Category Archives: veggies

Honey Garlic Green Beans

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Have you been enjoying the bounty of summer produce? Between our little container garden and our CSA share, we’ve been swimming in fresh fruit and veggies – and I’m loving every second of it.

I’ve been doing a mix of trying new recipes and making sure to revisit family favorites. This is a family favorite – or more specifically – my son’s favorite.

Honey Garlic Green Beans 1

Honey garlic green beans are a recipe I whipped up one night to make a quick side, and since my son has requested them again and again. He even put them down as “the best thing mom cooks” on his Mother’s Day project at school!

We’ve been making this a lot since green beans have been in our CSA share weekly – so sharing them for Farmer’s Market Week seemed perfect! These sweet-and-savory beans take about 15 minutes to make and only use one pan, so they’re perfect for a weeknight!

Honey Garlic Green Beans 3

Thanks Ellen from Family Around the Table and Christie from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures for hosting our Farmer’s Market Event!

Tuesday’s Farmer’s Market Week Recipes

 

Honey Garlic Green Beans 2

Honey Garlic Green Beans

Serves 4-6

1 lb. green beans, trimmed
1/2 cup water
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. soy sauce

Add the green beans and water to a large skillet over medium-high heat and cover. Let steam for 10-12 minutes, until the beans are softened.

Drain the water, and add the olive oil, tossing to coat the beans. Continue to cook for another few minutes, until the beans start to brown and blister. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute, until fragrant.

Whisk together the honey and garlic and stir into the skillet. Cook for another minute or two, then serve immediately.

a Kate’s Recipe Box original

Honey Garlic Green Beans

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Grilled Vegetables with Whipped Avocado Feta Dip

Posted in main dishes, sides, vegetarian, veggies by

You know what I’ve noticed? Almost no one brings vegetables to a barbecue – but, when someone does, they always seem to get gobbled up.

Grilled Vegetables 1

I think a large part of their scarcity is that vegetables don’t have a great reputation for being an easy dish to take along. Let this one change your mind.

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Eggplant “Meatballs”

Posted in main dishes, vegan, vegetarian, veggies by

Today is Good Friday, and the end of this year’s meatless Lent Fridays series. Thank you so much for joining me to mark another Lenten season!

Eggplant Meatballs 3

I’m rounding out this year’s series with these awesome, vegan “meatballs”.

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Baked Vegetable Tacos

Posted in main dishes, Uncategorized, vegetarian, veggies by

Today is the first Friday of Lent, so I’m kicking off my annual Lenten project – sharing meatless meals every Friday. What began as simply a way to keep from eating plain spaghetti and pizza every Friday has grown into one of my favorite yearly blog projects.

Baked Veggie Tacos 1

But, nine years on, how do I keep this series fresh? I’ve spent a bunch of time thinking about our family’s current needs and how to get them to reflect in my meatless Friday posts.

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Bacon Parmesan Green Beans

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We are a green bean loving family, and this is our new favorite way to make them.

Bacon Parmesan Green Beans

I made these green beans as a possible option for the upcoming holidays, and my family gobbled them up. I can’t remember the last time we didn’t have leftovers of our veggie dish!

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Brown Sugar Butternut Squash

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Side dishes are on my list of “things I regularly forget about”. I’m not the only one that can plan main dishes for every night and conveniently forget that I should serve something along with it, right?

Brown Sugar Butternut Squash 1

Except Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is all about the sides for me. And this would be a great one.

Simple ingredients and quick prep make this a winner any night, but it’d be especially great for your holiday table, given how great butternut squash are this time of year.

Brown Sugar Butternut Squash 2

Brown Sugar Butternut Squash
(from Chew Out Loud) 
Serves 6

1 large butternut squash, peeled/seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and set aside.

In a bowl, toss the squash with the oil until evenly coated. Add remaining ingredients and toss to coat. Spread out on the baking sheet evenly.

Roast for 40 minutes until the squash is fork-tender and the edges are browned.

Fresh Corn Salsa (10)

Balsamic Grilled Vegetables

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In the food blogger world, we’re often working ahead. Like, I’m currently working on Christmas cookies, as absurd as that sounds on this 80 degree summer day. Sometimes I feel like I’m living three steps ahead, not in the moment, so I was super excited that more than 80% of you were still up for summer recipes when I asked on Facebook this week.

Hurray, summer!

I feel like I’ve missed most of it, honestly. The move chewed up so much of my time that I feel like I’m frantically playing catch up now before school starts.  Grilling is something I’m catching up on – we finally got our grill ready to go this week. This was the first thing I made.

This “recipe” is really flexible – it’s more of a method. You can use any vegetables you have on hand. Want it to cook faster? Cut the pieces smaller. Want the veggies to caramelize a little more? Don’t stir as often. Sub the balsamic for fresh Parmesan. Add a nice, crusty loaf of bread and serve it as a meal. So many options!

It can also be served warm, cold, or at room temp which makes it so flexible for potlucks or entertaining.

Balsamic Grilled Vegetables

Balsamic Grilled Vegetables
(adapted from Stop & Shop)
Serves 6-8 as a side

1 eggplant
2 zucchini
1 red pepper
1/2 red onion
1 pint cherry tomatoes
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. fresh basil, julienned
2 Tbsp. balsamic glaze

Preheat the grill to medium-high.

Chop the vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Toss with olive oil and season with slat and pepper.

Add to a grill basket. Grill for 20-25 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

When done, transfer to a serving bowl. Top with fresh basil and drizzle with balsamic glaze.

Fresh Corn Salsa (4)

Corn and Zucchini Skillet #farmersmarketweek

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Yesterday, I talked about the plethora of summer zucchini. Today, let’s talk corn.

farmersmarketweekheader

Since joining the CSA, our summer corn consumption has jumped a lot. This is partly because the corn we get is really, really good and partly because corn is one of our farm’s biggest crops, so there’s a lot to go around.

I love when there’s a plethora of things, because it gets me to break out of my comfort zone more. In pre-CSA summers, we’d do grilled corn on the cob whenever I picked up corn. But now that we pretty much always have, I feel like I have license to play around a bit more.

This simple but flavorful skillet was born out of my experimenting. I had corn and zucchini to use up – and a bunch of fresh herbs waiting to be used. Add in some fresh parmesan and this side dish was a sure hit!

ZucchiniCornSkillet

Corn and Zucchini Skillet
(a Kate’s Recipe Box original)
Serves 6

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
3 small zucchinis, coin sliced
2 large ears of corn, cleaned and kernels cut off
1 Tbsp. fresh chives, chopped
1 tsp. fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp. fresh basil, chopped
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese.
Salt and pepper, to taste

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the corn and zucchini. Cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the herbs and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Fresh Corn Salsa (2)

Hitting your local farmer’s market today? Here is some more inspiration for you!

Thursday #FarmersMarketWeek Recipes

Fresh Corn Salsa #farmersmarketweek

Posted in condiments, vegetarian, veggies by

farmersmarketweekheader

One of the things I love about being part of a CSA farm is that I’m learning a lot about how to prepare food. Like, last year I got schooled in sweet corn. Do you cook it? Then you’re doing it wrong!

Fresh from the field corn is so, so good raw. One day when we were there, they taught the kids how to pick and husk the corn in the field, and told them to try it raw. It’s even sweeter raw, and the kids gobbled it up. For the rest of the summer, it was their snack of choice and I didn’t get a chance to cook another ear!

This easy salsa uses farm-fresh sweet corn. If you have a local source, that’s your best option. We love this with chips, but it’s also great tucked in burritos and to top tacos.

FreshCornSalsa

Fresh Corn Salsa
(a Kate’s Recipe Box original)
Makes about 2 cups

3 large ears of sweet corn, cleaned and cut off the cob
1/2 green pepper, finely chopped
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. lime juice
Salt and pepper, to taste

Stir together the corn, pepper, onion and cilantro.

In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, lime juice, salt and pepper.  Pour over the corn and toss to coat.

Fresh Corn Salsa

Looking for more #farmersmarketweek inspiration? Here is what my fellow bloggers are cooking up today!

Tuesday #FarmersMarketWeek Recipes

 

Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai

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House update: we were outbid on the house we liked. Womp, womp.

I’m trying to comfort myself by reminding myself of all the negatives. Like, the super pink early-90s kitchen and the extra bathrooms to clean. I’m also trying to relish the fact I no longer have to worry about showings – which means I can actually do some meal planning! And after all the fast food I’m excited about all the vegetables.

This spaghetti squash version of pad thai has been one of my favorite Lenten dinners so far. If you’re a slow chopper like me, this will take a bit to prep – but it’s flavorful and the contrast of the cooked squash with the other raw veggies is great!

Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai

Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai
(adapted from Tasty)
Serves 2

1 spaghetti squash
Olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup water
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp.  sesame oil
2 Tbsp. honey
2 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. Sriracha
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large cucumber, peeled and quartered
2 carrots, coin-sliced
1 red bell, diced
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 onion, diced

Cut the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the water, soy sauce, sesame oil, honey, lime juice, Sriracha, peanut butter, and garlic to make the sauce.

When the spaghetti squash is done, shred the inside with a fork and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in the sauce and remaining ingredients until well combined. Serve immediately.

Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai