No one wants to take “just-another-same-same” dish to the pitch in dinner with friends or family. What we want is a dish with lots of visual appeal. Whether it comes from color or texture, we want everyone who passes by our dish to notice it. Here are a few of our favorites. Sauteed Green Beans…
Month: November 2016
Fun Dishes for the Pitch-In
Pitch-in (or, Carry-in) dinners are fun! We always enjoy getting together with friends and family, and when we can do it over food, that’s an even better good time! One of the reasons we enjoy those dinners so much is because of the variety of dishes that we find on the table(s). We might get…
Pitch-in Casseroles
If your family or friends are planning a holiday season pitch-in dinner where the meat is already planned, you need to be able to pull out a few ideas for side dishes that can go together easily, have great eye appeal, and deliver with flavors as good as the dish looks. Celebrate the casserole, hero…
Soups for the Holidays
Every day, home cooks hear, “what’s for dinner?” as hungry family members sneak a peek into bubbling pots and sizzling pans with anticipation. And, while there’s definitely a place for multi-hour braises and slow-simmered sauces, sometimes you just need a satisfying meal on the table. From quick and easy to classic and developed, nothing seems…
Getting Saucey
All those wonderfully eye-pleasing entrees we prepare, whether roasted, braised, or sauteed, are made better by the sauces that bring that extra measure of flavor and moistness to the plate. From savory to sweet, the sauce often is the jewel in the crown of your starring dish. French “Mother” Sauces There are five basic sauces…
Side Dishes for the Holidays
I fondly recall many wonderful family gatherings for the fall/winter holiday seasons, which always brought out some of the best meals of the year. Memories of special dishes like the elegant Standing Bison Roast, Standing Beef Rib Roast, Roasted Peking Ducks, and huge Roasted Turkeys, come to mind instantly. But, just as memorable, are some…
Salad Dishes for the Holidays
Salads add eye appeal to a table setting, and contribute delightful flavors to complement the main course and other side dishes. Delicious salads may include fruit salads, chicken, egg and potato salads, as well as the ever-popular, leafy, mixed greens salads. Today we are listing some of our favorite salads that can be eaten before…
Steak Isn’t Merely Steak
We love a tender, juicy, well-cooked beef steak. It can elevate a meal to an entirely higher level. Steaks are, perhaps, most often grilled in an attempt to replicate the flavor of steak cooked over the glowing coals of a campfire. But, steak can also be pan-seared, roasted, broiled, cubed for stew, and even ground…
Roasting Is For The Birds
As the holiday season approaches, we begin thinking about those wonderful times the family gets together and shares a sumptuous way-out-of-the-ordinary meal. The traditional family dinner at our house wasn’t as much about the menu as it was brimming with opportunities to gather around the table with loved ones to catch up, and share stories…
More Apple Pie, Please
Harvesting apples in the fall is such a rewarding undertaking! We, and our friends and extended families, always looked forward to the apple harvesting season. We would drive out to one or more of the local orchards where we could gather all we wanted of the various varieties of apples. We like to press a…
Vaughn Kitchens 