A Jenn Original Recipe, using red potatoes and fresh rosemary tossed with garlic and Parmesan cheese. Adjust the seasoning to suit your tastes.

2-3 lbs red potatoes, washed and scrubbed
3 large sprigs rosemary
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400F

Cut potatoes into quarters and arrange in a single layer in a baking pan. Separate rosemary leaves from stems. Toss potatoes with rosemary, garlic, and Parmesan cheese with enough olive oil to coat potatoes (about 2-3 tbsp). Season with salt and pepper.

Bake 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Rearrange potatoes ever 15-20 minutes to keep them from sticking to pan. Add more olive oil if needed.

Another Jenn Original Recipe, and another adventure in Paprika-thon. If you do not have sweet paprika, add a small pinch of brown sugar. Thyme can be substituted for marjoram.

8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp marjoram
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Over medium-high heat, saute mushrooms in a pan coated in cooking spray. When mushrooms are almost done, add honey to mushrooms and saute 1-2 minutes. Add paprika, marjoram, and salt to pan (pepper will burn) and saute an additional 2-3 minutes or until mushrooms are done.

Serve as a side or on top of chicken or pork.

This tasty side dish comes from Real Simple magazine and uses seasonal vegetables and flavors with minimal prep work and cooking time. Perfect for lunch or dinner on a hot day.

1/4 lb green beans, trimmed
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon
1 cucumber

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Cook green beans for 3 minutes. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Whisk together mustard, lemon juice, salt, oil and zest in a large bowl. Halve and seed cucumber length-wise. Combine green beans and cucumbers in bowl with mustard mixture and toss well. Can be served immediately or chilled for 1 hour.

In general, I am against peeling or seeding fruits and vegetables if the skin and seeds are edible. It wastes time and food. I did not peel or seed the cucumber, but you certainly could. I also cut the green beans into 1 inch pieces, which makes them easier to eat.

This is actually a recipe I first discovered years ago, and it is still one of my favorites. It combines fresh cucumbers with bright Asian flavors. Use low-sodium soy sauce to cut salt content. This version of the recipe comes from Southern Living magazine.

3/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp lite soy sauce
1 tsp sesame seed oil
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 large cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

Stir together first 7 ingredients in a large bowl. Add thinly sliced cucumbers, tossing to coat. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour. Add sesame seeds and toss. Serve immediately.

If you have plain sesame seeds, you can toast them in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes.

1 cup of this salad only has 52 calories!

Try serving this salad with Cashew Chicken, Asian Chicken and Cabbage, or Beef with Ginger.

I cooked my first meal from my new cookbook “Everyday Food,” from the makers of Everyday Food Magazine and the kitchens of Martha Stewart Living. These bright veggies are quick and easy to make and taste great!

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 pound sugar snap peas, strings removed
1 tbsp finely chopped ginger
salt and pepper, to taste

In a 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add sugar snaps and ginger. Cook, stirring occasionally (true to their name, the peas will start to snap – don’t panic!), until snaps begin to brown, about 5 minutes.

Add 1/4 cup water and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring and scraping up the ginger from the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon, until snaps are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper as desired.