Scrumptious Side Dishes

Roasted Root Au Gratin

This heart-healthy, full-of-fall-colors vegetable side dish tastes wonderful. The seasonings of rosemary and garlic make it a winner.

• 6 cups root vegetables cut into 3/4 -inch chunks. I used 2 medium-sized onions, 4 parsnips (they taste sweeter than turnips to me), 6 medium-sized carrots, and 1 gigantic sweet potato, peeled. The root pieces were in the range of 3/4-inch size, but it's likely none measured exactly, and the carrot and parsnip slices measured much smaller. The mix of sizes didn't seem to matter; all the veggies tasted good. 
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 1/8 cup white wine (which I forgot. I intended to add it, but spaced. Didn't matter. I liked the roots anyway. Next time I'll remember the wine.)
• 1 large sprig of fresh rosemary
• 2 cloves pressed garlic 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 Tablespoon butter
• 1 1/4 Tablespoon flour
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
• 1/2 cup grated Swiss cheese
• 1 Tablespoon dried breadcrumbs

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Put olive oil and wine in a bowl. Add vegetables and coat them in the oil and wine.

Spread the vegetables out in large, scantily-olive-oiled, baking dish. Scatter the rosemary and garlic on top of the vegetables. Season with salt and pepper.

Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for another 20 -35 minutes until the vegetables are brown-tipped and tender.

Meanwhile, make a white sauce by melting the butter in a saucepan; stir in the flour and cook over low heat for several minutes.

Whisk in the milk; bring to simmer, and cook gently for 10 minutes, stirring often. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in horseradish.

Then, if you've used fresh rosemary sprigs, remove them from the vegetables. Pour the sauce over the vegetables and gently mix.

Sprinkle the cheese then the breadcrumbs over the vegetables and bake uncovered until bubbly and lightly colored, about 15 -20 minutes.

These proportions will feed about 6 -8 people.

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Stove-top Red Cabbage

I got this red cabbage recipe from my mother, and true to form, she gave minimal instructions regarding proportions of the ingredients. Things Mom did competently, she did quickly. She was a good cook, and so with familiar recipes, she never took time to measure ingredients. When I struggled to learn how to cook and would ask her how much of an ingredient to add, she'd say, "Here, I'll show you." And she'd add it for me. (It was faster that way.) How often did I hear her say, "Just cook, (or stir, or add, or whatever) it till it looks right." Thus, in my mother's recipe for red cabbage, proportions are specified for only two of the ingredients. And these proportions I question and modify. One of them is lemon juice. Mom wrote "add 1/2 a cup" (we're talking about concentrated lemon juice). Mom's standard daytime drink was lemon juice with ice tea. She never suffered from scurvy. Therefore, the proportions given here are mine, and they too are flexible.

• 1 head of red cabbage, washed and cut coarsely (be sure to omit the hard white inner core)
• 1 sliced onion - the size depends on the cabbage - for a larger head of cabbage, use a larger onion
• (I think a clove or two of crushed garlic would be good, but it's not traditional so I've never tried it)
• bacon grease - in my family referred to as schmaltz. Use enough to cover the bottom of the pot (about 1 Tablespoon). Whenever I fry bacon I save the grease in the 'fridge and this is our schmaltz. Last night I was out of schmaltz so I fried up a few strips of bacon in the pot, stored the excess grease, and later crumbled the bacon into the cabbage. Pretty good!
• 1/4 cup (or more) of lemon juice (concentrated)
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup of water
• salt, pepper, and paprika to taste - I add about 1/2 teaspoon of each
• 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar, depending on how sweet you like it

Melt the schmaltz in a large cooking pot on the stove. Add the sliced onion and cook until yellow. Add the lemon juice and water. Add the shredded cabbage (and bacon if you're using it). Season with the spices. Simmer on the stove for at least 1/2 hour. The cabbage can simmer for an hour or longer, but don't let it completely turn to mush.

A terrific side dish for Sauerbraten - German pot roast

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Annie's Okra

My mom was born in Missouri and raised on Southern food.  I don't know where she got this recipe but it's been a standard winner in our house.  Even as a kid, I would ask for it to accompany my special birthday dinner.   

• Scant Tablespoon of bacon grease
• 30 - 40 fingers of okra, cut in pieces, cross-wise
• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste
• pinch of light brown sugar
• 3 small to medium tomatoes, chopped

Melt the bacon grease in a large skillet. Saute the onion, garlic, and okra. Season with the salt and pepper and brown sugar. (If you're tempted to leave out the sugar, don't.  I usually omit sugar from veggie recipes, but not this one.) When the okra and onions are soft, add the chopped tomatoes.  Simmer over a very low heat for about a half hour. Serves 4.  You can make this ahead of time and re-heat.  It's easy and definitely not fussy about proportions or timing.

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Parsley Potatoes

These company-quality potatoes are quick to prepare, can keep warm until you're ready to eat, and compliment nearly any meal (except perhaps pasta).

• red potatoes ( I like to get the little red new potatoes, and use about three per person), cut in chunks but don't peel
• butter (about 1/4 Tablespoon per serving of potatoes) Use enough to lightly coat the potatoes and keep them from sticking to the pan or casserole dish, but not too much or they'll be greasy.
• salt and pepper to taste
• chopped parsley - a few Tablespoons to make the potatoes pretty and add a little flavor. I usually use dried parsley flakes because they're on hand, but fresh is better.

Melt the butter in a wide, shallow casserole dish that can go from oven to table. (You can cook them in a pan and then transfer them to a serving dish, but then you have to wash the pan.)

Add the chopped potatoes, salt, pepper, and parsley to the butter. Stir until the potatoes are well-coated with the butter and seasonings. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 45 minutes. (Less time if your potato pieces are small.) Serve when soft. Or, if not ready to eat them, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees and keep them warm. They'll get crispy and taste just as good.

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Oven-fried Zucchini Spears

I found this recipe in the cookbook From Asparagus to Zucchini. It adds a goumet touch to simple zucchini.