Vegetables--any Good Recipes

cabbage sauteed in olive oil until tender.
We love steamed broccoli, cauliflower, carrots - all together or separate.
stir fry mushrooms, onions and green beans - I like the spice of a jalapeno for myself with this.

I'm a big hobo fan this time of year. A large piece of foil heaped with every and any kind of vegetable, sealed up and grilled for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with a little olive oil and italian seasoning first. Think outside the box - I use whatever is left in my frig. Because potatoes take so long to cook, I bake up a dozen at a time when I buy them so I only have to cut into chunks for my hobo (reduces cooking time too.) Other interesting ingredients include sweet potatoes, green beans, carrots, corn, squash, and spinach. Yes, you can pull frozen veggies out and toss them in the packet. Green beans work really well this way as they cook quickly.

Best part is there is zero clean up.

Scrape out the gills of a big portobella mushroom and set aside. In a pan, mix minced each of garlic, onions, zuchini, red bell pepper, spinach and celery with a litle oil or butter. Add a handful of grated parmesan cheese and a handful of bread crumbs and mix well. Spoon inside cap of your mushroom, top with more parmasean and a slice of provolone. Bake at 350 for 15/20 mins. Enjoy!

one of our favorites - peal and cut up zuchinni and eggplant into even sized cubes, lightly cover with olive oil, season (salt, pepper, garlic powder or whatever you like), sprinkle with parmasan cheese, place on a cookie sheet sprayed with Pam. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

Slice zuchinni length wise (2 to 3 inches long, about 1/4 inch thick, coat with italian dressing and cook on the grill.

How about tomatoes, cucumbers & onions diced up and pour Italian salad dressing and toss; maybe even add some basil..... Serve cold

I like roasted veggies with Balsamic vinaigrette and basil (over pasta), or stir-frying with Szechuan sauce or chili paste. I also enjoy veggie fajitas (take your skillet veg, add salsa and the meat—or beans, or both—of your choice).
Of course, it it's hot out, I'd rather leave the stove off. As a result I've been doing a lot o salad eating (http://fuzzylizards.blogspot.com/2013/05/salad-daysblack-... and http://fuzzylizards.blogspot.com/2013/05/salad-daysbulgar...)

We love vegetables.. just so many ways to prepare them..

Yellow and Zucchini squash, I slice them into sticks, place them in a bit of salted hot water. when just a bit tender.. I toss them with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper.. then grill them.. on foil, with onions and garlic cloves.

Or I soften them in the microwave then olive oil, salt and pepper and place slices directly on the grill.

Or saute in olive oil and a little butter, add sliced squash with onions, pressed garlic, fresh basil, fresh ground pepper and a can of crushed tomatoes.. when they get soft, sprinkle Italian cheese on top and cover for a few minutes.. So good.

Baby Bok Choy.. One of our favorites.
Cot off the bottom so that the leaves are separated. In a skillet, heat up some peanut oil, when hot carefully add the bok choy, saute till slightly wilted, carefully pour 1/4 cup of water into skillet, sprinkle with a tiny bit of salt, cover tightly, turn down heat to low for about 5 minutes. Turn off heat and add soy sauce. We love this with grilled seafood and sticky rice.

-stuffed zucchini (look for a Farmer's Market in your area for these (saute onions & tomatoes, stuff zuccs, add salt/pepper,
parm cheese & bread crumbs then bake for 30 mins

-sauted veggie tacos

-sauted veggies over rice

-grill red onions, zucchini, yellow squash on the bbq (halve the squash &
zuccs) serve over rice w/a slice of grilled pineapple w/teryiaki sauce on it

-grilled eggplant

-diced veggie quiche

-fresh green beans sauted over white rice w/sliced almonds

-dice, cube & bake butternut squash (drizzle w/olive oil very lightly)

-black beans w/corn, diced tomatoes & onions

-make homemade onion rings for something different

-yams baked w/brown sugar & marshmellows

-stir fry veggies over white rice

My family loves roasted tomatoes... I slice them fairly thick, lay out in a dish, put a mixture of parmesan and mozzarella cheese on top, sprinkle with fresh basil (or dried Italian seasonings if I don't have fresh), add a touch of butter (teeny dot on each slice), then bake until the cheese is all melted. We LOVE this.

Roasted artichokes.... I wash, cut cut bottom off, cut part of the top off, trim leaves, spread out and wash again, dip in lemon juice to keep them the cut parts from turning brown, fill with a bit of butter, clove of garlic and breadcrumbs. Roast in a covered dish until done. They are done by testing to see if one of the leaves comes out easily. For dipping sauce, we use melted butter, lemon juice or a mix I made up with a touch of butter, bit of mayo, bit of sour cream and paprika. When I make these, it is our meal for the night. Love them!

Asparagus... 2 ways... roasted with butter, garlic and breadcrumbs OR, steam until they are almost done but still very firm then remove and marinate them in Italian dressing fo a cold side dish.

Saute mushrooms and tomatoes. You can use fresh or a can of diced tomatoes, fresh mushrooms quartered. In small pan, put everything together, add a little marjaram and touch of sugar, just saute until the juices evaporate.

veggie kabobs on the grill!

Happy Cooking

With this warm weather, we are preferring uncooked veg side dishes. Our favorites are:

Italian green salad: chopped greens, sliced red onion, tomatoes, feta cheese, balsamic vinaigrette or Italian salad dressing

Greens+fruit+goat cheese (lots of variations). Start with leafy greens (lettuce, spinach, whatever you have on hand), add red onion (I like marinaded red onion- just slice, cover with red wine vinegar and let sit one hour), sliced oranges or mango, some crumbled goat cheese, balsamic vinegar

Coleslaw (healthy version): shred cabbage, onion and carrots. mix together. Tastes great with a little salt and pepper or you can add some light mayo and spices like red pepper, cumin, etc). Top with cooked chicken, pork etc. We usually make a big batch of this each week and take it for lunches.

Broccoli salad: includes chopped broccoli, shredded carrot, onion, raisins or craisins, sunflower seeds, a bit of mayo if desired.

Raw broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, radish with hummus for dipping

Corn on cob: Do not remove husks. Soak corn in water about 30 min. Then grill, with husks on, turning cobs every 10 min or so till the husks are black and smoky but still in tact. Let cool, then remove husks. The corn will have a wonderful smoky flavor.

Google "oven roasted vegetables" this is by far my family's favorite way to eat their veges!
Of course you can also sneak veges into everything, soups, stews, sauces, casseroles, even desserts, you name it.
My girls (not natural vegetable lovers) LOVE Caesar salad, Chinese chicken salad and any salad made with a sweet vinegarette, soft cheese, nuts and fruit.
Are you on pinterest? That's a gold mine for healthy, family friendly meals and snacks.

Lots of yummy looking recipes here! I guess I'm thankful my family loves fresh, steamed veggies. Makes my life easy :).

Bake vegetables (like strips of zucchini) in a homemade pesto sauce. Yum. Roasted asparagus, or beets, or sweet potato or cauliflower are very good. Use olive oil, salt and fresh lemon juice (the lemon juice gets squirted on after they are done roasting). Roast beets make an awesome salad with spinach or massaged kale (cut up small) and some feta cheese.

I like onion, tomato, zucchini, and a bunch of fresh herbs from the garden (oregano, lemon thyme, garlic chives, tarragon, basil......) And... as an added bonus, ALL of it is usually fresh from my garden!

Don't always use the peppers and onions.

Oven roasted vegetables: cut up a sweet potato and some broccoli, put on a cookie sheet, and drizzle with olive oil, salt & pepper. You can add an herb if you want. Mix with your hands and bake, turning once. You can sprinkle with sesame seeds just before serving. Next time, use carrots and potatoes and maybe some wedges of onions.

Red/white/blue potatoes for July 4th - get 3 types of small or fingerling potatoes, put on skewer,brush with oil, and grill.

Ratatouille with tomatoes, eggplant and zucchini as they come into season.

Taco bar with beans and peppers and onions.

Stir fry with pea pods and baby corn and either chicken or tofu (marinated in soy sauce or similar marinade), with whatever other vegetables you want to use up.

Gazpacho - cold tomato soup with tomatoes, cucumber, garlic, bread crumbs etc. You can make this ahead.

Caprese salad - fresh tomato slices, fresh mozzarella slices, and fresh basil.

Corn stuffed tomatoes.....

Get LARGE tomatoes (preferably at the farmer's market), hollow them out.
In a medium bowl, mix canned (or fresh) corn, chopped bell pepper and onion, and crushed Ruffles chips.
Fill the inside of the tomatoes and place on microwave safe dish. Microwave on high for 4 - 5 minutes.

Carrot "cole slaw" -
grate up carrot, marinade with vinegar, brown sugar, salt, pepper, cumin add some raisins and walnuts, a dash of cayanne if you like that sort of thing.

bacon braised brussel sprouts-
trim down and halve brussel sprouts, toss with salt pepper, bacon crumbles and pralines.

sweet potato terrine-
layer cooked sweet potato slices, caramelized onions, and mushroom in small oven proof dishes, or in a caserole dish, top with your favorite grated hard cheese and breadcrumb mix bake until bubbly and well incorporated.

curried veg-
we use a leafy green, a bean, a stiff veg, and a soft veg. i.e. spinach garbonzo, cauliflower and tomato, or bok choi, red kidney bean, potato and zuchini, or any other such comination- toss in a slow cooker with garamasala, salt, pepper, boulion, garlic, ginger, and cardomon.

hash browns +++
grate potato add chopped broccoli, diced tomato, loads of onion and garlic, salt and pepper excellent next to eggs or under a skirt steak.

bean salad

tabouli

my MIL's breakfast tomatoes-
when you are done cooking your bacon and eggs, turn the heat up on your burner, and put some thick sliced tomatoes in. You want to get them blackened on the outside. these are awesome.

my mom's breakfast tomatoes-
use diced tomatoes, finely chopped onions, sausage peppers, tomato paste if you want. cook in a saucepan until saucy. with the back of your ladle, put little divets in the sauce. crack an egg into each. the eggs will poach in the tomato mixture, serve over a hearty toast.

good luck to you and yours,
F. B.