Delicious Side Dishes Everyone Will Love

Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots

Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots Roasted carrots with brown sugar glaze will be a new dinner party favorite. This simple recipe is the perfect combination of sweet and savory that makes the perfect side with any meal. 2 pounds carrots (peeled)1/2 cup light brown sugar (packed)3/4 teaspoon cinnamon6 tablespoons unsalted butter (cut into pats)1 teaspoon sea saltCandied Pecans3 tablespoons butter2 tablespoons maple syrup2 tablespoons brown sugar1 cup pecan halves (roughly chopped)1/4 teaspoon flaked sea saltGarnish3/4 cup goat cheese (crumbled)1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (optional) Preheat the...

Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Bacon and Pomegranates

Pomegranates with bacon roasted brussels sprouts | cookingwithcassandra.com

I remember growing up, I was a big desserts and candied yams girl at my holiday dinners. I always remember the one Christmas where my jaw dropped when I had oven-roasted Brussels sprouts for the first time. It was crazy good. I couldn’t believe that vegetables could be this delicious. In my take on this holiday classic, I have added crispy roasted bacon and its fats that make everything better, too. Now this recipe is one way to enjoy vegetables, and I mean REALLY enjoy them… not just tolerate them so we can say we ate our vegetables. Even the pickiest eaters and vegetable...

Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Parmesan & Garlic Butter

I’m going back to basics with this roasted sweet potato recipe, you guys. The star of today’s recipe is sweet potatoes. The orange kind – not to be confused with yam, my friends. There are so many amazing ways to cook sweet potatoes: mashed, julienned into sweet potato fries, atop a hearty shepherd’s pie, and stuffed with black beans. Today, we’ll roast them in a garlic butter seasoning topped with grated parmesan cheese. Perfectly roasted, crispy, and well-flavored, it can easily serve as a carb replacement in a meal or side dish with other mains. I love its natural sweetness, but even...

No Yeast Bread

We love our bread, we love our butter. But most of all, we love each other. PLEASE tell me you know what TV show this line is from! If you don’t…. It’s from “Madeline”, the cartoon series, which I’ve just learned was created in 1993. This French/Canadian show is about the life of a young, free-spirited girl in boarding school. She’s always heading on daring adventures in her yellow dress, yellow hat, and yellow umbrella. Madeline was an iconic part of my childhood. The most memorable and adorable scene is the one where the girls say grace before eating their food in the...

Curry Roasted Cauliflower and Sweet Potatoes

Curry roasted fall salad | cookingwithcassandra.com

Last Thursday was just like any other busy work day. I was running from a Zoom call at home to another meeting, and then to a recipe photoshoot session for the blog (which turned out to be really fun!). I had packed this salad in my bag for lunch and as I was microwaving this in the studio, my teammates looked at me and exclaimed, “Cassandra, what is that?! It smells amazing!” That was a good sign for this new salad I was testing out. It’s always so daunting to try new, daring recipes, but if people around me respond positively, then it’s a go! All I did was toss together...

Crispy Roasted Cauliflower Recipe with Parmesan

Golden Brown Roasted Cauliflower | cookingwithcassandra.com

Roasted vegetables are one of my favorite side dishes to make as they come together so easily, are healthy, and taste good. (My recent obsession is this bacon-roasted Brussels sprout recipe.) Today’s recipe features roasted cauliflower. Each bite of parmesan roasted cauliflower is laced with garlic, coated in breadcrumbs, and covered in parmesan cheese. If you are looking for a fun way to introduce vegetables into your diet or into your kids’ diet, this roasted cauliflower recipe is just what you need. Aside from being beautifully flavored, it has a fun texture – the baked...

Buttery Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes

Mashed Potatoes Buttery Cauliflower | cookingwithcassandra.com

If you are looking for a healthier way to enjoy mashed potatoes without carbs and bloatedness, this is the answer: cauliflower mashed potatoes. Before you turn and run in the other direction, let me just tell you that mashed cauliflower doesn’t taste as yucky as it sounds. In fact, they’re just as creamy and fluffy with hints of butter and garlic folded in. It’s much lighter than mashed potatoes and won’t leave you feeling bloated like you’ve eaten a lot of calories. You may not believe me now, so I suggest you try it for yourself. Begin by chopping up a large...

Arugula Beet Feta Salad with Candied Pecans

Beets are way underrated – if you have never cooked with this delicious and versatile superfood, today is the day to start. Beneath that tough exterior and that gorgeous deep purple hue, beetroots are a very nutritious root vegetable. They are rich sources of potassium, iron, vitamin A, and vitamin C. It doesn’t get the credit it deserves! The latest addition to my salad recipes is this stunning beet salad with feta, arugula, and candied pecans. I would describe it as fresh, nutty, sweet, and salty. There’s also a balsamic vinaigrette that brings out all the best flavors of this...

Easy Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Pasta salad with cherry tomatoes | cookingwithcassandra.com

Growing up, I was surrounded by loads of Mediterranean food influences. I had a family full of amazing cooks and I was always served the best dishes from scratch, and now that I’m older, I realize that I was incredibly lucky to have had someone cook for me. In Mediterranean cooking, we use a lot of flavorful plant-based foods like legumes, grains, and herbs. But, we also love our sauces and dressings. People tend to think of Mediterranean food like Italian, but it actually is a melting pot of European, Middle Eastern, Asian, and African cuisines. This Mediterranean pasta salad...

Simple Shirazi Salad

Shirazi Salad | cookingwithcassandra.com

I’m so excited to share another Persian recipe with you guys because whenever there’s food involved, it’s always a good idea to go back to your heritage, am I right? With that said, I love trying new things and tasting food from different cuisines. What is your favorite dish from your culture or heritage? Let me know by commenting on this blog post – I’d love to know! Shirazi salad or Salad-e Shirazi is a vibrant, colorful salad that is commonly served in any Iranian household, including my own. It is known for this really uniform look since everything is cut to about the same...

Healthy Strawberry Summer Salad

Strawberry Summer Salad | cookingwithcassandra.com

Every summer, my husband and I host barbecue parties for our family and friends. Because I like having variation, that means needing to think of different sides and fixings for each party. One of my must-haves is a salad – it’s healthy, refreshing and helps to balance the “heaviness” of all the grilled meats. But you’ll never see a boring salad at my party! I love serving steak salads (like this delicious steak salad with yogurt dressing), but when I need to fix something quick and easy, this strawberry summer salad is a great option. You really can’t go wrong with this salad. It’s...

Healthy Lime Cilantro Cauliflower Rice

Let’s start by getting a clearer picture of cauliflower rice. Essentially, it’s cauliflower that is pulsed in a food processor and broken down into tiny bits until its size resembles cooked rice or couscous. It doesn’t taste like rice one bit. Cauliflower rice retains its taste, but its granules turn light and fluffy. Making cauliflower rice can get technical, especially since we’re trying to replace a carb with a vegetable. But don’t worry, with my expert tips and tricks, you’ll be fully equipped to make the best cauliflower rice. Is this cauliflower recipe healthy? Yes!...