Vegetables

Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto

September 23, 2009 by Charles 2 Comments

Risotto is one of those perfect dishes with which to experiment. From chicken broth to mushroom soup, the short-grain rice is eager to absorb whatever liquid you throw at it. At the same time, it’s creamy color and texture make colors and crunch a welcome addition. Pairings range from smoked trout and roasted butternut squash, to the ever-popular asparagus spears and mushrooms. Even cold leftovers provide a reason to rejoice, with warm suppli just around the corner!

Having recently made roasted asparagus, I decided…

Roasted Asparagus

September 21, 2009 by Charles 4 Comments

Roasting is one of the best ways to enhance both the color and flavor of an item. In this case, just a little time and olive oil brings out the crisp crunch and sharp green of asparagus spears. These roasted asparagus spears can be served in their own right, or …

Grilled Sweet Potato and White Potato Fries

July 7, 2009 by Charles 12 Comments

It seems almost unpatriotic to serve a burger without fries. So when grilling my favorite hamburger, I always make sure to have a few servings of these grilled sweet potato and white potato fries ready!

These fries are yet another expression of my love for sweet potato wedges and/or sweet potato fries. Like those recipes, these grilled fries are a healthy alternative to deep-frying. Throwing them on the grill makes them quick and easy to make, with less mess. The colors and grill marks …

Roasted Yam and Sweet Potato Fries

May 27, 2009 by Charles 2 Comments

Like strangers on the same page of a phone book, sweet potatoes and white potatoes share nothing more than a common last name. Both potatoes are, of course, plants. But sweet potatoes belong to the morning glory family, while white potatoes belong to the nightshade family – sometimes called the potato family. More to the point, sweet potatoes are roots of the dicotyledonous plant; white potatoes are underground stems (tubers) of the potato plant.

Yams, meanwhile, belong to the yam family, and are tubers of the monocotyledon plant. But even though they are tubers, yams have a closer lineage to lilies, than to either the white potato or the sweet potato. The confusion over yams …

Chinese Chicken Salad

April 30, 2009 by Charles 4 Comments

As I’ve mentioned previously, chicken salad is one of my lunch-time staples. Almost without fail, Sunday nights are devoted to preparing my tried-and-true chicken salad for the work week ahead. That said, everyone can use some amount of variety. So, in the spirit of variety, I decided to try a different type of chicken salad. My sense of lunch-time adventure obviously knows no bounds.

This recipe, like the other chicken salad, comes together very quickly, and is perfect served cold. But unlike the other recipe, this Asian version has a little more punch to it…