Roasted Veggies

Mmmm... One of the easiest and yummiest side dishes ever!

Ingredients:
Vegetables such as: butternut squash, mushrooms, zucchini, potatoes, etc.
Olive Oil
Seasoning Salt

Direcions:
Preheat oven to 475.
Cut veggies into chunks (the smaller you cut, the faster they'll cook) Place on cookie sheet or in cake pan and drizzle olive oil over the top. Sprinkle your favorite seasoning on top. Sometimes I use Johnny's, sometimes I use Mrs. Dash, it all depends on your mood. Toss your veggies around so they get mixed around in oil and seasoning. Bake at 475 for about 20 minutes depending on how thin your veggies are. Check after about 15 minutes for tenderness.

Fresh Spring Salad

Since I am about to go home for lunch I thought you ought to to know that I am going to be making this salad:

Because it truly is the best salad ever.

Ingredients for Salad:
Spinach leaves
Romaine chopped
Craisins
Feta cheese crumbled
Diced pears (not quite ripe)
Small can of mandarin oranges

Combine everything, as much as you'd like and put this dressing on it:


Or oil and vinegar alone is good, or any kind of balsamic vinegar or vinaigerette. Or, frankly just leave some of the mandarin orange juice in there and its yummy too =)

Creamy Risotto

I made this tonight too and loved it! I left out the prosciutto since I had it with the chicken so I can't attest for that being wonderful but the risotto on its own was fantastic! Giada from Food Network, by the way... love her! (although my own adaptations are changed in the recipe)

Ingredients
4 thin slices prosciutto
3 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
12 asparagus spears, cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1 shallot, finely chopped
3/4 cup white rice
3/4 cup sparkling white grape juice with a splash of cranberry juice (substituted for champagne)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Place the slices of prosciutto on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake until the prosciutto slices are almost completely crisp, about 6 to 8 minutes. The slices will crisp up even more as they cool. Reserve for garnish.
In a medium saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Blanch the asparagus in the chicken stock for 2 minutes. Remove the asparagus with a slotted spoon. Set the asparagus aside and keep the chicken stock at a low simmer.
In another medium saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the shallot and cook until tender, about 3 minutes. Add the Arborio rice and stir to coat in the butter. Continue toasting the rice, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes more. Add the Champagne and simmer until the liquid has almost evaporated, about 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the simmering broth and stir until almost completely absorbed, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking the rice, adding the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each addition of broth to absorb before adding the next, until the rice is tender but still firm to the bite and the mixture is creamy, about 20 minutes total. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the asparagus, remaining butter, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Spoon the risotto into serving dishes and garnish by breaking the crisp prosciutto into smaller pieces over the top of the risotto. Serve immediately.

A few snack and side ideas

Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus

All you need is Asparagus and Prosciutto! Just wrap one peace around each asparagus spear. Steam or boil the asparagus as normal and then chill before wrapping the prosciutto around. You can hold it in place with a toothpick or lay it down


Apples and Feta

One of my favorite snacks when I come home from a long day is just apples with feta. Sometimes, I even just put it all in a bowl and eat it with a fork. The feta takes the sour edge off the apples leaving still just enough flavor that its still a refreshing snack or side -- and good for you too!


Frozen Blueberries and Milk

I love pouring a little bit of milk over frozen blueberries. Just enough that they're coated and the milk will freeze in the bowl with the blueberries. Great for breakfast even!


Couscous

You can cook it in your rice cooker if you buy it in bulk or you can buy the quick and easy kind I like. Buy plain couscous and just add some mint leaves torn up along with some peas and maybe a dash of some of your favorite seasonings. The mint gives it just the right amount of flavor!

Rosemary-Garlic Potatoes

Ingredients:
1 tbls olive oil
2 garlic cloves, sliced
2 sprigs fresh rosemary or 1/4 tsp dried
1 1/2 pounds red new potatoes scrubbed and thinly sliced or chopped
salt and pepper

Combine oil, garlic, and rosemary in a 2 quart microwave and oven-safe baking dish with a lid. Cover and microwave on high until garlic is fragrant (1 minute) Stir in potatoes. Roast in the oven on 400 for about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add rosemary sprigs for garnish

Serves 4