side dish

Stuffed Acorn Squash Recipe with Sausage

September 3, 2019

Stuffed acorn squash with sausage is one of those perfect fall dinners or side dish that everyone loves. Filled with savory Italian sausage, spinach and wild rice, it is a comforting and satisfying dinner. To serve it as a side, choose smaller acorn squash. These smaller servings would be perfect for your holiday table. For a no meat option, try my vegetarian stuffed acorn squash.

The acorn squash flesh takes on an almost buttery texture when roasted. The caramelized squash is sweet and it is so tender and soft that it practically melts in your mouth.

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Tomato Cucumber Salad Recipe

September 2, 2018

This Tomato Cucumber Salad Recipe is a great way to use up your end of summer bounty. As summer comes to an end, tomatoes and cucumbers are plentiful and this salad celebrates all the flavors of the season.
With ripe heirloom tomatoes, seedless English cucumber, kalamata olives, marinated artichokes and a burst of lemon, this salad is the perfect summer side or light lunch.

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White Beans with Arugula and Sun Dried Tomato

August 26, 2018

White beans with arugula and sun-dried tomatoes is the easiest, fastest recipe I’ve ever posted. Using canned beans is a time-saving shortcut. This tasty side dish is ready in five minutes, making it perfect for weeknight cooking.

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Garlic Lemon Quinoa with Vegetables

August 5, 2018

This Garlic Lemon Quinoa with Vegetables recipe is sponsored by Sprout’s Farmers Market. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Pook’s Pantry. As always, all opinions, recipes and photos are my own.

A fast and easy side makes it to the table in under 15 minutes. Sometimes, I love to putter about in the kitchen. Then, there are days that I feel like my hair is on fire. This is a side for those days. A fantastic way to use up all of the leftover bits of vegetables hanging around, this ready to go quinoa gets a little “bulking up” from the addition of sautéed mushrooms, peppers and green beans. Use whatever vegetables you have, this recipe is meant to be flexible!

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Sauteed Bok Choy with Gochujang

June 17, 2018

Sauteed bok choy with gochujang-spiced mushrooms is a flavor-packed side dish. Sesame, soy and gochujang coat the bok choy and mushrooms, making this dish addicting. The sauce is also amazing on roast chicken.

Vegetable sides don’t have to bland and this sauteed bok choy is anything but boring. This bok choy is low carb, low fat, and only has about 90 calories per serving.

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How to Make Melting Potatoes with Garlic and Herbs

April 23, 2018

Melting potatoes are one of the easiest, most delicious ways to get a lot of bang for your buck for a quick side dish. The oven does the majority of the work for you, all you have to do is flip them a couple of times. That tiny bit of effort is rewarded with the most perfectly roasted potato dish to ever grace your dinner table. I love serving these with this Beef Tenderloin Roast for special occasions.

This is the best of both worlds as far as potatoes go. The outside is golden and incredibly crispy, while the inside remains tender and fluffy.

melting potatoes with garlic and herbs

This recipe for Melting Potatoes is sponsored by my friends at Idaho Potato. I am so pleased to work with them. As always, all opinions, recipe and photos are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Pook’s Pantry.

Post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of the links, I make a few pennies at no extra cost to you. Questions? Please see disclosure for info.

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Spicy Sauteed Broccolini with Citrus Vinaigrette

April 9, 2018

sautéed broccolini

Sauteed broccolini is one of my favorite vegetables. This version, tossed in a warm citrus vinaigrette and dusted with red pepper flakes is my vegetable side of choice these days. I can’t get enough of it. Small florets sit atop long, thin stems, that’s how you know you’ve gotten your hands on some broccolini. Congratulations, you’re about to be Very Happy.

Ready in less than 15 minutes, this easy and healthy side is packed with flavor and it even got a thumbs up from picky eaters. I deserve a trophy.

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Espresso Bourbon Steak & Grilled Sweet Potatoes

July 31, 2017

Steak sizzling away on a hot grill is my kryptonite. It will (and has) stopped me dead in my tracks, prompting me to fill my nostrils with that delicious aroma. Brush on a simple espresso and bourbon glaze and you have just upped your grill game exponentially.

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Dinner Divas Weekly Menu Plan: Week 3

May 5, 2017

Welcome Back to Dinner Divas! We have another amazing week of recipes to share with all of you! The weather here has flipped a switch and it is getting hot. We’re already experiencing 90+ degree days, so I’m looking forward to lighter fare and refreshing beverages! Have a wonderful weekend and make it a delicious day!

This comforting meal is exactly what I’d want to eat while snuggled up on the couch with a movie! It looks so good, and has everything I love! Gnocchi with Chicken Sausage, Brussels Sprouts and Apples from Girl in the Little Red Kitchen

Meatless meals don’t have to be boring! This Asparagus Carbonara with Horseradish Breadcrumbs from The Wimpy Vegetarian looks absolutely delicious! Asparagus is in season now, so it’s the perfect time to make it!

Chicken with Mushrooms and Thyme from Pastry Chef Online is one of my favorites! I make something similar at least once a month here! It’s incredibly delicious and it delivers big flavor without demanding lots of time and effort. That’s a midweek win!

I have a meatless meal offering this week – my Soba Noodles with Stir-Fried Vegetables. So good, you honestly won’t miss the meat. If you have a carnivore in your house that just can’t live without it, shrimp or chicken works beautifully here. I’ve even done it with beef or pork. This is a solid recipe with lots of room for variations.

This Spring Vegetable Tart from Comfortable Domestic would make a wonderful light dinner or a brilliant brunch. Cooking for Mom next weekend? I think you found your recipe.

This Spicy Succotash with Bacon and Fava Beans would go perfectly with the Chicken on Wednesday.

These Lemon Blueberry Scones from The Chef Next Door could be dessert, afternoon snack, breakfast, etc. I don’t care when you give them to me as long as I get to eat them.

Thank you for joining Dinner Divas! We look forward to helping you plan your weekly menus and hope that it makes life easier, one meal at a time!

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A Peck of Pickled Peppers

June 17, 2013

My banana pepper plants have been rather prolific and for this I am grateful. As most of you who are regular visitors to this little space already know, I went a little overboard in planting. I have a tendency to overdo things and this was no exception.

Spending so many years living in an apartment with zero outdoor space, I may have gone a little crazy when I realized that I could grow some of my own food. This had been a goal of mine for a very long time (growing food, not going crazy… that ship has sailed).

I am fascinated by the entire process of planting a seed, taking care of it and watching it grow into something that will actually feed you.

The very first time I had a banana pepper was on a pizza, my Freshman year in college. A small group of us had descended on the pizza place next to campus. We were there under the pretense of “studying” I’m sure. There were pool tables, dart boards (which I became quite skillful at playing), air hockey tables; all the things one thinks of when looking for an appropriate place to “study”.

Anyhow, there we were and one of the guys went to order our pizza and when the waitress came to the table and set it down in front of us, I noticed that it had peppers on it. Not wanting to draw any attention to myself, I dug right in but in my head was this little voice shouting “are you nuts?!”.

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side dish

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