A Nerd Cooks

... and bakes and mixes the occasional cocktail!

Vegetables

Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes

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These Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes provide so much reward in return for very little effort. They make a wonderful side dish–we love to eat them alongside grilled flank steak. Although I’ve also been known to whip some up for a lazy weekend breakfast or brunch. Please trust me when I tell you that they’re excellent when topped with a runny egg!

Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes | A Nerd Cooks

These potatoes really require very little effort or skill in the kitchen. They’re so easy! Just chop some small potatoes, toss them with olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper, and roast them in a very hot oven.

Then all you’ll have to do is toss them around a few times during their cooking time to make sure that they get lovely and brown all over. Before you know it, you’ll have a delicious, versatile side dish that the entire family will love.

5 from 1 vote
Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes | A Nerd Cooks
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Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes
Prep Time
5 mins
Cook Time
40 mins
Total Time
45 mins
 
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4 people
Author: Lauren Pacek
Ingredients
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbs fresh rosemary, minced
  • small red or fingerling potatoes, quartered
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil, spray it lightly with cooking spray, and set it aside.

  2. Mince the garlic and rosemary and place them in a gallon zip top bag.

  3. Chop the potatoes and add them to the bag, as well.

  4. Add the olive oil, salt, and pepper to the bag. Zip it closed and toss everything around until the potatoes are well-coated with oil, rosemary, and garlic.

  5. Put the potatoes on the baking sheet in an even layer.

  6. Roast for 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender and slightly browned. Use a spatula to toss potatoes around on the baking sheet every 15 minutes or so, to ensure even browning.

Recipe Notes

Notes: These potatoes are also lovely when using a mixture of fresh rosemary and fresh thyme. Dried herbs can also be substituted, but you will want to use a smaller amount of dried herbs than fresh.

Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes | A Nerd Cooks

Garlic & Rosemary Roasted Potatoes | A Nerd Cooks

Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Potatoes | A Nerd Cooks

Roasted Beets

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Let’s take a walk on the healthier side with these simple roasted beets, shall we?

I’ve been having a real love affair with beets of late.  They’re kinda sweet, and very earthy. They taste a little like dirt. In the very best way, of course.

And much like basically all vegetables, they’re great when roasted.

Roasted Beets | A Nerd Cooks

Roasted Beets | A Nerd Cooks
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Roasted Beets
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
45 mins
Total Time
55 mins
 
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4 people
Author: laurenpacek
Ingredients
  • 6-8 medium-sized beets, peeled and cut into roughly bite-sized pieces
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • 1 tbs honey
  • salt, to taste
  • pepper, to taste
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Set aside.
  2. Put the cut beets, olive oil, honey, salt, and pepper into a zip top bag. Toss everything around until the beets are well-coated.
  3. Spread the beets on the prepared baking sheet in an even layer. Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the beets are fork tender.
Recipe Notes

Note: You may want to consider wearing latex gloves while peeling and chopping the beets. They can stain your skin, even if you wash up right after handling them.

Roasted Beets | A Nerd Cooks

 

Roasted Beets | A Nerd Cooks

Skinny Green Bean Casserole

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This Skinny Green Bean Casserole it is a lightened up version of the traditional green bean casserole that often gets served at Thanksgiving and Christmastime.

Skinny Green Bean Casserole | A Nerd Cooks

Despite it being “skinny”, this recipe tastes so much better than the original. It’s so worth it to spend a little extra time and make everything from scratch. This dish can also be made vegetarian if you opt for vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.

This recipe originally comes from the blog Skinnytaste.

Skinny Green Bean Casserole | A Nerd Cooks
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Skinny Green Bean Casserole
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
40 mins
Total Time
55 mins
 
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 servings
Ingredients
For the bread crumb topping
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • 1 cup shallots, finely diced
  • 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
  • 1 tbs parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
Green Beans & Sauce
  • 2 lbs fresh green beans, washed, trimmed, and halved
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • 1/3 cup shallots, finely diced
  • 16 oz. cremini mushrooms, washed and sliced
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
To make the topping

  1. Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until they are softened.

  2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the bread crumbs, cheese, and thyme. Sauté for 5-6 additional minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Remove from the heat and set aside.

To prepare the green beans

  1. Boil a large pot of water. Add the green beans and blanche for 2-4 minutes. Drain them into a colander and set aside.

To make the sauce

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 1/3 cup of shallots and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the mushrooms, stirring to coat them with the oil. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

  2. Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms, stirring to coat. Continue stirring for about a minute. Slowly add the broth and milk. Bring it to a low boil, and cook for about 3 more minutes, or until it starts to thicken up, stirring occasionally. Stir in the rest of the grated cheese.

To assemble the dish

  1. Add the blanched green beans and mix well. Taste, and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Pour everything into the prepared baking dish.

  2. Top the beans and sauce with the toasted bread crumbs and bake for 30 minutes.

Need more Thanksgiving and Christmas dishes? Take a peek at this Herbed Kale and Sausage Dressing and my Hard Cider Cranberry Sauce!

Skinny Green Bean Casserole | A Nerd Cooks

Easy Sauteed Kale

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I think I’ve told you about my love of kale before.  I’ve found that it’s good in main dishes (see this recipe, and this recipe for examples), as well as when prepared as a side.  Though there are countless ways to prepare kale, this is my favorite.

You’ll need:


1-2 tbs olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
kale, chopped and hard stems removed
1/4-1/2 cup chicken broth or water
red wine vinegar
salt


Start by heating the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.  Add the garlic and heat until it just becomes fragrant.  Add your kale and stir it around to coat with the olive oil.  At this point, it’s going to look like you have entirely too much kale in there, but fear not.



Add your liquid, and put a lid on the pan.  Allow things to steam for about 5 minutes.  Remove the lid and stir things around again.  Your kale should have wilted down significantly.  Add your desired amount of red wine vinegar and a generous sprinkling of salt.  How much vinegar you add is up to you.  I’m sort of a fiend for red wine vinegar, so I add a lot.  If you’re unsure, just add a little at first.  Then taste, and adjust accordingly.  I like to let the kale continue to saute for a while after adding the vinegar.  It will continue to wilt.

Then serve alongside a tasty main course and enjoy!