"side dish" news and stories

What we're eating has put an amazing twist on a favorite Thanksgiving side dish, making Bleu Cheese Candied Yams that sound like they would be a perfect addition to just about any winter meal. The recipe is very easy and just uses yams, molasses, honey, sage and blue cheese, with a bit of butter added for good measure. Yams (or sweet potatoes) are naturally sweet, and while it might sound as though the sweetness would be overwhelming with the addition of honey, the salty and strongly flavored blue cheese cuts that sweetness and balances the dish. The flavors work in reverse, as well, with the honey and molasses slightly tempering the strong cheese. All things considered, this would make a great addition to your menu for Thursday if you are still looking for sides. It doesn't take too much work and you and your guests will be delighted with the results.

Source

I know that in some places Thanksgiving stuffing is called "dressing" when it is not cooked inside the turkey, but where I grew up everyone called it stuffing no matter how it was cooked; it was what went into it was much more important. My stuffing is much like a hot, crispy bread salad and uses bread, onions, celery, sage, apples and dried fruit for a mix that is half savory and half sweet. Because it is not stuffed into a bird, but baked in a casserole dish, it seemed prudent to go all-out and make the dish vegetarian. It will still be enjoyed by the meat-eaters, especially if they are they type that puts gravy on their stuffing anyway, and will provide an option other than straight veggies for vegetarians.

My favorite thing to do with carrots (well, besides just munch on them raw, of course) is to cook them with this interesting little recipe I picked up off an episode of Good Eats some years back. It's become a staple side dish for Thanksgiving dinners, but it's equally tastey for any occasion or for none at all. Ginger ale is not the first thing I'd think to glaze my carrots with, but try it -- I find it works wonderfully, providing the perfect amount of sweetness without being overbearing. The carrots turn out tasting more essentially carroty than any raw carrot, so of course I love them. It's a pretty simple recipe and certainly worth the trouble if ever you're in the mood for carrots.

Source

I saw this recipe in an old issue of Cooking Light (from 2003) that I had lying around and it immediately caught my eye. Why I didn't make it the first time I saw it, I'll never know, but I'm glad I did it now.

Waldorf salad isn't something that you see too often, but the combination of apples, raisins, celery and walnuts is not only addictive, but crunchy and satisfying. Coleslaw, too, is crunchy and refreshing, which is why it is such a popular side to accompany rich and meaty meals. Of course, both salads are slathered in mayo, so they're not exactly healthy foods despite having low-cal ingredients. This is one of the reasons why I liked the Cooking Light recipe, since it eliminates a lot of the fat but still tastes great. Combining the elements of the two salads into Waldorf Coleslaw worked beautifully.

We all know that Sarah loves the wedge, but she's not the only one. The cool, refreshing 1/4 head of iceberg lettuce slathered in creamy dressing is a favorite of many, but Lisa, of Restaurant Widow, was not a fan of the salad at all. Until recently, that is. She had this simply divine looking one while dining at the Brio Tuscan Grille in Columbus, OH. While the standard will often include nothing more than the lettuce and bleu cheese dressing, you can see that this one is dressed up with a bit of tomato, extra cheese and a generous serving of crispy, diced bacon. I don't think you'll need a recipe to try your hand at making this one at home, but you'll probably be able to track one down at a local steakhouse if you can't be bothered to put it together yourself.

Source