Healthy Recipes Ingredients Healthy Vegetable Recipes 15 Quick & Easy Vegetable Side Dishes to Make This Winter By Dillon Evans Dillon Evans Dillon Evans fell in love with cooking at a very young age. He remembers the novel experiences of microwaving a bowl of oatmeal without his parents' permission and asking to make his mother's morning pot of coffee. These moments became catalysts for his interest in cooking and baking. EatingWell's Editorial Guidelines Published on December 17, 2023 Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: Will Dickey No matter the pairing, these delicious side dish recipes make a great addition to any winter dinner. From garlicky Brussels sprouts to spiced cauliflower, you’ll find a 15-minute, seasonal veggie side you can easily serve tonight. Try our Balsamic-Parmesan Sautéed Spinach and Quick & Easy Sautéed Broccolini Recipe for an evening meal that focuses less on stress and more on delicious veg. 01 of 15 Balsamic-Parmesan Sautéed Spinach Tender spinach with a hint of garlic, Parmesan cheese and sweet balsamic vinegar makes a quick and flavorful side dish. The sturdy leaves of mature spinach hold up best during cooking. View recipe 02 of 15 Quick & Easy Sautéed Broccolini Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle Broccolini, with its long thin stems and small florets, is a cross between broccoli and gai lan or Chinese broccoli. This simple crisp-tender sautéed broccolini has zip from lemon and garlic and just a hint of heat from crushed red pepper. Serve alongside anything from roasted chicken to fish or steak. View recipe 03 of 15 Garlic-Butter Brussels Sprouts Photographer: Fred Hardy, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster These super-quick Brussels sprouts have a hefty amount of garlic that’s softened by a splash of butter and grated Parmesan cheese. Serve this easy side with roasted chicken, seared pork tenderloin or salmon. View recipe 04 of 15 Apple-Cranberry Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese The tangy-sweet dressing in this spinach salad beautifully amplifies the apples and cranberries—and the creamy goat cheese transforms it into the perfect salad. Tasters raved about this easy fall salad. If you can't find Pink Lady apples, any sweet, crisp apple is a worthy substitute. Want to make this salad a main meal? Top with some rotisserie chicken, chickpeas or tofu. View recipe 05 of 15 Brown Sugar-Glazed Beets Try a sweet glaze on beets or other root vegetables to help balance their earthy flavor. This easy recipe will work with steamed carrots, turnips or rutabaga too. View recipe 06 of 15 Air-Fryer Green Beans Photographer: Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall These tender, charred air-fryer green beans have bright lemon flavor and subtle savory notes from garlic and pepper. If you like to roast your vegetables, the air fryer will do it for you in a snap. View recipe 07 of 15 Balsamic Broccoli & Cauliflower Ted & Chelsea Cavanaugh Reaching for a frozen broccoli & cauliflower blend to make this flavor-packed side dish helps save time on chopping, plus the frozen veggies cook quicker than fresh! View recipe 08 of 15 Curried Mashed Butternut SquashCurried Mashed Butternut Squash Ted & Chelsea Cavanaugh Using frozen cubed butternut squash helps this side dish come together in a flash—no peeling, roasting or steaming required! View recipe 09 of 15 Cauliflower with Peppadew Peppers & Raisins We sauté the cauliflower to get it slightly caramelized, then steam it to soften the vegetable without burning the spices. View recipe 10 of 15 Kale Salad with Cranberries This easy holiday salad gets its flavor from a sweet citrus dressing that's infused into the kale by massaging the greens and the dressing together with your hands. We like a mix of kale for this recipe, but any type of kale will work. View recipe 11 of 15 Sautéed Broccoli with Peanut Sauce Peanut butter, balanced with a little soy sauce and vinegar, makes a delicious and kid-friendly sauce for broccoli and other vegetables. Giving the broccoli a head start by steaming it before sautéing it with the other vegetables ensures that all the vegetables are nicely cooked at the same time. View recipe 12 of 15 Easy Creamed Spinach Jacob Fox This creamed spinach with cream cheese and Parmesan is reminiscent of the crowd-pleaser you'd get at an old-school steakhouse but saves you about 70 calories, 8 grams of saturated fat and up to 1,000 milligrams sodium over restaurant versions. View recipe 13 of 15 Sautéed Brussels Sprouts Will Dickey Fresh and tender sautéed Brussels sprouts have crispy leaves and a tender-crisp center. The sweetness from the caramelized shallots provides a great balancing flavor. Enjoy them with lemon, or try one of the variations below to better match your main dish. View recipe 14 of 15 Red Cabbage & Pomegranate Salad Honey helps balance out the harshness of cruciferous cabbage in this fresh and crunchy slaw recipe. The colors in this easy-to-make salad are enough to brighten one's spirits. In fact, research shows that simply looking at purple plants can fire up neurons that help us relax, so take a moment to appreciate this beautiful salad before you dig in. View recipe 15 of 15 Sautéed Spinach with Coriander Chutney Jacob Fox This side was inspired by Indian palak chaat. Look for coriander (or cilantro) chutney in the international aisle of well-stocked grocery stores. View recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! 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