Tag: Sides
Lime and Cilantro Rice
I made chicken quesadillas served with peach salsa and this delicious lime and cilantro rice. I love Mexican and Latin food. I love the bold flavors of this very vibrant cuisine. It reminds me of Indian food which is the cuisine I grew up with. I have always been attracted to strong flavors and love Thai, Indian, Mexican, Spanish.. I guess so far I have yet to meet a cuisine I haven’t liked.
I like eating salads and tacos at Qdobas. It is one of the few chains that actually has healthy and decent food. I am able to go on their website to inquire about calories and nutrition. They serve a cilantro rice with their burritos that is very delicious.
While making the quesadillas, I thought about making some rice and I immediately thought of the rice they serve at Qdobas. I started with jasmine rice and used a mixture of chicken broth and the juice and zest of a lime…. which is the key flavor to this delicious rice dish. I finished it with chopped cilantro. It complemented the quesadillas really well and completed the meal in a delicious way.
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Grilled Garlic Potatoes
There was a recent article with some latest research about how it is not the hamburgers that are making Americans fat… it is the potatoes. Hmm, really??? I was very disappointed to read the article. I guess I knew that fried potatoes are not the greatest things to eat but some how a burger seems incomplete with fries. As most of you know, I am all about healthy eating but I can’t refuse fries or potato chips.. so my solution is not to have the bag of chips in the house. Once in a while I buy the low-fat ones which are just as good. A few here or there is okay but it is a problem if you have half a bag!
I love fries as well… but I have been making oven or grilled potatoes at home instead. They give me the same satisfaction as the fried variety without all the calories. Obviously even the grilled potatoes need to be consumed in moderation… oh, well..
Anyway, this version is delicious with some olive oil, salt and lots of minced garlic. I placed them on a grill pan as the burgers were cooking. Try them this weekend with your main entree…
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Summer Grilled Sides Recipes: Grilled Potatoes with Tarragon & Grilled Asparagus and Corn
I cooked these two sides with the boneless rib eyes I served with the tomatillo and mango sauce. I wanted to make something I can put together in advance so when it’s time to eat, there isn’t much for me to do.
In terms of the potatoes, I boiled them first; sliced them thick and placed them on the grill. I recently bought a grill pan to place on my outside grill- which is quite handy with vegetables. On the side I whipped up a sauce with tarragon, mustard and creme fraiche. I love making chicken salad with a tarragon dressing- I wanted to replicate that flavor in the potatoes. The creme fraiche softens the mustard tang and adds a nice creaminess to the dish- it was very yummy. The potatoes were crispy yet soft on the inside.
I wanted to serve some green vegetables with the meal and decided on asparagus and corn I already had in the fridge from the farmers market. I struggle to come up with different recipes for these vegetables since I cook them so often- so I decided to keep it really simple. I grilled the corn and the asparagus simply with olive oil, salt and pepper. I took the corn off the cob and added a good amount of freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese and mixed it with the grilled corn and asparagus. That’s all it really needed- it was delicious. I also didn’t want to introduce any new flavors to the meal. The steak with the tomatillo sauce and the potatoes with tarragon already had very strong flavors going on… the grilled corn and asparagus dish complimented both the dishes very well. My daughter happily ate the corn and asparagus but stayed away from the potatoes. She of course love the steak and wanted more. She had a big glass of milk with her meal and we had a big glass of wine!