Natalie's Killer Cuisine
  • Sides

  • October12th

    14 Comments

    Wine Braised Short Ribs with Cheddar Polenta and Grilled Asparagus

    Posted in: Beef, Sides

    Wine Braised Short Ribs - 150

    I absolutely love braising meats, and in return I tend to love almost all meats that have been braised. Pot roast, beef stew, coq au vin, Moroccan tangines, and beef bourguignon are all examples of meals that have been braised. And what do they all have in common? Tender meat and and bold flavors.

    • Braising, (from the French term “braiser”) is a combination cooking method using both moist and dry heat; typically the food is first seared at a high temperature, then finished in a pot with a variable amount of liquid, resulting in a particular flavor. Read More | Comments

  • July13th

    11 Comments

    Fresh Corn Quiche

    Posted in: Savory, Sides, Vegetarian

    Fresh Corn Quiche - 150 px square

    I am not fancy. I didn’t go to etiquette school, I don’t wear shoes with red soles, I would rather spend money on fancy chocolate than fancy makeup, and I don’t eat quiche. Quiche has always seemed like the dish you would find at a fancy, stuffy brunch that people named Benedict, Girtrude or Bunny go to.
    (I apologize if your name is either Benedict, Girtrude or Bunny, I’m sure you’re pleasant.)

    So the other day I had some leftover pie dough and decided to somehow use it, for a late breakfast Kyle and I were to enjoy on a lazy Sunday. I had crust. I had corn. and I had cheese. So I thought I would make some sort of egg-cream-corn filling and top with plenty of cheese, with a flaky crust on the bottom and up the sides. I snooped around a bit on the internet and realized…. I am making quiche! Read More | Comments

  • May20th

    4 Comments

    Natalie’s Easy Homefries

    Posted in: Healthy, Sides

    Hash - 150 px square

    I am all about the leftovers and especially cross utilizing left overs. When food goes into the trash, so does a little piece of my heart. I hate wasting money! I had leftover gravy in my fridge from my chicken fried steak dinner I had a few nights ago and decided to use the rest of it with breakfast the next morning. I am lucky enough to have a Whole Foods a mile away from me (lucky for me, unlucky for my wallet) so after I woke up and grabbed some coffee I ran up there for some breakfast sausage which I formed into patties.

    After I got home with a breakfast sausage and gravy plan in my head, I knew I needed a side to go with. I wanted biscuits but homemade biscuits and I have a love/hate relationship. I love to eat them. I hate myself after I eat a whole batch. So I decided to make a healthier side.

    Read More | Comments

  • May20th

    7 Comments

    Sugared Pearl Onions

    Posted in: Sides

    Pearl Onions - 150 px square

    Pearl onions are usually used for pickling to make cocktail onions. I often love the kinds of cocktails that have cocktail onions in them, but I think there is a better way to use pearl onions and that is to cook them in sugar.

    Pearl onions have a much more subtle onion taste, and are somewhat sweet aready. I like to gently caramelize the outer layer of the onion in the sugar which makes the final product sweet and tender, with a light onion flavor. So delicious and perfect with everything. Read More | Comments

  • May19th

    6 Comments

    Better-for-you Mashed Potatoes

    Posted in: Sides, Vegetarian

    ChickenFriedSteak - 150 px square

    If there is one thing I don’t understand, it’s super unhealthy mashed potatoes. I find it unnecessary. Don’t get me wrong. It’s good and delicious. But so is this recipe, which has at least half the calories and fat. And trust me, I like to really stretch my daily calories and make every single one count. There is no way I am going to blow them all on some mashed potatoes. (Chocolate Cake on the other hand….) Read More | Comments

  • April28th

    20 Comments

    Garlic Bread Knots

    Posted in: Bread, Sides

    Garlic Knots - 150 px square

    When I was a young teen in Dallas, the options for fun and entertainment were limited. You could go to the mall. You could go to the movies. And you could eat at restaurants. Yes, there were bad things I could have been getting into, but I was, and am, a good girl!

    My friends and I would always go to Richardson Square Mall (RIP). My mom would give me a 10$ bill, which could give me a whole afternoon of fun. There was hardly anything there except some cheap stores and restaurants. But even then I knew that mom and pop restaurants were better than the chain restaurants in the food court. It wasn’t a trip to the mall without cheesy bread and garlic knots, from a place I don’t even remember the name. Eventually the mall was demolished, but the memory of greasy, garlicy bread was not. Read More | Comments

  • April25th

    15 Comments

    Old School Pea Salad

    Posted in: Sides

    Pea Salad - 150 px square

    When I sent the email to my fellow local food bloggers that I would be having a potluck, I set the theme on Spring. It seemed an obvious choice since the flowers are blooming, the trees are green (the allergies are in full effect) and the produce in the store is fresh.

    I was shopping the day before the potluck for last minute things and knew two things for certain.

    One, I wanted pink gerbera daisies. And two, I was craving old school pea salad like it was going out of style. Read More | Comments

  • November16th

    22 Comments

    Orange Scented Sweet Potatoes

    Posted in: Sides

    Sweet Potatoes - 150px square

    Planning your Thanksgiving menu already? I know I am. I love this holiday, it’s my favorite. This is a food lovers holiday because let’s face it… Thanksgiving is all about the food. Yeah, there’s that be thankful part and that family part, but we all look forward to the food. We all think about the food.

    And then we all gain 5 pounds because of the food. Read More | Comments

  • August28th

    19 Comments

    Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole

    Posted in: Sides

    broccass - 150 px square

    Have you entered my giveaway? If you live near a Sam’s Club (U.S. only) then you want to click here for the chance to win a 25$ gift card and 1 of (5) one day passes to your local Sam’s Club. All you have to do is comment (on this post) with a recipe of mine you would like to create, and tell me if you are a Sam’s Club member. GIVEAWAY CLOSED 08.30.2009.

    Ok, now let’s get to business.

    Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole, kind of healthified! Read More | Comments

  • July30th

    12 Comments

    Paninis and Grilled Vegetable Crudite

    Posted in: Sides

    crud - 150 px square

    As I was writing the recipe for Horseradish Aioli (from my Paninis and Bellinis party) I had a flash of deja-vu. I knew I had written that recipe before, and I was right! Back in April, Kyle and I were doing a lot of catering and one of our appetizers had Horseradish Aioli.

    Click here for the Horseradish Aioli recipe. And check out some of our catering while you’re at it, there is a tab on the side. Read More | Comments

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