Crockpot Southern Collards

Collard greens cooked low and slow to perfection!

I adore collard greens and I was delighted to find a recipe for the crockpot. My next mission is to find an Instant Pot recipe. I really cannot get enough of them. The low and slow method is the way to go and the flavors were fantastic.

Summer Grilled Corn Salad

The perfect summer side dish for any cookout - bright, fresh, and light!

I have some side dish recipe saved to try but I honestly usually forget about them. I tend to like to just make a couple vegetable, carb, and/or starch sides and call it a day. But I made this last summer and it is one of my favorite things ever. I love sweet corn and especially enjoy fresh sweet corn cooked on the grill. I love that this is just a ton of veggies. I did not make the avocado cilantro lime dressing but chose to use some of the elements of it so that Nick would eat it. He doesn't do dressing.

Creamy Parmesan Garlic Brussels Sprouts

Delicious sauteed brussels sprouts in a creamy cheesy garlicky sauce - a perfect side dish!

Here I am again with another brussels recipe just hoping my family will finally ALL get on board so we can eat them more often. I think at this point everyone just tolerates my desire to eat them on occasion. These are a fantastically easy way to make brussels and the creamy garlic Parmesan sauce is super simple but packs a lot of flavor. I sauteed the everliving out of my brussels because I love when they get browned and crispy.

Brussels Sprouts Au Gratin

What better way to enjoy your vegetables than roasted and served with a cheese sauce?

I'm really happy to share this recipe finally, although I have to say, I wish the pictures were better. It's hard to get pictures of anything that's got a cheese sauce and make it look halfway appetizing. However, don't let the pictures deter you, this au gratin is slamming! I personally love brussels, so I'm not sure someone who wouldn't like brussels would agree. However, if you want to try something new, I highly recommend this. I served this up at Thanksgiving last year and I wish I made it more often because it's so easy to make and...again....it's slamming!

Browned Butter Mashed Potatoes

There's no reason for boring, plain mashed potatoes - brown that butter, add a kick of horseradish!

I am always looking for new ways for making old classics and I tend to make them at holidays - which is really risky, but mostly works out for me. Last Thanksgiving, I wanted to try these potatoes because browned butter sounded like the way to go. I don't think I've eaten anything with browned butter that I didn't like immediately and wholeheartedly. I love that these mashed potatoes are made with red potatoes - and that the skins are left on (my preferred way to make and eat mashed potatoes). The browned butter added such depth to the flavor, but I have to be honest and say that the horseradish was the winner winner here. It added the perfect kick of tartness to the potatoes.

Jalapeno Popper Macaroni & Cheese

Add some spice to the holiday feast with this over-the-top incredible macaroni and cheese or add chicken for a full meal!

I had kept putting off making this recipe and I cannot really tell you why because my family loves anything jalapeno popper. I have made this for dinner and I have made this for a holiday side. When I make it for dinner, I like to add chicken to it (usually seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic) to make it extra hardy. This is just a seriously wonderful recipe with the perfect amount of heat and a nice crunch from the topping. No one will want any other macaroni and cheese ever again. This one is perfect.

Caprese Tomato Salad

This salad is so addictive and perfect for a side or snack!

I can't remember who made this for a family dinner last year but it was either my mother-in-law or sister-in-law and Nick and I immediately wanted it ALL THE TIME. We started making it with lunch on the weekdays and eating it with naan (we just had it by itself at family dinner). It doesn't need to have naan but it's so good with little mini naans especially.

Cheesy Smashed Brussels Sprouts

Cheese makes everything better plus these brussels are smashed and roasted. Absolutely fantastic!

Let's talk about these brussels...I personally love brussels any which way I can get them. However, my family is a little skeptical when they are whole and I thought what better way to make them than covered in cheese?! That's the trick, right? Kids don't like a veggie, add cheese. I really love the element of blanching and then smashing and roasting the brussels. It just makes for such a good side dish. I think it works so well as a side for chicken or pork.

Copycat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole

This no-fuss recipe is the perfect side dish for any big breakfast spread!

I couldn't share the pancakes recipe without sharing the reason why everyone goes to Cracker Barrel, right? I just assume that. This is easy to make and goes so well when you have to serve a crowd (when we're allowed to do that again, I guess) - especially for the holiday breakfasts.

Ultimate Summer Salad

The best part of summer is all the fresh fruits and vegetables you can combine to make a delicious salad!

The first time I saw fruit in a salad, I was a little skeptical, but decided to try it. I am fully a fruit in savory salad supporter now. Honestly, just throw a bunch of veggies and fruits my way and I'm a happy camper. This particular salad has blueberries, strawberries, avocado, cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes, red onions, and radishes. I think it was the first time my family had had radishes, which is something I ate a lot as a kid because we had them in our garden. I served my salad up with an apple cider vinaigrette, but I'm sure you could use a wide variety of dressings and it would still be fantastic. I also served mine up with some grilled chicken to make it a main dish. Without protein, it would be a wonderful side salad.

Greek Chicken Souvlaki with Lemon Rice

These chicken kabobs are perfect for spring and summer with lots of bright lemony flavor and a side of the most delicious lemon rice you'll ever have in your life!

I've been attempting to use the grill more often and that means I've been making loads of kabobs because apparently I have tons of kabob recipes saved. I was looking forward to this particular recipe due to the amount of lemon in it. I am hooked on lemon in savory dishes. I have tried it again in sweets and I'm still not a fan of just straight lemon desserts. It is what it is.

But bring on the lemon savory dishes! Especially this lemon rice recipe. I have made it multiple times outside of this particular recipe because I love it so much! I went very simple with our kabobs and did a few zucchini skewers and then I served the whole thing up with some diced tomatoes. Honestly, I wish I had had some tzatziki sauce because it would have been a perfect pairing!

Asparagus Casserole #FantasticalFoodFight

Welcome to another Food Fight! Fantastical Food Fight is a group of food bloggers who will get a theme or ingredient each month and make some sort of variation for it. It could be traditional or nontraditional and can be found in a cookbook, on a blog, or be a blogger's own creation! For more details, check out this page.

This month's Fantastical Food Fight theme is ASPARAGUS. We are almost in prime season for asparagus and what better way to bring in the new season of food than with sharing tons of asparagus recipes. We have been having asparagus with Easter dinner over the last few years and one of our go-to recipes is this Asparagus Casserole. Think green bean casserole but with asparagus.

I would ask for this over green bean casserole any day of the week even though I love green beans. I adore asparagus and in this casserole, it's so addictive! I did switch up a few things from the original recipe to include omitting mushrooms because we're not huge fans of mushrooms (Cami loves them, but the rest of us, nope!). None of us really care for Swiss cheese so I subbed in Gruyere which turned out so very well. It's a wonderful side dish with a baked ham. I cannot wait to see what other asparagus recipes my blogging pals have to share today!

Perfect French Fries

These french fries are homemade with lots of love and deserve the title "perfect"

I've been trying to find the right way to do homemade fries for a long time. I love to use my deep fryer because I like my fries to have some crunch to them. Homemade fries for me are often not crunchy at all. I decided to try out this method from Bobby Flay's cookbook, Burgers, Fries, & Shakes, and see if it was what I was looking for. What I like about this recipe is that you don't have to peel the potatoes. I love potato skins and that's also less work in the long run. It is, however, a process. A lengthy process that requires making a mess. I think in the end it is worth it though because these fries are definitely the best homemade fries I've ever had.

Sausage & Pecan Cranberry Stuffing

Dress up (pun intended) that premade stuffing mix with spicy sausage, tart cranberries, and pecans and be a Holiday Hero!

I still haven't quite figured out the difference between stuffing and dressing when it comes to holiday food, but I do know that I have always loved Stove Top stuffing. But it seemed like most times when it came to stuffing/dressing on the holiday spread, I wasn't a fan. One of my food aversions is wet bread/crackers. I don't dip breads in anything that will make it soggy. No crackers in my soup. No way.

When I moved to Tennessee, my aunt had made cornbread stuffing for Thanksgiving and I fell in love. It was the perfect texture and tasted amazing. I decided to try my hand at a stuffing recipe for Thanksgiving and could not have been more happy. It has spicy sausage, a sour green apple, pecans, and tart dried cranberries. You can choose what type of stuffing you want to use, but I reached for the cornbread stuffing because it's my favorite and honestly, why wouldn't you pick cornbread stuffing?! I am happy to report that everyone who tried it enjoyed it immensely and it will definitely be a go-to side dish recipe for the holidays.

Easy & Awesome Creamy Corn Casserole

The perfect side dish for a good Southern meal, chili, or potluck!

My mother-in-law made this amazing corn casserole recipe last year and I have been craving it ever since. Lo and behold, I had a similar recipe saved from one of my magazines. She has all these tried-and-true cookbooks that she has made from since my husband was very young and I believe the recipe she used was a Taste of Home recipe. Mine is from All Recipes. It's simple to throw together and it is seriously so so delicious. I love that the cornbread comes out incredibly moist and then you get so much corn in every bite. It's the best side dish for chili or fried cabbage and sausage plus so much more!

Slow Cooker Garlic Herb Mashed Potatoes

An easy way to fix mashed potatoes and they are packed with garlic and herbs and are amazing!

I love making side dishes in the crockpot at the holidays because it leaves your oven open for the big ticket items like prime rib, turkey, or ham. I was completely enamored when I saw the picture for this slow cooker potatoes recipe because they are mashed potatoes BUT the skins are still on! I love mashed potatoes with the skins still on. These potatoes are so wonderful and the garlic and herbs are so amazing in them. These are a must for any holiday spread.

Roasted Pesto Bacon Potatoes

These potatoes are perfect with roasted chicken or turkey breast - pesto and bacon are the best pair ever!

When I was really young (like middle school), I used to make potatoes in the oven a ton. By the time I hit my teenage years, I loved to cube up potatoes and cook them up in a skillet. Once I met my husband, we would cook up either fried potatoes or roasted potatoes constantly. They are total comfort food and they go with everything that isn't pasta or rice-based. I was excited to make these potatoes because not only do they have bacon and cheese, but PESTO too. Oh, how I love pesto. Pesto makes everything better. And with bacon, these potatoes are just incredible.

Loaded Cauliflower Casserole #SundaySupper

A healthier version of a loaded baked potato, this cauliflower casserole is a worthy substitute!

Today's Sunday Supper Movement event is CREATIVE CAULIFLOWER RECIPES and I found this loaded casserole recipe to be so creative. It doesn't taste exactly like a loaded baked potato, but it's very close and it kind of blew my mind. I was nervous serving it up because of the sour cream, but my husband, a self-proclaimed sour cream hater, had seconds and possibly thirds. This casserole just disappeared!

I feel like we, as a family, never eat cauliflower, even though we all really like it. I'm looking forward to all of the recipes from my fellow blogging pals. I still have yet to make a cauliflower pizza crust and I really want to. I'm secretly hoping there is a pizza crust recipe in the roundup since I love to make recipes from my friends' blogs :)

Alfredo Scalloped Potatoes with Ham #SundaySupper

These Alfredo Scalloped Potatoes take scalloped potatoes to a whole new level - they are perfect for an Easter side or a spring main dish!

Hello, friends! It has been such a long time since I have participated in a Sunday Supper event (since November - wow!!), but I am back for today's EASY SPRING DISHES event. It is hosted by Anne of Simple and Savory. Spring makes me think of not only lemon and asparagus, but HAM. Maybe that's because of Easter, but oh my goodness, give me all the ham, please!!

This recipe is something I never would have tried years ago because I didn't like alfredo. Now that I love alfredo, I thought it sounded like the perfect thing to put into scalloped potatoes to make them rich and creamy. I was on point with that assessment. This would be a great side dish for Easter, but is also a wonderful main dish recipe because if you do have a bigger portion, it is filling. I love that it also has a veggie in it! The scalloped potatoes I grew up on had no veggies and little beef meatballs, so this is quite different from that.

The original recipe called for Swiss cheese - I am sure if you love Swiss, it would be great in this. However, no one in my little family likes it, so I subbed in mozzarella and gruyere.

Jalapeno Bacon Skillet Cornbread

This cast iron cornbread is easy to make and has a hint of spice and salty bacon to boot!

As a kid, I never liked cornbread...mostly because the only cornbread I had ever had was not homemade and it was dry as all get out. Then my grandma visited us up north in Minnesota and she made delicious cornbread that had me sold on it from that point on. I always forget about it though. I make chili on occasion and that's when I prefer to have cornbread, but I seriously always forget to make it. This particular occasion I remembered and planned to make a spicy bacony skillet cornbread that turned out so deliciously!