Side Dishes to serve with Spaghetti

Spaghetti is a staple of many people's diets. Not only is it delicious but it is inexpensive and adapts well to a variety of different sauces and toppings. Traditionally it is accompanied by a red sauce and meatballs but that is just the beginning. Before you decide on what side dishes to serve with spaghetti, you need to decide exactly what your main dish is going to be. If you opt for traditional pasta and meatballs, Bolognese or Marinara and Italian sausage, then there are some equally traditional side dishes to serve with spaghetti that many people opt for.

Garlic bread

Garlic bread is one of the traditional side dishes to serve with spaghetti and meatballs. It is very simple to make and certainly is available to buy already made. All that is required is an Italian or French bread, some olive oil or butter and some garlic. The bread is spread with the oil or butter and the garlic, either fresh or garlic powder and then baked in the oven until warm and crispy. To take it up a notch, consider using roasted garlic and/or cheese. If you buy it frozen, it can be melty delicious in just a few minutes by cooking it in an air fryer. 

Tossed salad

The crunch of a salad is a great accompaniment to the soft comfort of a spaghetti dinner. It can be a Caesar salad or a mixed green salad. If you want to continue an Italian theme, an antipasto salad with black olives, cubes of Italian cheese, peppers and Italian sliced meats is another option. In most restaurants, it is the side of choice.

Broccoli rabe

Broccoli rabe is an interesting side dish to serve with spaghetti especially if you are having it with Italian sausage or with pesto. It is certainly one of my personal favorites. It is a bitter tasting green that when combined with olive oil and garlic makes a tasty way to add some dark greens to your diet. Italian sausage is often served with broccoli rabe.

Meatballs

If you are serving your spaghetti with Marinara sauce or another meatless sauce, then you may want to serve meatballs and/or Italian sausage as a side dish. You can make homemade meatballs if you have the time but they are also available in your grocery stores frozen foods department. 

Vegetables

A few vegetables make an interesting side dish to serve with spaghetti. Most dark green veggies work well, including asparagus, zucchini or spinach. If you are serving spaghetti without a tomato based sauce, stewed tomatoes make an interesting side dish. Eggplant is another vegetable that works well with spaghetti.

When thinking about what side dishes to serve with a spaghetti dinner, keep texture in mind. It is always nice to have something that adds a little crunch.

Simple and Delicious Banana Bread

My motto is never waste a banana. I usually buy more bananas than I know we can eat. When my bananas get black I peel them, put them in a ziplock bag and freeze them until I am ready to make some banana bread. I then thaw them and they are perfect. Here is one of my favorite recipe. It makes enough to eat and share. Not many people will turn down a fresh, home-baked loaf of banana bread. 

5 cups of white flour
2 cups of sugar
7 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of salt
6 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 cups of 2 percent milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
2 cups of mashed bananas
1/2 chopped maraschino cherries 

optional: 2 cups of walnuts chopped roughly

Heat the oven to 350. Grease and flour two loaf pans (I like stone).

Place all the ingredients except for the bananas, cherries, and nuts into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until well blended. Make sure to stop every so often to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mash the bananas with a fork until they break down a bit. Add the bananas to the batter and blend. Fold in the cherries and the nuts.

Divide the batter between the two pans and place them in the center of the oven. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Use a toothpick or knife to check if it is done. If it comes out clean, it is done. Place the pans on a rack to cool. Loosen the edges with a knife, flip the pans over and tap the bottom, I use a knife. Lift the pan off slowly in case the bread is sticking to the bottom of the pan.

If you want to take it up a notch, add 1 cup of chopped dates in place of the maraschino cherries. Another good substitution is 1 cup of mini chocolate chips again in place of the cherries. You can also melt 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and drizzle the loaf.

This recipe will make about 8 good size muffins if you prefer to have a small portable portion.

Serve the loaf sliced and spread with butter or eat plain. This is a good moist bread that keeps for several days in the fridge. It also freezes well and stays delicious for months if you pack it carefully. Since it makes two loaves you will have to decide whether you prefer to share or have some for next week or next month.