Today I’m going to offer you a medley of side dishes. These work with various dishes, fill corners on leftovers and come in handy on potlucks.

Italian Style Zucchini

This is so easy and so quick - sometimes I just have it for lunch by itself. It came from an old neighbor friend of mine, published in a worn old book she let us borrow but that I never wrote down the name of. I’ve put it on top of brown rice and enjoyed every bite.

1 onion, chopped; 1 # zucchini, sliced; 1 cup tomatoes, sliced/chopped; olive oil; breadcrumbs (optional).

Sautee onions in a skillet over medium heat in olive oil until golden. Add zucchini and cook for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, cover and cook 5 minutes. Serve.

Pilafian’s Pilaf

This is actually a recipe of my mother’s. She serves it with shrimp or salmon, I tend to bring it to potlucks - and it is absolutely an incredible dish!

4 tbsp “butter”; 1 handful fine eggless noodles; 1 clove garlic, minced; 1/2 cup chopped onion; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 cup sliced button mushrooms; 1/2 tsp dried dill weed; 1 cup white rice (uncooked); 2 cups veggie broth; 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

Melt butter in 2 qt saucepan over medium heat. Stir in noodles and let them soften (don’t let them burn!). Add garlic, onion, mushrooms and dill, sautee. Stir in rice and sautee until it takes on a transluscent appearance.

Meanwhile, heat broth and salt to boiling in another pan. Pour over rice mixture, cover pan tightly and simmer 25-30 minutes. DO NOT PEEK!

Remove pan from heat, toss pilaf lightly, then cover pan, placing a dry cloth between the pan and lid to absorb moisture. Let stand 10 minutes, add pine nuts. Makes 6 servings.

Colcannon

An adaptation of an old Irish favorite. I’ve frequently had just this for lunch and been one happy camper.

4 cups chopped potatoes; 4 cloves minced garlic; 3 tbs “butter”; 4 cups chopped kale; 1tbs soy sauce; 2-4 tbs soy milk

Boil potatoes in a pot of salted water for 20 minutes (until mashable). Add butter to garlic in the bottom of pot. Add kale and toss well. Add soy sauce, cook over medium heat. Drain and mash the potatoes, adding soymilk (I add a little “butter” too) until smooth and creamy. Stir in kale, salt and pepper to taste.