I’ve never been a big fan of coleslaw, primarily because its usually swimming in mayonnaise. I actually used to hate mayo but its grown on me in moderation. Hubby on the other hand is definitely a fan so I try to accomodate his love of things like potato salad and coleslaw on occasion but try to minimize the mayo as much as possible for my taste buds and my waistline! Greek yogurt makes a great substitute for the majority of mayo in recipes like this; I’ve used this same method before with things like Chicken Salad. Just a little bit of mayo combined with greek yogurt goes a long way. So when I saw this recipe pop up on Bridget’s blog, I knew I’d have to give it a try! We both really enjoyed this coleslaw and the use of greek yogurt gives it a much lighter freshness which is great for summertime!

Lighter Basic Coleslaw

1/2 medium cabbage, thinly sliced (~6 cups)
1/4 cup minced red onion
1/4 tsp table salt
1 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 carrot, shredded
2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley leaves
1 (7-ounce container) plain Greek yogurt
2-3 Tbsp mayonnaise
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, stir together the cabbage, onion, salt, vinegar, and sugar. Set aside while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine. Season with fresh ground black pepper to taste.

Source: Adapted from The Way the Cookie Crumbles

Happy Independence Day America! I love the fourth of July because its all about food, family, friends & fireworks! Do you have any fourth of july traditions? We’ve got a BBQ planned for this evening (and fireworks after of course)! I’m serving up burgers on homemade jalapeno cheese buns, potato salad, baked beans, and grilled corn on the cob. Oh and for dessert we’re having hand pies with homemade ice cream! Can’t wait to spend some time with friends and relax with a drink in hand!

I’ve never been big on mayo drenched potato salad but hubby absolutely loves it so I treat him to some every once in awhile. This recipe is delicious despite my non-love of mayo potato salad. It isn’t too heavy though so I can enjoy it along with hubby. You toss the potatoes with vinegar while they’re still warm which boosts the flavor of the potatoes; a method also used on my Mustard Vinaigrette Potato Salad. Because of the flavor boosted potatoes, you can get away with using less mayo than traditional recipes which helps keep it from having that heavy taste & feel. Perfection!

Hope everyone has a fun & safe Fourth of July holiday!

All American Potato Salad

3 lbs red potatoes, cleaned & cut into 3/4-inch chunks
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
3/4 cup mayonnaise (regular or light)
1/2 cup minced sweet pickles
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 ribs celery, chopped
3-4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled & chopped coarse (optional)
3 Tbsp minced red onion
3 Tbsp minced fresh parsley

Cover potatoes with water completely in a large pot. Bring to a simmer and cook until tender, 10 minutes. Drain. Toss warm potatoes with red wine vinegar, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Meanwhile, mix mayonnaise, pickles, mustard, celery, red onion, parsley and egg (if using). Toss chilled potatoes with mayonnaise mixture. Season with salt & pepper. Keep refrigerated until serving.

Source: The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

But really, we *LOVE* tex-mex. We eat enchiladas, nachos, tacos, etc all the time at home and I’m always looking for side dishes to serve with mexican food. It tooks months but I finally figured out a good recipe for pinto beans! We love these. Hubby requests them all the time now. These are great served as a side dish or even as a dip with tortilla chips (my personal favorite way to eat them). You can even add 1/4 – 1/2 cup of cheese to make the cheesy gooey which is even better with chips! Or a little sour cream as previously mentioned

p.s. – I hate photographing beans! its so hard! its kinda like pot roast… i’ve been trying to photography my pot roast for two years now. it never looks all that appetizing! but they’re tasty so give them a try! Enjoys!

Non-fat “Refried” Pinto Beans

2 (15 0z) cans pinto beans, drained & rinsed
2 (4 oz) cans Hatch green chiles, diced
1 cup non-fat vegetable or chicken broth
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp white pepper
salt & pepper, to taste

In a skillet over medium heat, add drained beans, green chiles, broth, cumin & white pepper . Heat for 10 minutes until broth has mostly cooked off (you still want a little for good mashed consistency!). Using a masher, mash beans until desired consistency is achieved. Season with salt & pepper as desired. Simmer for 5-10 more minutes. Serve hot.

I love black bean dip. Its soo good!  Sometimes I fix this as a dip for tortilla chips, but sometimes I just eat it with a fork as a side dish. Better for you without the added chips, right? But its pretty dang good with chips too! I love that its super easy to whip up and I’ve pretty much always got what I need to make this!

Black Bean Dip

This dip is great served along with some Green Chile Enchiladas. Absolutely delicious!

Hot Black Bean & Corn Dip

1 Tbsp olive oil
15 oz. can black beans, drained
1/2 cup corn kernels, removed from the cob
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
2 Tbsp diced green chiles
1/2 cup (2 oz.) shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese with Jalapenos, or more as desired

Preheat oven to 375°F. Add oil to skillet over medium heat. Saute onions. Add garlic, green chiles, cumin, chili powder and saute for 2-3 minutes until garlic is fragrent. Add black beans and saute another 3-4 minutes. Using a potato masher, coarsley mash the beans (I prefer only about half to be mashed for consistency). Add corn, saute another 2-3 minutes. Transfer skillet contents to a baking dish. Top with shredded cheese and back at 375°F for 15 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and lightly browned. Serve hot.

Soo easy to whip up and a delicious side dish! I’m not kidding you… its ridiculously easy that its almost a joke that I’m sharing it with you. But maybe there are some others out there who have an inability to make tasty black beans, so this is for you too Have a favorite black bean recipe using canned black beans? Please share them here! I’d love to try some reader faves!

These are a great side dish for Creamy Green Chile Enchiladas or Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas.

Easy Black Beans

15 oz can black beans
1/4 cup roasted salsa
salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan. Heat over medium-low heat until warm throughout. Serve hot.

I first blogged about Roasted Broccoli two years ago! I’m shocked it was that long ago; where does the time go?? I’m still just as thrilled today as I was back then to have discovered the goodness of roasted veggies. I love the stuff. I can eat cups and cups of broccoli when its roasted. The roasting brings out all the fabulous flavors. Probably one of my favorite side dishes ever. I seriously can’t get enough. Its good stuff (I hope you’ve gotten the point by now… I really do love it!)

Oh and fyi – you can use frozen broccoli florets. You don’t want to use a variety where the pieces are tiny chopped bits, but larger florets. Well I suppose you could use tiny bits just keep a close eye on them cause burned broccoli is not tasty. I’ve done that… more than once. And its definitely not edible.

Roasted Lemon Pepper Broccoli

2 cups broccoli florets, bite size pieces
extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp lemon pepper
2 cloves garlic, sliced
salt & pepper, if desired*

Preheat oven to 400°F. In a bowl, toss the broccoli florets with the olive oil, garlic, lemon pepper & salt (if desired). Spread broccoli out on baking sheet in a single layer and then roast, without stirring, until the edges are crispy and the stems are crisp tender, about 15-20 minutes.

* the lemon pepper I purchase does not include salt, however some varieties do so don’t over salt by adding too much extra if your lemon pepper variety already has some.

I absolutely love Chinese food. I love making this dish along with any other Chinese dish. Its so simple and so delish. It goes along with everything! Whip this up the next time you’re looking for a tasty veggie to go along with your Chinese food!

Stir-Fried Baby Bok Choy with Garlic

1 lb baby bok choy, halved lengthwise
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
Kosher Salt, Black Pepper
1-2 tsp reduced sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp reduced sodium chicken broth

Heat skillet or wok over high heat. Add olive oil and add garlic and stir-fry until pale golden and fragrant.  Add half of bok choy and stir-fry until leaves wilt, about 2 minutes. Then add remaining bok choy and stir-fry until all leaves are bright green and limp. Add soy sauce & chicken broth. Stir. Cover with lid and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are crisp-tender, 2 to 4 minutes. Season wih salt & pepper if desired.

Mustard Vinaigrette Potato Salad

2 pounds small boiling potatoes
2 tsp granulated sugar
2 tsp cider vinegar
1 Tbsp white wine
2 Tbsp coarse-grained deli mustard
1 Tbsp olive oil
kosher salt & pepper, as desired

Cover potatoes with salted water by 2 inches in a large pot. Simmer uncovered, until fork-tender, about 20 minutes. Drain in a colander and cool slightly. While potatoes are simmering, whisk together sugar, cider vinegar, white wine, mustard and olive oil.

When potatoes are just cool enough to handle, cut in half (or quarter if potatoes are larger). Once potatoes have cooled, add dressing, then season with salt and pepper and stir gently with a rubber spatula. Can be made ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature, then stir and season before serving.

You’ll Need:
Onion(s), sliced to 1/2″ thickness
Bamboo Skewers
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

Directions:
Soak skewers in water for at least 20 minutes. This prevents the skewers from burning while on the grill. Thread the onion slices onto the skewers. Brush onions with olive oil on all sides and edges. Season with salt & pepper. Grill over medium to medium-low until tender, turning once. Move skewers as little as possible.

We celebrated our second wedding anniversary yesterday and decided we’d cook dinner rather than going out to dinner. I knew we wanted to grill steaks (hubby’s favorite), but then I left the sides up to hubby. He decided he wanted scalloped potatoes. I was a little surprised since the last time I attempted them, over a year ago, they completely bombed. I was using cheap knives at the time and I wasn’t able to get the potatoes sliced at even a remotely similar width so the result was some mushy potatoes and some that were still kinda crisp since they didn’t get cooked enough. Well I own some better knives now and my knife skills have improved so I didn’t mind giving them another try. And I’m so glad I did because they were absolutely delicious! I scaled down the recipe for 2 people and used them in my au gratin dishes. I’ve posted the original recipe below.They were beautifully creamy and oh so delicious! I can’t wait to make these again!

Scalloped Potatoes

2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp dried thyme
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 1/2 pounds russet potatoes (5 medium), peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick
1 c low-sodium chicken broth
1 c heavy cream
2 bay leaves
1 c cheddar cheese, shredded

Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 425°F. Melt the butter in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the thyme, garlic, salt and pepper and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the potatoes, broth, cream and bay leaves. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are almost tender, about 10 minutes.

Discard the bay leaves. Transfer mixture to 8-in square baking dish or other baking dish(es) as desired. Gently press the potatoes into an even layer and sprinkle cheddar over the top. Bake until cream is bubbling around the edges and the top is golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Source: America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, America’s Test Kitchen, 2006.