Creating amazing food one recipe at a time,
and making your favorites even better!
Welcome to Prep My Recipe!
I am a multicultural Southern California native with a lifelong passion for all cuisines. A retired corporate executive, now loving life as a recipe developer and food blogger.
Micheline
Prep My Recipe is a food blog featuring California-style recipes, step-by-step instructions for how to make delicious food and drinks, printable recipe cards, helpful recipe videos and tips & tricks, as well as recommended products for all budgets. Blog pages also spotlight “Pimp My Recipe” ideas for how to customize each recipe for a variety of dietary preferences. Please go to the Recipes menu at the top of this website to browse all categories and access all recipes.
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Warm Winter Farro Salad
This Warm Winter Farro Salad is a delicious combination of sweet and savory ingredients. With every bite, you get a satisfying burst of different flavors and textures! This nutrient rich salad is filled with wholesome ingredients like farro, Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, dates, pistachios, and fresh mint, which are tossed with a flavorful dressing. For an extra special touch, top with pomegranate arils and feta cheese. This farro salad can be served warm or at room temperature, and many of the ingredients can be made ahead of time. This hearty vegetarian salad is so tasty and it will give you energy for hours. Can easily be made plant based!
Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Sicilian Pesto
This Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Sicilian Pesto is an easy and healthy recipe that is hearty enough for a main dish, or can be served as a side dish. It’s hard to believe that only three ingredients can create such great flavor. My method for roasting spaghetti squash is quite simple and brings out its natural sweetness. The Sicilian Pesto Sauce is garlicky, bright, and slightly spicy with tomatoes, a touch of lemon zest, and lots of fresh herbs. When combined they are a perfect match, resulting in a nutritious bite with huge flavor!
Roasted Delicata Squash
This easy recipe for Roasted Delicata Squash with a Parmesan and herb crust is a great way to enjoy the bounty of winter squash season. Hence its name, this squash has a delicate skin that roasts beautifully in the oven. Made with olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, and fresh herbs, this squash is finished with a golden Parmesan crust. It’s roasted to perfection with a tender inside and a flavorful crust with irresistible crispy bits from the Parmesan. This recipe will have you hooked on delicata squash for years to come. And, this recipe can even be made vegan!
Roasted Rainbow Radishes
These Roasted Rainbow Radishes are not only colorful, but so flavorful. This quick and easy side dish recipe is perfect when you want a lighter and healthier alternative to potatoes that is low-calorie and low-carb and doesn’t skimp on taste. The roasting process mellows out the spicy sharpness of raw radishes, resulting in a fork tender, garlicky vegetable dish that is vegan, gluten free, dairy free, and keto friendly.
Hasselback Purple Sweet Potatoes
These Hasselback Purple Sweet Potatoes are perfectly roasted with an infused olive oil, which results in a crisp skin and a moist and tender potato. They are finished with a delicious glaze made from the infused olive oil, garlic, fresh ginger, fresh rosemary, and honey. The flavor combination of this sweet and savory glaze is perfect for these Okinawan sweet potatoes, but pairs well with regular sweet potatoes, too!
Savory Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
The cozy flavors of fall shine through in this delicious Savory Pumpkin Mac and Cheese. For that extra touch of autumn charm, my version uses adorable pumpkin shaped pasta and a rich and cheesy sauce that is extra flavorful. Filled with aromatic spices, garlic, fresh sage, pumpkin purée, milk, creamy Dutch gouda, and tangy English coastal cheddar cheese, this stovetop mac and cheese recipe comes together quickly. Perfect for a weeknight dinner, or whenever you are craving a delicious and comforting meal.
Quick Lemony Asparagus
Brighten up your meal with this vibrant steamed asparagus dish! This recipe for Quick Lemony Asparagus is so ridiculously easy, you’ll be astounded how fast it is to make! The bright and lemony flavor makes it a wonderful accompaniment to almost any fish, chicken, or beef main dish. This keto friendly 5 ingredient recipe is prepared from start to finish in less than 15 minutes. This quick and easy recipe is the perfect side dish for a healthy and refreshing meal.
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
Elevate your salad game with this Mediterranean Quinoa Salad with mixed greens. Loaded with wholesome ingredients and fresh flavors, this delightful summer salad pairs perfectly with my Lively Lemon Vinaigrette! This lemony quinoa salad recipe is not only delicious, but a healthy choice when you want to savor the flavors of the Mediterranean. This recipe is also vegan!
Tangy Fresh Herb Potato Salad
The perfect side dish during warmer weather months, this super flavorful Tangy Fresh Herb Potato Salad is a must try recipe! Tender red creamer potatoes are steamed, then tossed with a delicious tangy dressing that is filled with fresh herbs like dill, parsley, and chives, along with chopped celery and pickles to give it some texture. A healthier version of a traditional American side dish with a unique twist that can easily be made vegan or dairy free!
Garlicky Green Beans (Haricot Verts)
The garlicky flavor, tender crisp texture, and vibrant green color in these Garlicky Green Beans (Haricot Verts) makes them the perfect side dish for any meal. These French green beans are blanched, then sautéed with olive oil, vegetable stock, a touch of butter, plenty of garlic, and finished with fresh parsley and lemon zest. Although optional, a light dusting of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese adds another layer of flavor to these yummy green beans. This quick and easy side dish recipe can be partially made ahead of time, making this a great side dish when you are entertaining. It can also be made vegan and dairy-free!
Roasted Fingerling Potatoes
These Roasted Fingerling Potatoes are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Fresh rosemary, garlic, and herbs are combined with olive oil and fingerling potatoes, then roasted to a perfect golden brown color and texture. A quick and easy side dish that pairs well with almost any main dish. Be sure to make enough, because your family and friends will likely want seconds!
Lemony Lentil Salad
My Lemony Lentil Salad is both healthy and delicious! Steamed brown lentils are marinated in a fresh lemon and herb dressing, then combined with tomatoes and parsley. The bright dressing penetrates the warm lentils to give you a delicious flavor in every bite. This tasty salad makes a wonderful lunch or side dish. A great make ahead recipe, this lentil salad is best prepared the night before to allow all the flavors to develop. This quick and easy recipe is also plant-based, dairy free, and gluten free!
Mama’s Easy Mexican Rice
Mama’s Easy Mexican Rice is a simple variation of traditional Mexican rice. This safflower recipe requires no chopping, making it a quick and easy side dish recipe for weeknight meals. This tasty rice comes together in minutes, and is perfectly cooked every time. Its subtle flavor pairs wonderfully with Mexican food, and almost any style of main dish or protein.
Quick Calabacitas Con Queso
Quick Calabacitas Con Queso is a quick and easy variation of an authentic Mexican side dish recipe. Zucchini squash is sautéed with garlic and spices, then simmered with tomatoes and diced chiles, and topped with jalapeno jack cheese. This cheesy & spicy side dish can be made mild or spicy (or vegan) according to your preference. My 5 ingredient recipe is keto friendly, quick to make, and can be served as a side dish or vegetarian main dish.
Colorful Cruciferous Vegetables
These Colorful Cruciferous Vegetables will be the jewel of any dinner table. This medley of fall vegetables shine beautifully in both color and taste. Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, and red beets are tossed and roasted separately to retain their own unique flavor. Thyme leaves, orange zest, and blood orange olive oil add special freshness and zing to these tasty veggies. A great side dish for the holiday season, or any family dinner.
How to Cook Quinoa (Basic Recipe)
For a foolproof method of How to Cook Quinoa, try this easy step by step recipe that makes perfectly cooked quinoa every time! This basic quinoa recipe is lightly seasoned, and has a neutral flavor to make it easy to add to other recipes and blend with a variety of flavor profiles. It can also be served on its own as a simple warm side dish. For a delicious combination of flavors and textures, try it with my Greek Salad with Quinoa.
Greek Salad with Quinoa
Colorful and full of bright flavors, our Greek Salad with Quinoa will have you hooked on the first bite! Filled with crispy romaine, and plenty of heirloom grape tomatoes, feta cheese, Kalamata olives, English cucumbers, red onions, and perfectly cooked tri-color quinoa, this salad is definitely a meal. To round off these Mediterranean flavors, we drizzled it with our delicious Easy Greek Salad Dressing. This might even be the best Greek salad you have ever tasted!
Coconut Forbidden Rice
Our Coconut Forbidden Rice is an exotic side dish with subtle flavors, and is surprisingly simple to make. This easy black rice recipe uses only 5 ingredients and turns out perfectly cooked every time. Coconut milk, fresh ginger & garlic enhance the flavor of this beautiful black grain to make it tender and creamy. Both delicious and visually stunning, this rice makes the perfect side dish for our Miso Glazed Chilean Sea Bass.
Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas
Fresh, crisp, and garlicky, these Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas are so yummy that you’ll wish you doubled the recipe! Gently sautéed garlic combines beautifully with the natural sweetness of sugar snap peas. And, their bright green color becomes more vivid as it’s cooking! Prepped and cooked in under 30 minutes and using only 5 ingredients, this is a quick and easy side dish that the whole family will love.
Easy Roasted Zucchini
Our Easy Roasted Zucchini recipe is as simple as it gets! This clean eating side dish recipe is quick and easy to prepare, and tastes delicious. The roasting process lightly browns the edges, and allows the zucchini to retain its fresh flavor. For an extra burst of freshness and saltiness, the zucchini is finished with a sprinkling of fresh lemon zest and a light dusting of sea salt flakes. Roasted in minutes, this 5-ingredient recipe is the perfect side dish for a quick weekday meal, or even when you are entertaining.