Cookbook winner: Take it on the side

The winner of my copy of Mario Batali's new book "Molto Gusto" is Barbara 4:52 a.m. (you're posting on blogs at 4 in the morning? Get some sleep, Barbara!)

I asked you guys to share your quick go-to ideas for easy side dishes. Barbara contributed a tomato salad with a bit of garlic and lots of basil. Good one for summer.

Some of the other suggestions, if you're looking for side-dish ideas:
- Garlic paste and Greek yogurt dabbed on a platter of roasted beats.
-- Pickled onion and beet salad. (More beet eaters out there than I would have guessed. Excellent.)
-- Buttered pappardelle pasta tossed with chopped cilantro.
-- Carrots dressed up in endless ways.
-- A big green salad with goat cheese and nuts. (I like that one, too, with toasted pine nuts. But you have to watch those little suckers to keep them from burning.)
-- Spaghetti tossed with asparagus, bacon, Parmesan and warm garlicky olive oil, served on the side with a steak or grilled fish.
-- Arugula salad.
-- More salads. An endless variety of salads.
-- Roasted or grilled vegetables.
-- Couscous tossed with all kinds of things.

Grab an idea and see if it lifts up one of your meals this weekend. And Barbara, send your address to me at kpurvis@charlotteobserver.com so I can get the book in the mail.

Cookbook Giveaway: Send your side dishes

We spend so much time (or, OK, on a weeknight, maybe not so much time) coming up with main dishes. All our meal planning tends to get focused on entrees, and the side dishes just end up being a salad or a frozen vegetables tossed in simmering water.

We need 9 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. If we fall into the trap of the same old simmered side dishes, we're cutting ourselves short on getting some of the best nutrients we get all day. But who has time to put together a complicated side-dish recipe for a weeknight meal?

There's where the side dish staples come in. Stuff you can keep on hand and throw together without thinking about it.

You know where they do great side dishes like that? Italy. All those antipastos are really just small side dishes that you eat before you get to the main course. Looking through Mario Batali's new book, "Molto Gusto: Easy Italian Cooking," I kept noticing all the small but great ideas for vegetable dishes.

For this week's cookbook giveaway, I have a copy of "Molto Gusto." To get in the drawing, post your name here and include a short description of your favorite fall-back side dish, something fast and simple to put together on a weeknight. Deadline: Friday. Check back to see who won, and see what great ideas for side dishes we get.

To get you in the mood, here's a recipe from Batali's book. I bet it would work even better with frozen peas, rinsed under a colander to thaw them.

Spring Peas With Mint

From "Molto Gusto," by Mario Batali.

2 cups fresh (or frozen, thawed) peas

1 medium red onion, cut into dice about the size of the peas

About 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves, torn into 2 or 3 pieces each

1/4 cup red wine vinaigrette (your own, or a good bottled one)

Maldon or other flaky sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine the peas, onion and mint in a medium bowl and toss with vinaigrette. Season with salt and pepper and serve, or let stand up to 1 hour to bring out the flavors. Can be refrigerated for up to a day; bring to room temperature before serving.