Basic Hummus Recipe:

1 can (15 oz) chick peas, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender. Season with additional salt and pepper if needed. If mixture is too dry, add additional olive oil.

Spicy Cilantro-Lime Hummus: Substitute lime juice for lemon juice and add the zest of 1 lime. Increase cayenne pepper to 1/2 tsp and add 1/3 cup tightly packed cilantro leaves.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus: omit cumin and add 2 tbsp fresh oregano leaves. Add 2/3 cup chopped roasted red pepper.

Garlic Lovers Hummus: increase garlic to 3-4 cloves (or as much as you like!).

There are two ways to assemble the vegetables on skewers. One way is to group like vegetables on skewers (one skewer for zucchini, another for peppers, etc) so that you can adjust each vegetable’s cooking time, then disassemble the skewers for serving. The other option is to arrange skewers so that vegetables alternate on each skewer (one skewer will have a zucchini, then pepper, then onion, etc) so they can be cooked all at once and served on the skewer.

I favor the second option, because while cooking times to vary between zucchini and cherry tomatoes, the difference is not usually noticeable. If you cut the vegetables so they are all about the same size, they should all cook relatively evenly. Most summer vegetables have about the same cooking time, and this allows for easier serving and the skewers make for a nice presentation.

Summer Veggie Kabobs

2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp white wine vinegar (or 1/4 cup dry white wine)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup honey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp pepper
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
16 cups cut vegetables, such as zucchini, bell pepper, mushroom, onion, eggplant, and whole cherry tomatoes

Prepare marinade by whisking together all ingredients except vegetables in a small bowl. In a large bowl, combine prepared vegetables and marinade, using hands or two large spoons to toss and coat vegetables. Refrigerate for 30 minutes up to 2 hours.

Place vegetables on skewers, then grill over high heat. Cook 3-5 minutes per side, until vegetables are tender. Serve immediately.

My shortcut in this recipe is using instant couscous and allowing the saffron to steep with the couscous. Toss in some sauteed vegetables, and you have a wonderfully scented and colorful side dish.

Saffron Couscous w/ Vegetables

1 cup instant couscous
1 tsp saffron
1/2 red onion, roughly diced
2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise then cut about 1/4 inch thick
1 sweet bell pepper, cut into thin strips, then halved
salt and pepper, to taste
olive oil

Bring 1 cup of water to a boil. Remove from heat. Add couscous and saffron. Stir and set aside for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet. Add red onion to skillet and saute 3 minutes. Add zucchini and pepper to skillet, seasoning with salt and pepper. Saute until near tender, about 5 more minutes.

Toss couscous and vegetables together. Add a small amount of oil if mixture is too sticky. Top with freshly chopped parsley, if desired.

There is also a skewering technique for asparagus, though it is labor intensive. Keep asparagus whole and skewer both ends. Continue adding asparagus to the skewers until a “raft” is formed with the asparagus. This will prevent the asparagus from falling through the grill grates.

To remove the woody or tough ends of the asparagus, simply grasp the asparagus lightly and bend the stalk. The asparagus will naturally snap where the woody stem ends. At first, it will seem like you are snapping a large amount off of the asparagus, but keep this in mind: it is the tough end that you do not want to eat!

Balsamic Grilled Asparagus

1 lb asparagus, tough ends removed (see above for instructions)
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
generous pinch of salt
cracked black pepper, to taste

Place prepared asparagus in a large ziplock bag. Add remaining ingredients and seal bag. Toss to coat asparagus and let marinade 15-20 minutes. Spread asparagus on grill rack in an even layer and grill for about 5 minutes on each side, or until asparagus is crisp-tender.

Remaining marinade can be used to season meat on the grill, if desired.

If roasting: Preheat oven to 400F and combine all ingredients on a baking sheet. Spread asparagus in an even layer and bake 10-15 minutes, until crisp-tender.

Substitute any available vegetable; the key in roasting the vegetables is to prepare them so they are all roughly the same size and will cook at the same rate. In colder months, use root vegetables (sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips) rather than summer vegetables (zucchini, eggplant, peppers). Other spring and summer vegetables, such as asparagus or green beans, would be good in this dish as well.

Rustic Roasted Vegetables

2 aubergine (baby eggplant) or 1 large eggplant
3 medium zucchini
2 sweet bell peppers, such as red, yellow, or orange
1/2 large sweet onion
1/2 lb baby bella mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
zest of 1 lemon
olive oil
flat-leaf parsley, minced (optional)

Preheat oven to 400F and coat a 13×9 baking dish with cooking spray (or olive oil).

To prepare eggplant, remove cap and stem, then halve lengthwise and cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces. Repeat with zucchini. For peppers, cut into 2-inch wide strips. Place cut side of onion on board and cut in half crosswise, then cut lengthwise into pieces about 2 inches wide. Rinse mushrooms under lukewarm water and halve any large mushrooms.

In prepared 13×9 baking dish, toss prepared vegetables with garlic, salt, pepper, lemon zest, and olive oil. Use enough olive oil so that vegetables are lightly coated. Add minced parsley, if desired.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until vegetables have cooked through and are crisp-tender (or to desired tenderness). If pan dries out, add additional olive oil or water as needed.

Zucchini is easy to shred using a standard cheese grater. Earthy mushroom and tart apple balance the dish. Toasted almonds would also work well here.

2 large zucchini, shredded
8 oz mushrooms, diced
1 large apple, cored and diced
zest of 1 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Heat a small amount of oil in a large skillet. Add mushrooms and saute 3 minutes. Add zucchini to pan and cook an addition 3 minutes. Season to taste with salk and pepper.  Add apple and lemon zest and cook 2-3 minutes until apple is cooked through.

Tip: after cutting, drizzle apple with a small amount of lemon juice to prevent browning.

The timing on this is near perfect: Prepare and begin cooking the turkey, then begin the stock. While the stock cooks, peel potatoes. Once the stock is complete, begin cooking potatoes. While potatoes cook, prep for the stuffing. Prepare stuffing and finish potatoes while turkey is resting. There will be downtown in between the steps to do other things as well.

You’ll notice there are no pictures to this post, but potatoes and stuffing are just not the most photogenic foods out there.

Simple Garlic Broth is my go-t0 homemade stock, which I love to use in everything from soups to couscous to hummus. Over time, I have altered the recipe slightly, but it still remains fairly easy, as the title implies:

Simple Garlic Broth

5 cups cold water
2 heads of garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves (fresh or dried)
3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
salt, to taste

Break apart and peel the cloves of garlic, crushing each clove slightly with a knife. Combine garlic cloves in a large pot with water, olive oil, bay leaves, and thyme sprigs. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for an hour. Makes about 4 cups.

Remove from heat and strain broth through a sieve, reserving the solids. Add salt to taste to broth. Divide broth, reserving about 3 cups for stuffing and the remaining for potatoes.

Remove bay leaves and stems of the thyme sprigs from the reserved garlic solids. Using fingers, slide off any remaining thyme leaves from the stems, then discard stems. In a small bowl, use a fork to mash garlic cloves into a puree. Add salt to taste then add to the broth reserved for potatoes.

Set aside divided broth until ready to prepare potatoes and stuffing.

Garlic-Thyme Whipped Potatoes

5 lb russet or golden Yukon potatoes, scrubbed and peeled
reserved garlic broth, from above
Cracked black pepper, to taste

Cut potatoes into 1-inch cubes, as uniform as possible. In are large pot, cover potatoes with 1-inch of water. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer until potatoes are tender with pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes. Cover and remove potatoes from heat.

Move potatoes to an unused burner on the stovetop to keep warm until turkey as finished cooking and is resting. Drain potatoes (potato water can be reserved to make gravy) and return to pot. Add garlic broth and solids. Using an electric mixer or immersion blender on medium to high speed, puree potatoes until desired consistency (smooth or slightly chunky, depending on preference). Season to taste with black pepper.

Garlic-Thyme Stuffing

1 package herb stuffing
6 tbsp unsalted butter
1 small onion, diced
2-3 ribs of celery, diced
3 cups garlic broth
Cracked black pepper

In a medium to large saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onions and celery. Saute 3-5 minutes, until softened. Remove from heat and add about 1 cup of broth and a third of the herb stuffing mix to the pan. Stir until all of the stuffing mixture is moistened, then repeat. Add remaining stuffing mixture to pan and add enough broth to keep stuffing at desired consistency. The package will state 2 1/2 cups of broth, but you may need to use up to 3. Season to taste with pepper.

While the turkey is cooking, prepare the dish and place it in the oven during the last 20 minutes of the turkey cooking time. Once you remove the turkey, increase the heat to 400F and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 20 more minutes. This gives you time to let the turkey rest and get the rest of the food ready, then pull out the vegetables right before serving.

When preparing the vegetables, cut everything to the same relative shape and size. This will ensure that all the vegetables cook at the same rate, and that way you don’t end up with mushy carrots and rock-hard sweet potatoes.

Ginger Roasted Root Vegetables w/ Pecans
adapted from Food & Wine magazine

1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut in 1 inch cubes
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1 inch cubes
2 large parsnips, peeled and sliced about 1 inch thick
4 medium to small carrots, peeled and sliced about 1 inch thick
1 container (8 oz) whole baby bella mushrooms, rinsed and halved
1 cup whole pecans
2 tbsp freshly grated ginger (about a 2 inch piece)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 /4 tsp ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup maple syrup
Ground cinnamon, optional

Preheat the oven to 400F and brush a 13×9 inch baking dish with olive oil.

Combine the prepared vegetables in a large bowl along with the mushrooms and pecans. Add ginger, olive oil, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss all of the ingredients, coating the vegetables.

Add vegetables to the prepared baking dish, then drizzle with maple syrup. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender when pierced with a fork. Sprinkle with a dash of cinnamon just before serving, if desired.

This dish is incredibly easy to make, with little prep work, and is a serious contender for the Thanksgiving table. It is delicious and sweet, but still retains the freshness of the green beans. Next time, I will try sprinkling this dish with toasted almonds for added flavor and a touch of elegance.

Sauteed Green Beans & Pears
adapted from Southern Living

3/4 lb green beans
2 Anjou or Bartlett pears
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
Sea salt
Cracked black pepper
Toasted almond slivers (optional)

Snip ends of green beans and cut into 1-inch pieces if desired (if using frozen green beans, prepare according to packaged directions). Peel and core pears, then cut into 1/4 inch thick slices.

In a large skillet, melt butter and mix with brown sugar and balsamic vinegar. Add garlic to pan and saute for about 1 minute, then add green beans and saute 2-3 minutes. Add pear slices and saute an additional 3-5 minutes, until pears are heated and green beans are crisp-tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with almonds, if desired.

Orzo w/ Zucchini & Feta
adapted from the Food Network

1 cup dried orzo
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 medium to large zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced
4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add 1 teaspon of salt and dried orzo. Cook 8 minutes, orzo will be slightly undercooked, and reserve 1 cup pasta water. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in large skillet. Saute onion and garlic 3-5 minutes until soft. Add zucchini and saute 3-5 minutes until slightly soft. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add cooked orzo and reserved pasta water. Bring to a boil, tossing to mix. Add half of the feta and stir until melted into a sauce. Stir in most of the mint, reserving some for garnish.

Season with additional salt and pepper if desired. Remove from heat and top with remaining feta and mint.