, mix to coat and serve.

Pat's Mushroom Saute

Ingredients

2 tbsps butter
12 tbsp olive oil
12 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 clove minced garlic
18 tsp dried oregano
1 lb button mushrooms (sliced)

Melt butter with oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in balsamic vinegar, garlic, oregano, and mushrooms. Saute for 20 to 30 minutes, or until tender.

Grilled Asparagus & Feta Salad

Ingredients

• 1 bunch thick asparagus, about 24 spears, ends trimmed
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest, from one lemon
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, from one lemon
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
• Preheat grill to high.  Place asparagus spears in baking dish and toss with 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper. Put asparagus on the grill, making sure spears are perpendicular to grates so they don’t fall through. Set asparagus dish next to grill (do not clean). Cover and cook asparagus for 3-4 minutes, until nicely browned and tender-crisp. Remove asparagus from grill and place back in baking dish. Let cool, then transfer spears to cutting board and cut into 1½” pieces. Place cut asparagus back in dish, then add remaining tablespoon olive oil, feta, lemon zest and lemon juice. Toss gently and season with more salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste. Serve room temperature or cold.

Sauteed Apples

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup butter
• 4 large tart apples – peeled, cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• In a large skillet or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; add apples. Cook, stirring constantly, until apples are almost tender, about 6 to 7 minutes.  Dissolve cornstarch in water; add to skillet. Stir in brown sugar and cinnamon. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and serve warm.