Oven Roasted Red Potatoes with Smoked Paprika make a simple and healthy side dish to add to any meal. One of my family’s favorites! Seasoned well and baked in oven until crisp! If I had to pick a favorite way to prepare potatoes, it would have to be oven roasting them. I love how they get perfectly crisp on the outside, but still soft on the inside when baked at high heat in the oven. I love seasoning them up real well too; potatoes can be like a blank canvas with endless possibilities with help from your spice cabinet. This potato side dish is one of my favorite recipes to make – and one of ..read more

This Italian Tomato and Lentil Soup with Spinach is a hearty vegetarian soup with simple ingredients, similar to the traditional Sicilian lentil soup I grew up eating. It’s packed with protein, fiber and complex carbohydrates – all good things your body needs! Easy to make and makes a big batch for freezing.   I don’t know about you, but I love having a nice hearty soup waiting for me in the fridge, especially on weeknights. I find myself making large pots of soups on Sundays which in turn carry me through the week with leftovers for lunches and an easy dinner.  I love soups just like this It ..read more

Fresh Watermelon Feta Salad with Basil is a refreshing side dish for any summer menu. Pair it up with grilled flank steak or burgers or your favorite grill fish or seafood. I don’t know about you, but I tend to consider watermelon a complete food group in the summer. It’s my absolute favorite and for good reason too. There is nothing like snacking on cold, refreshing watermelon on a hot summer day, period. I remember the summers I was pregnant with both of my boys and how much watermelon I ate, it could possibly have been record breaking. (more…) The post Watermelon Feta Salad with Basil ap ..read more

A simple, yet impressive, side dish or appetizer – roasted red peppers with pesto and goat cheese are full of flavor and a delicious addition to any meal. You know I’ve been to Costco when you start to see recipes with pesto and goat cheese popping up frequently on the blog. I can’t help it. There are a few staples from Costco that I can’t be without and their pesto and goat cheese are two of them. I have to admit, since trying the pesto from Costco I really haven’t made any at home – it’s that good (for store bought!) and you just can’t beat the convenience or price. These Roasted Red Pepp ..read more

Refreshing Cucumber Avocado Salad with lemon is a perfect side dish any time of year! Enjoy it along with grilled dishes or add canned tuna to your salad for a high protein meal. Ready in less than 15 minutes! We are officially in my favorite food season. All the fresh vegetables! I have to say, in Florida we are in this season most of the year, but when the weather is as hot as it is right now all I crave is cool, refreshing salads like this Cucumber Avocado Salad. I have made this simple salad several times over the last few weeks and each time I make it my daughter and husband dish out th ..read more

My favorite time of year for fresh salads! This Three Bean Salad with Vidalia Onion is a perfect side dish for your weekend barbecue or great to make ahead to serve at dinnertime during the week. This recipe and post were created in partnership with Shuman Farms’ Real Sweet Vidalia Onions. This Three Bean and Vidalia Onion Salad has to be one of my favorite salads to make when we are barbecuing over the summer.  It’s a classic salad that you probably have seen more than once on a salad bar – but homemade is so much better! Wow, can you taste the freshness. I love to add sweet Vidalia onions ..read more

Restaurant style salsa! Fresh tomatoes, jalapenos and lime make this homemade fresh tomato salsa recipe exactly the salsa you want to dip your chips in. I am always making this recipe when I’m in the mood for homemade salsa. I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time containing myself from buying too much every time I’m at my farmer’s market or favorite local produce shop. How could you resist not going home with one of everything here?? Greens of every kind (I came home with swiss chard, fresh spinach and dandelion greens on this trip), local tomatoes (ours typically come from Ruskin ..read more

This Roasted Asparagus recipe is an easy way to get this popular spring vegetable on the table at dinner time. Seasoned simply with just olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted to perfection in the oven. Click here to Pin this easy Roasted Asparagus recipe! You know it’s spring when you see bunches of asparagus popping up everywhere at the grocery store. After a long season of winter squashes and sweet potatoes (with all due respect), it’s one of my favorite sights to see in the produce section. I always associate asparagus as an Easter side dish, and rightfully so since growing up that was t ..read more