(NAPSI)-Whether you're hitting a neighborhood cookout or dining in with family, few things stand in front of great sides when it comes to making mealtime fun and delicious.
Side dishes add variety, color and texture to meals-and the right ones add a dash of nutrition, too. For instance, tossing together a quick green salad provides a dose of vitamins and minerals, while a three-bean salad adds protein and fiber to a meal.
You can find plenty of tasty and healthful side dish recipes-from Broccoli Waldorf Salad and Crunchy Asian Salad to Jambalaya Salad and 7 Layer Pasta Salad-at www.30salads30days.com. The site provides 30 different salad ideas, each made with dressings, dips and sauces from Litehouse Foods. The company makes its refrigerated dressings in small batches without preservatives, MSG or trans fats.
The site offers this recipe for Cowboy Caviar, a versatile side dish that can be used as a salad, appetizer or relish:
Cowboy Caviar
½ medium avocado
¼ cup Litehouse Red Wine & Olive Oil, or Zesty Italian dressing
1 tsp. hot pepper sauce
1 (15-ounce) can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 (11-ounce) can corn kernels, rinsed and drained
⅔ cup sliced green onions
⅔ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ pound fresh tomatoes, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
In a large bowl, peel and cube avocado, add dressing and hot sauce; toss lightly. Drain and rinse peas and corn. Add peas, corn, onions, cilantro and tomatoes to mix. Serve as an appetizer with tortilla chips or add 2 cups shredded cabbage to make a salad.
Nutrition: Calories 90, Fat 4g, Carbohydrate 13g, Protein 3g, Fiber 4g, 40 percent Calories from fat.
For more information, visit www.30salads30days.com or call (800) 669-3169.
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Showing posts with label side dishes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label side dishes. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Holiday Season More Than Meat
There won’t be any meat on Robin Pratt’s holiday table. Without a turkey or ham to fuss over, the Winterville, Ga., Web designer spends her extra time “focused on friends and family instead of the food,” she said.
A vegetarian, Pratt doesn’t spend time looking for a turkey substitute either.
“If you’re a vegetarian and you go into the holiday thinking about finding a substitute for meat, you’re going to be disappointed because you can never replace a turkey,” Pratt said.
But that doesn’t mean she and her family will miss out on holiday flavors.
“We have so much food,” she said. “Eighteen people come to my house and bring two dishes each. That can be at least 20 casseroles…you can feel happy that you’ll still feel sleepy, even if you’re a vegetarian. You’ll still feel like you’re going to explode and fall asleep at the same time.”
As families gather around the table this holiday season, some are finding they may need to alter a traditional recipe so that their vegetarian and vegan family members can share in the feasting, said Connie Crawley, a University of Georgia Cooperative Extension nutrition and health expert.
“So many people make so many side dishes, it’s like a meal anyway,” Crawley said. When it comes to making those dishes, they need to be “aware of animal products in the food and their substitutes.”
Many vegetarians consume butter, milk and eggs. But for those who don’t, putting butter in the potatoes or milk in a casserole can keep them from enjoying those foods.
“If you make all the side dishes with vegetable oil, dairy free margarine or soy milk, everyone can enjoy them,” Crawley said.
Pratt focuses on regional or cultural recipes, something she did before becoming a vegetarian. She suggests trying to cook a recipe that “you’ve always wanted to cook but didn’t have time,” she said. “That way, the holidays are still about food, but not just turkey.”
She and Crawley give tips on making the holidays tasty for vegetarians and meat-lovers.
• Consider the eaters. “For families that have a vegetarian, vegetarian families that have a meat eater, or if you’re interested in eating less meat for your health, have a turkey and then have just vegetarian side dishes,” Pratt said. “For vegetarians, most of life is side dishes.”
• Know your vegetarian’s eating habits. There are all kinds of vegetarians, Crawley said. Some are lacto, meaning they drink milk and eat cheese. Others are ovo, meaning they eat eggs. Still others are pesco, meaning they eat fish. Many are a combination of these. But some are vegan, meaning they eat no animal byproducts – including gelatin and butter.
• Practice recipes beforehand. Crawley said that substituting vegan-friendly ingredients for common animal byproducts isn’t hard, especially if the recipe has been tried and tested before the holiday meal.
• Use the Web. Vegetarian recipes can easily be found with a quick search online. Crawley found many dishes made from winter vegetables.
• Keep it healthy. Crawley points out that even though vegetables are loading the table, the dishes are not necessarily low calorie or low fat. “Be reasonable about added fat,” she said. Many recipes will still be delicious if you substitute evaporated skim milk for the cream, low-fat cheese for full-fat varieties, low-cholesterol egg substitute for regular eggs and reduced-fat margarine for butter.
• Label the side dishes. If you're serving food buffet-style, Crawley recommends putting cards next to the food to indicate whether a dish is vegetarian, vegan or not.
“The good thing about the South is that we’re already used to eating a lot of vegetables on the side,” Crawley said, so making the transition to a vegetarian menu isn’t as foreign as it would be in other parts of the country.
By Stephanie Schupska
University of Georgia
Stephanie Schupska is a news editor for the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
-----
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
A vegetarian, Pratt doesn’t spend time looking for a turkey substitute either.
“If you’re a vegetarian and you go into the holiday thinking about finding a substitute for meat, you’re going to be disappointed because you can never replace a turkey,” Pratt said.
But that doesn’t mean she and her family will miss out on holiday flavors.
“We have so much food,” she said. “Eighteen people come to my house and bring two dishes each. That can be at least 20 casseroles…you can feel happy that you’ll still feel sleepy, even if you’re a vegetarian. You’ll still feel like you’re going to explode and fall asleep at the same time.”
As families gather around the table this holiday season, some are finding they may need to alter a traditional recipe so that their vegetarian and vegan family members can share in the feasting, said Connie Crawley, a University of Georgia Cooperative Extension nutrition and health expert.
“So many people make so many side dishes, it’s like a meal anyway,” Crawley said. When it comes to making those dishes, they need to be “aware of animal products in the food and their substitutes.”
Many vegetarians consume butter, milk and eggs. But for those who don’t, putting butter in the potatoes or milk in a casserole can keep them from enjoying those foods.
“If you make all the side dishes with vegetable oil, dairy free margarine or soy milk, everyone can enjoy them,” Crawley said.
Pratt focuses on regional or cultural recipes, something she did before becoming a vegetarian. She suggests trying to cook a recipe that “you’ve always wanted to cook but didn’t have time,” she said. “That way, the holidays are still about food, but not just turkey.”
She and Crawley give tips on making the holidays tasty for vegetarians and meat-lovers.
• Consider the eaters. “For families that have a vegetarian, vegetarian families that have a meat eater, or if you’re interested in eating less meat for your health, have a turkey and then have just vegetarian side dishes,” Pratt said. “For vegetarians, most of life is side dishes.”
• Know your vegetarian’s eating habits. There are all kinds of vegetarians, Crawley said. Some are lacto, meaning they drink milk and eat cheese. Others are ovo, meaning they eat eggs. Still others are pesco, meaning they eat fish. Many are a combination of these. But some are vegan, meaning they eat no animal byproducts – including gelatin and butter.
• Practice recipes beforehand. Crawley said that substituting vegan-friendly ingredients for common animal byproducts isn’t hard, especially if the recipe has been tried and tested before the holiday meal.
• Use the Web. Vegetarian recipes can easily be found with a quick search online. Crawley found many dishes made from winter vegetables.
• Keep it healthy. Crawley points out that even though vegetables are loading the table, the dishes are not necessarily low calorie or low fat. “Be reasonable about added fat,” she said. Many recipes will still be delicious if you substitute evaporated skim milk for the cream, low-fat cheese for full-fat varieties, low-cholesterol egg substitute for regular eggs and reduced-fat margarine for butter.
• Label the side dishes. If you're serving food buffet-style, Crawley recommends putting cards next to the food to indicate whether a dish is vegetarian, vegan or not.
“The good thing about the South is that we’re already used to eating a lot of vegetables on the side,” Crawley said, so making the transition to a vegetarian menu isn’t as foreign as it would be in other parts of the country.
By Stephanie Schupska
University of Georgia
Stephanie Schupska is a news editor for the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
-----
www.fayettefrontpage.com
Fayette Front Page
www.georgiafrontpage.com
Georgia Front Page
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