Side Dish Recipes

Grandma's broccoli soup: a simple, silky pureed broccoli soup with sauteed onion and vegetable stock, lightened with a splash of warm milk instead of heavy cream. Six ingredients, ready in about half an hour.

Easy broccoli cheddar soup made from scratch with a quick butter-flour roux, milk, chicken broth, broccoli florets, and sharp cheddar. A creamy 25-minute weeknight soup recipe.

Mom's spiced carrot soup purees tender carrots into a silky bowl warmed with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and a whisper of cayenne. Healthy, low-fat, and on the table in 30 minutes.

Grilled peaches are succulent, sweet and slightly sour with the grilling flavor. They are delicious mixed with the baby greens, creamy crumbled goat cheese, and drizzled with balsamic glaze.

A simple salad with big health credentials: avocados are an excellent source of good fats, and more recently have been shown to also inhibit inflammation when eaten in combination with foods that typically trigger it. They are also a rich source of potassium (which balances sodium to keep blood pressure levels stable) and vitamin E, an important antioxidant.

Sweet, sour and slightly spicy. Cucumber, sweet bell pepper, carrots, wood ears and smoked tofu are tossed with rice vinegar, maple syrup, sesame oil, soy sauce and Korean chili pepper. A very tasty side dish that goes well with all your favorite Korean dishes or most of the main courses.

Fresh sweet cherries and quinoa are tossed with celery, creamy goat cheese, toasted almonds and tangy white wine vinaigrette.

Caesar salad is delicious and can successfully be combined with such accompaniments as grilled chicken, steak, and shrimp. Here's the recipe I use.

In China, there are literally thousands of methods to cook potatoes. This sweet and sour potato salad is quick and easy to put together, and it tastes delicious. It can be made one day ahead, served chilled, at room temperature or warm.

Fresh blueberries, roasted sweet corn, soy bean, red bell pepper and peppery arugula are tossed with a white wine vinegar-olive oil vinaigrette. It's a light and tasty summer salad that accompanies well with any barbecued dishes.

Diced cooked beets toss with cardamom and fresh mint, then layer with honey-sweetened Greek yogurt for a vibrant Indian raita that's tangy, earthy, and subtly sweet in every spoonful.

Chilled Vichyssoise/ Cold Leek and Potato Soup recipe

Vegan beet and potato salad with boiled beet greens in a garlicky lemon dressing. A whole-vegetable approach that uses roots, greens, and all. Served cold.

Eggplant with tomatoes is a simple side dish of butter-browned eggplant slices topped with warm canned tomatoes and chopped chives. A quick, low-calorie vegetable dish with just five ingredients.

Hot black bean, avocado, and corn salad with chile, fresh lime, and cilantro. Bright Tex-Mex no-cook salad that works as a main or side. Vegan, fiber-packed, and ready when canned beans are.

Israeli salad with diced cucumber, tomatoes, radishes, green pepper, carrots, and lettuce in a fresh lemon juice dressing. A crisp, vegetarian chopped salad ready in 10 minutes.