Fragrant garlic, mushrooms, onions, and tomatoes are sauteed in butter and then tossed with fresh lemon juice and tender pasta to create the Lemon Butter Pasta of which dreams are made.

And before the mushroom haters comment, yes, you can skip them. However, they really are delicious in this recipe, I recommend giving them a chance before ruling them out!

Lemon Butter Pasta

I’ve been making this pasta for company, for myself, for family and friends for almost 25 years now. This is the first recipe I think of when I am craving pasta.

My husband enjoys this with some grilled chicken added to it, but I’m quite happy with this pasta alone most of the time.

When we were first married, I often made this pasta just for myself on weekends when Sean was out of town.

Lemon Butter Pasta Recipe

Lemon, butter, and garlic are an awesome combination in pretty much any recipe, aren’t they? They truly shine in this sauce along with the mushrooms and tomatoes.

This lemony sauce coats the thin angel hair pasta perfectly and it’s a terrific match for Last Minute Chicken or Crispy Oven Baked Chicken. Chicken is my go-to option with this pasta.

However, Garlic Butter Steak Bites or Pine Nut Crusted Halibut are a couple more delicious ways to serve this meal.

Nowadays, when I make this, I double the recipe and cross my fingers for leftovers for my lunch the next day. I̵

Roasted ’til crispy with a signature accordion appearance, Hasselback Potatoes are a favorite in our house. They’re deceptively easy to make using a couple of simple tips, and they add a little flair to your side dish game.

What are Hasselback Potatoes?

This distinctive-looking method of preparing potatoes originated in Stockholm, Sweden in the 1950s at the Hasselbacken Restaurant. While they look fussy, they’re really quite simple to prepare if you use one easy to remember trick.

Lay a chopstick along either side of the potato. This allows you to slice through the potato at intervals without slicing all the way to the bottom. Doing this keeps the slices connected at the base which makes the potato fan out as it bakes.

This in turn allows the outer edges to crisp up while the inside remains creamy and tender. I think we can all agree that this is the ideal state for a potato to achieve. Potatoes forever!

It took me less than 3 minutes to prep these, thanks to the chopstick tip that I stumbled onto years ago while browsing Chris’ mouthwatering blog, Nibble Me This.

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These garlic roasted carrots are caramelized carrots with slightly crisp edges cooked in a garlic honey butter sauce. This carrot side dish will steal the show on your plate.

Garlic Roasted Carrots

Who would have thought to combine Sriracha, garlic, honey, and pepper with carrots?

Rebecca Lindamood of Foodie with Family, that’s who. Rebecca’s new cookbook, The Ultimate Guide To Vegetable Side Dishes is truly the ultimate guide and it’s perfect for all your holiday dinners too. If you haven’t already, you will want to get this in your hands just as soon as possible.

One of my favorite perks to food blogging is getting my hands on the latest cookbooks before they’re released. And this is one that I’ve been impatient to finally have at my fingertips! This book is crammed with wonderful vegetable recipes that go beyond simply simmering them in a pot.

Honey Garlic Roasted Carrots

My family loves almost every sweet and spicy flavor combination, so these honey garlic roasted carrots were an easy first choice to try from Rebecca’s cookbook. I wasn’t wrong, every last carrot was devoured.

I love the smell of the fresh sweet carrots that are available at Farmer’s Markets right now. But don’t worry. Even the blandest grocery store carrot can taste great when it’s drenched in this Garlic Butter glaze and roasted.

This easy side dish recipe uses a simple cooking method and supporting ingredients to enhance every bit of flavor in the carrots.

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Meet your new favorite way to cook green beans! Oven roasted green beans have an irresistible taste matched only by their amazing color.

Crispy Roasted Green Beans

I have no idea why it never occurred to me to try roasting green beans while I was roasting so many other vegetables. Steamed and stir-fried green beans have been in my cooking life for decades yet I’d somehow never tried oven roasting them.

It turns out that green beans are even more amazing when oven roasted! Roasted green beans turn out with browned and crispy edges and I never can resist eating them right off the pan when they come out of the oven.

I’ve been roasting vegetables for years now, but somehow green beans were never on my list. That all changed when I finally tried it a while back. Sure enough, oven-roasted green beans blew me away.

Oven Roasted Green Beans

Roasting vegetables brings out so much more flavor than other cooking methods. This time of year especially, I love the excuse to turn on the oven and enjoy my vegetables this way. As a huge bonus, roasting green beans is so easy and hands-off. You can make some of the most flavorful veggies you’ve ever tasted with hardly any effort.

My kids, who aren’t usually big vegetable fans, really enjoyed this side dish too! It’s wonderful just as it is and can be adapted with different spices and seasonings to suit your palate. You can even roast some green beans for Green Bean Gratin.

After you try this super simple baked green beans recipe, you need to give Turmeric Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans and Sriracha Honey Roasted Green Beans a shot, too!

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Rice Pilaf makes an ideal side dish for any main course! This simple recipe lets the flavors of garlic and onion shine along with the tender rice and buttery orzo pasta. Learn how to make rice pilaf and you’ll have the perfect side dish at your fingertips for just about any meal!

What is Rice Pilaf?

Rice Pilaf is a dish made from rice and grains cooked in chicken broth and seasoned with onion and spices. Pilafs can also be more elaborate like my Mushroom and Pepper Rice Pilaf or this Indian Pulao. Pulao is a traditional pilaf dish enjoyed throughout India as an everyday staple and it can be dressed up with vegetables or with meat.

Classic rice pilaf is as simple as today’s recipe! This version includes orzo, a miniature pasta. Similar to rice in shape, the orzo adds a heartiness to the soft fluffy white rice.

This pilaf recipe is based on a recipe I found years ago over at Allrecipes.com. With just a few pantry-friendly ingredients this side dish comes together with just a few minutes effort. If you’re looking for an easy rice pilaf recipe without any frills or hard-to-find ingredients, this is the one for you!

How to Make Rice Pilaf

Rice pilaf is very simple! You’ll start by sauteeing orzo in a little melted butter with onion and garlic. Add broth and white rice. Simmer, fluff, and serve.

The result is a flavorful rice that doesn’t require a great deal of seasonings or spices. I typically just use a little salt and pepper to taste.

This is a great side dish for just about any meal. I served the pilaf with Spicy Honey Brushed Chicken and Roasted Bell Peppers, Broccoli and Summer Squash tonight and it was perfect.

My rice-loving son ate a double portion and still asked for more. There were no leftovers at all. I recommend doubling this recipe if serving more than 3-4 people. Especially if you have rice lovers in your family! Plus, leftover rice pilaf is never a bad idea.