Sides | Mommie Cooks!

Curried Potatoes and Squash

December 22, 2011 By Julie 13 Comments

The big day is officially here. No I’m not celebrating a birthday (but if I was it would be my 21st of course) nor am I reveling in the fact that I single handedly made it through that Panettone cheesecake with only the slightest help from my children (God help my waistline). None of that can compare to the simple fact that, as of this afternoon I’m published over at MSN and Delish’s Kitchen Cookoff!

I hope you’ll head over and check out part one of a ten part, once a month, series and show me a little love. I’ll be dropping the recipe below, but for the full post with associated jibber jabber, you’ll need to fly on over to the cookoff site where I’ll be officially introducing myself and sharing a few things that you may or may not already know. I hope to see you there!

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Apple Sausage Stuffing and a Pacific Foods Winner!

November 28, 2011 By Julie 14 Comments

Remember the Pacific Foods Everyday Challenge I’ve been sharing with you these past few weeks? Well the contest has closed and the winners are official! There were so many tantalizing recipes in the appetizer/side category to choose from. I really loved the flavor combination of Lisa’s Creamy Chanterelle and Butternut Squash Soup. The sherry in the recipe instantly caught my eye and had me craving a spoonful (or three). The Gruyere and Mustard Potato Gratin was another winning recipe that drew me in with my plate and fork at the ready (add cheese and you’ll have me each and every time). But when all the entries were filtered and the decision was ultimately made, the recipe that won my heart (and my palate!) was the Pumpkin Hazelnut Brioche. I couldn’t help but be won over by her addition of hazelnut milk and I positively adored the spices and subtle sweetness she infused into the recipe. Congratulations Lfrancis on your well deserved win!

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Simply Scandinavian: A Cookbook Review

August 19, 2011 By Julie 15 Comments

Simply Scandinavian: Travelling Through Time with Finnish Cuisine and Nature is a well written, beautifully photographed cookbook that caught my eye from the moment I pulled it out of the packaging. The authors, Tero Kallio and Kimmo Saira, have broken the book out by season beginning with Spring and ending with Winter. The recipes range from simple to complex and many of the ingredients are quite unique. With chef driven instruction for everything from rheindeer carpaccio, to soup of moose and oven-baked cheese, to Vorschmack with potato salad and beetroot crisps, to rabbit sausages with Jerusalem artichokes, I’ll admit that I was drawn in and ready to cook almost immediately.

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Cheddary Cheesy Grits

July 19, 2011 By Julie 20 Comments

Remember the banana’s foster french toast recipe from a few months back? If you recall, I ended the post with a challenge to recreate the most delightful cheese grits I’d ever put my fork to. Here we are four months later and I’m finally ready to put my grits where my mouth is.

And you thought I forgot.

Aside from the months old challenge, the other inspiration pushing this recipe to the front page is my brother Matt. This guy has some mad talent in the kitchen. He doesn’t visit often enough, but when does, man do we whip up some seriously fabulous fodder. Long before the french toast was even a bite of inspiration in my brain, my brother and I set to work attempting to create an award winning cheese grit for one culinary inspired Christmas morning breakfast. While our results were good, they weren’t “knock out” “drag out” “you two really should start your own restaurant” fabulous. We enjoyed our spoils but knew there was further work to be done.

Matt holding my youngest, Andrew

Fast forward to today and I believe that I may have finally conquered the almighty grit. Loosen your belts and grab your whisk cuz I’m about to take you on a creamy cheesy ride you won’t soon forget. This one’s for you Matt.

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Fried Green Tomatoes with Goat Cheese Basil Dipping Sauce

July 7, 2011 By Julie 34 Comments

A short while back I dropped a truly Southern dish of Stewed Tomatoes and Okra onto the blog. While chatting up a windstorm about my new fangled Southern self, I mentioned an upcoming Fried Green Tomato recipe. Well get ready, because Southern cooking has never tasted better than these charmers right here.

Ever since attending the Food Blog Forum Conference back in September where I was served a Fried Green Tomato Slider that officially knocked my Northern rooted socks off, I’ve been wanting to try my hand at the little buggers. The other day while perusing through the spoils of my local farm stand, I finally stumbled upon the fruit that eluded me up to that point in my paltry culinary life – Green Tomatoes. I promptly snatched up two of the juicy unripe beauties and brought them home.

I proceeded to post a few options for how to cook them up on my facebook page. I had planned to either emulate the slider I so adored or attempt a fried green tomato BLT. However, one post caught my eye from a reader who said that she liked her fried green tomatoes with a side of, well, fried green tomatoes. Plain and simple. And why not. These show stoppers really don’t need any dressing up. They’re perfect just as they are. Serve them with the suggested sauce, or, if you’re feeling a bit adventurous, slide them between two slices of bread and create your very own Southern sandwich masterpiece.

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Stewed Tomato and Okra

June 21, 2011 By Julie 20 Comments

Being the native Northern girl that I am, living in the south can sometimes be, well, a little different. The weather’s a whole bunch hotter, there’s a certain “twang” from the natives and the dishes lend themselves to a completely unique world of flavors from what I grew up with. My Northern roots are a strong part of who I am, but having now resided in North Carolina for an extended period along with ample time spent in Hilton Head, SC where my parents live, the Southern influences that are such an integral part of the culture here are beginning to waggle their way into my life. I have recently channeled my inner Southern “Sista” and let me tell ya, I’m liking her a whole lot. Between this dish today and the upcoming Fried Green tomatoes recipe, I could easily welcome my newly discovered Southern side to the table on a regular basis.

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