I can't seem to get around a veggie as a "side" to pasta either, but I do need something to fill me up. It's not the bread itself that is bad, it's the BUTTER. Bread with pasta was fine back in the day when people were doing mostly manual labor and could use those carbs for fuel. I eat pasta with either tofu, cheese sauce, fake meat or beans. Most often I would say beans. I do like marinated chopped salad with pasta, which is great when veggies are fresh and cheap. I think I just need to train myself to eat a salad first, as the antipasta, to help fill me up. I even have a hard time eating salad without bread too. Last night I was at my friends house and they made a big delicious salad bar and they were eating bread with it and I just had to stop myself and have another plate of salad. Not that I hadn't had my share of bread that day, both for breakfast and lunch. I'm not anti bread, in fact I'm way too pro bread, that's the problem! All things in moderation. I have to curb myself or I would just eat bread, bread, bread all day long. I inherited it from my dad, he's one of those guys who eats bread with everything.

i don't enjoy making a potato salad but i certainly enjoy eating it! however, if you want something different and good, i do have a couple of T & T recipes posted by forum friends: Bruschetta Orzo Salad cindy ny 1 cup orzo pasta 2 tomatoes, chopped 1/2 cup chopped red onion 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil opt: kalamata olives, feta, tuna 3 T Balsamic vinegar 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 T olive oil Freshly ground pepper, to taste Cook pasta according to package directions for about 8 minutes, or until just tender; drain. Combine dressing ingredients. Place hot pasta in large bowl and toss with a little dressing; cool about 15 minutes, tossing occasionally. Add remaining ingredients and dressing to bowl and toss to mix well. Cover and chill at least 1 hour. Serve chilled or at room temperature. White Bean Dip with Pita Chips -- Lori 1 (15-ounce) can cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed 2 cloves garlic 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1/3 cup olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons 1/4 cup (loosely packed) fresh Italian parsley leaves Salt Freshly ground black pepper 6 pitas 1 teaspoon dried oregano Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the beans, garlic, lemon juice, 1/3 cup olive oil, and parsley in the work bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is coarsely chopped. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer the bean puree to a small bowl. (Note: The dip will turn green in a relatively short time due to the fresh parsley.) Cut each pita in half and then into 8 wedges. Arrange the pita wedges on a large baking sheet. Pour the remaining oil over the pitas. Toss and spread out the wedges evenly. Sprinkle with the oregano, salt, and pepper. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes, or until toasted and golden in color. Serve the pita toasts warm or at room temperature alongside the bean puree. Spinach Brownies sheshebop 1 pkg. (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed 16 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded **I used 8 oz and that was plenty. 1/2 cup chopped onion 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. baking powder 1 cup flour 2 eggs, beaten 4 T. butter, melted 1 cup milk I also added 1/8 tsp nutmeg Preheat oven to 350. Spray 8 x 12 baking pan with cooking spray. Drain spinach in colander and squeeze out excess moisture. Combine cheese, spinach, and onion in large bowl. Mix. Stir salt and baking powder into flour and mix with the spinach. Mix eggs, butter, milk and stir into other ingredients. Pour into pan. Bake for 30 minutes Pizza Rustica (4 whole pies!) From Sue (Cookingrvc) 4 lb Whole-milk ricotta 1 C Grated Romano cheese 8 Large eggs 2 lb Whole-milk mozzarella -- cubed 1 Italian pinwheel sausage - plain -- cooked and cut into bite-sized pieces -- (Can use regular sausage - remove casing, cook in fry pan) 1 lb Genoa salami or Supresata -- sliced 1/4" thick, diced. 8 Hard-boiled eggs -- diced 8 Pie crust - deep dish -- 4 will be used for upper crust 1 Egg wash (1 Egg - beaten w/2 T. water) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Thaw pie shells for 15-30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl (I use a Kitchen Aide mixer) add ricotta and grated cheese - mix well Add eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition. Add mozzarella, pinwheel sausage, and salami - mix well. Fold in hard-boiled eggs. Divide filling among 4 pie shells. Cut the crimped edges off the remaining shells and invert over each filled pie shell. Be sure to cover all of filling. Cut 8 slits in each top crust. Brush crust with egg wash. Place in 400 degree oven for 15 minutes. Lower temperature to 325 and cook for 45 minutes more. Remove from oven and cool completely on wire rack. Refrigerate. NOTES : The pie will taste salty straight from the oven. Flavors need time to mellow. Tastes best when cooled and refrigerated for 24 hours.

All the talk about Scalloped Oysters - I am adding them to my menu for this year. I found the following Martha Stewart recipe, it sounds pretty good to me, but since I have never had a scalloped oyster, I'm not sure if it has too much "stuff" and should I stick to the recommendations above? Scalloped Oysters Choose fresh, briny oysters that are small or medium in size. Martha Stewart Living, November 2012 http://www.marthastewart.com/939250/scalloped-oysters Prep Time25 minutes Total Time35 minutes Serves8 Ingredients 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided, plus more for baking dish 3 cups coarse fresh breadcrumbs Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 1 celery stalk, very thinly sliced on the diagonal (1/2 cup) 3 scallions, trimmed and chopped (1/3 cup) 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves 2 tablespoons dry sherry 3/4 cup heavy cream 2 pints (32 ounces) shucked fresh oysters in their liquor, drained, with 2 tablespoons liquor reserved 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg Directions 1.Preheat oven to 450 degrees with rack in top position. Brush a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with butter. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add breadcrumbs and 1/4 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring frequently, until breadcrumbs are golden brown and crisp, about 10 minutes. Stir in parsley, and remove from heat. Sprinkle half the breadcrumbs evenly in baking dish, and transfer remaining breadcrumbs to a plate. 2.Wipe pan clean, and return to stove. Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Saute celery and scallions, stirring occasionally, until scallions just begin to soften but celery is still bright green, about 2 minutes. Stir in thyme. Add sherry, and simmer 30 seconds. Add cream, and bring to a boil. Stir in reserved oyster liquor, the nutmeg, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Remove from heat, and stir in oysters. 3.Spread oyster mixture evenly over breadcrumbs in baking dish. Top with remaining breadcrumbs, and bake until bubbling and oysters are just cooked through, 7 to 8 minutes. Serve immediately.

I love Brussels sprouts, and just made some, sliced and sautéed with leeks in butter. Very yummy. I also like them just plain boiled with butter but I just can't manage to like them roasted, they never get done enough for me. I'm one of those odd people who don't want "crisp tender" vegetables. I want them raw or I want them cooked and nothing in the middle, LOL. Melissaki5, I have the same family members, I think, they won't eat a vegetable unless it's covered with cheese, butter or some kind of cream sauce. I won't touch that green bean casserole thing, but 75% of my family loves the stuff, go figure. I also love beets, any way you can cook them. Marinated, grated raw into salad, just boiled with salt, pepper and butter, Harvard Beets, you name it, I'll eat it if it has beets! Happy Thanksgiving, I'd make the Brussels sprouts! Annie