Category: Sides (Page 1 of 7)
Beets and Orange Salad with Ginger
December 29th, 2018 in Main Dishes, No-meat, Salads, Sides by Julia Volhina
All beets lovers out there (how ever many there are of you), this recipe is for you: cooked beets with sweet oranges dressed up with spicy ginger, red wine vinegar and fresh squeezed orange juice.
I make this one with roasted beets (wrap washed beets skin on in foil, put them into a pan and stick into oven warmed up to 355F for about 1.5h, or more or less depending on their size).
Boiled ones will work as well (see instructions for boiling beets if needed). I never tried this salad with precooked beets.
Size, taste (and sweetness) of both beets and oranges is something which may vary greatly, so there is a lot “to taste” measurements. You don’t want sweetness to be overpowering (this is where vinegar and salt come to help, using rather sour oranges will help as well). Also people have variable “tolerance” to taste of ginger, start small and add more to taste. Just be creative, you will not be disappointed.
Green Beans Fried with Breadcrumbs and Garlic
June 16th, 2018 in Sides by Julia Volhina
This is one of variations of traditional Ukrainian dish featuring green beans (“lopatky” or “лопатки”) fried with breadcrumbs and seasoned with garlic.
Green beans are pretty easy and quick to cook. The major trick for me is to not overcook them (I like beans crunchy, not too soft). So testing beans softness from time to time while simmering them is a key. Take them off the burner as soon as ready.
These taste the best when served straight from the skillet: warm and fragrant.
Mushrooms and Peas
January 27th, 2018 in Main Dishes, No-meat, Sides by Julia Volhina
Little something without the meat: mushrooms cooked with peas and tomatoes in tomato juice and sour cream sauce.
It takes about 30 mins to cook, and pretty easy too. Just use good tasting canned tomatoes with no extra additives.
Serve mushrooms and peas as a dish on its own, or in addition to healthy grains or pasta. My favorite here is boiled buckwheat, but they I am a bit biased towards it.
It can even be a sauce for meat, if you wish it.
Cabbage with Prunes
January 13th, 2018 in Main Dishes, No-meat, Sides by Julia Volhina
Unusual combination of prunes and cabbage, stewed together.
Slightly sweet, pure veggies, just a bit of oil, so not too heavy and pretty simple to cook, especially if you shred cabbage with mandoline or some similar tool.
If you use prunes with pits, account for few additional minutes to remove them. It isn’t too hard, just a bit messy. If pits are not coming out easily, soak them a bit longer.
Serve cabbage with prunes as a separate entry or a side dish.
Homemade Chickpea Hummus
July 15th, 2017 in Sauces & Dips & Spreads, Sides by Julia Volhina
Got a can or two of chickpeas stuck in the pantry? Or boiled a cup too many of garbanzo beans and looking for creative way to use them? Try this homemade hummus recipe.
It takes about 5 mins to make and you get a fresh batch of hummus to eat with your favorite vegetables, pita bread, chips or for further use in other recipes.
For this recipe I cooked beans from scratch. If you do the same save some of the water beans are cooked in and use it instead of water in this recipe.
Chickpea Garam Masala
June 17th, 2017 in Main Dishes, No-meat, Sides by Julia Volhina
One of the easiest chickpea recipes to make, yet so tasty one. This vegetarian dish will require a little less than 20 mins of cooking.
It can be served on its own, with a bit of bread, or as a side for boiled rice or quinoa.
I think this is one of traditional Indian recipe. Tweak the taste to your liking by adjusting amount of spices or even spices themselves. The recipe calls for garam masala, but a good curry powder will work as well.
I always soak and boil chickpeas myself, drain them before using here (preserve a bit of water they were cooking in). Using canned ones is an option as well, it will certainly be quicker. If going this route, use water at step 10.
Sliced Rosemary Baked Potato
May 6th, 2017 in Sides by Julia Volhina
Artistic twist on rosemary baked potatoes: thin sliced, nicely spiced and powdered with a bit of parmesan.
It is easier to guess what size of pan to use and how much potatoes to use if you measure pan by placing potatoes in and adjusting amount of potatoes to fit in neatly prior to cooking.
Use potatoes of the same size to ensure they cook evenly.
For more consistent results and speed – use mandoline for slicing potatoes.