Red, White & Blue Salad

This simple salad is a fun way to add patriotic colors to your table! Full of produce that’s in season locally between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, it is particularly perfect for the season.

This salad comes together so quickly that it’s an easy one to add to your holiday table, regardless of what you already have on the menu!

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Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Salad

This big, beautiful salad is the perfect for autumn – the colors remind me of the trees right now and the warm beets are perfect for a chilly day!

A nice salad is always my favorite addition to a holiday table. It’s an awesome way to showcase seasonal flavors and often elements can be made ahead, making it one of the easiest dishes to get on the table at meal time!

For this salad, the beets can be roasted and chopped ahead of time, making the prep at meal time minimal!

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Buttermilk Cornbread

I feel like we’re in this weird place in between summer and fall. We’re prepping for a beach trip – but also getting ready to start school. It’s warm enough to swim, but cools down at night enough for a sweatshirt.

Should I be posting fall dishes here? Or keep rocking summer?

Honey Cornbread 1

This cornbread is a little of both – a great side for a summer cookout or a big bowl of fall chili. And really, is there any better side for either?

I’ve shared a few fun cornbread variations before – Amish Cornbread and Jalapeno Cornbread – but this is my favorite basic recipe. It’s gritty, but moist. Crumbly, but soft. Slather it with some honey butter and you’ve basically got heaven on a plate!

HoneyCornbread2

Buttermilk Cornbread

Makes 1 9×9″ pan

1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Grease and flour a 9×9″ pan and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a large skillet, melt the butter, then remove from heat. Immediately stir in sugar, then the eggs and beat until well blended.

In a separate bowl, combine the baking soda and buttermilk. Stir into the mixture in the pan.

Stir in the cornmeal, flour, and salt until just a few lumps remain.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Buttermilk Cornbread

Honey Garlic Green Beans

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

Strawberry Avocado Salsa #ImprovCookingChallenge

It’s strawberry season here! The kids and I spent yesterday morning at one of our favorite local farms picking a whole flat of gorgeous berries – so now we’re making everything strawberry.

Strawberry Avocado Salsa 2

Do you want to take bets on how many things I can stick strawberries in over the next few days?

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20 Recipes Perfect for Thanksgiving

Haven’t finalized your Thanksgiving menu yet? Need to add another side dish? I’m sharing a roundup of my favorite Thanksgiving dishes to help you get your menu set!

20 RecipesPerfect ForThanksgiving

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Bacon Parmesan Green Beans

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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Balsamic Grilled Vegetables

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)

Red, White & Blue Salad

We just finished up our annual June celebrating marathon. It always seems like everything happens this month and we end up over-indulging in party food. Rather than keep the trend going, I’m planning to make some really fresh, seasonal meals for the July 4th weekend, including this salad.

We’ve had really beautiful berries in the stores lately so this will be a perfect accompaniment to any grilled meal we cook up this weekend.

Red White Blue Salad

Red, White & Blue Salad
(adapted slightly from Green Lite Bites)
Serves 4 as a side

8 oz. baby spinach
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup quartered strawberries
1/4 cup feta cheese
3-4 Tbsp. poppyseed dressing

In a large bowl, toss together the spinach and dressing until evenly coated. Toss in the berries and transfer to serving bowl. Top with feta. Serve immediately.

Red White and Blue Salad