Sweet potatoes- Not just for Thanksgiving chili

When I came across this website http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/blogger-recipe-contest/ I thought it was a great idea because the sweet potato to me is really an unsung hero in the kitchen. They are sweet, nutritious and have a great texture and have a versatility that really allows them to be added to a wide verity of dishes. I often add sweet potatoes in vegetarian dishes when I need more depth of flavor and a nice meaty texture. This chili is my hand down favorite recipe to use sweet potato in. It’s vegetarian, but I promise meat eaters will be happy to eat it. It’s all in the way the potatoes are diced. One sweet potato is diced up very fine so it breaks down in the chili and melts into the sauce. The other sweet potato is left to shine as a meaty component of the dish.

2 sweet potatoes diced (read special directions on how to dice these)
1 cup cooked and drained pinto beans.
1 cup cooked and drained kidney beans 
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 white onion chopped
1 red pepper, diced
1 jalapeno diced
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 can petite diced tomatoes
2 cups water
1 handful or 2 tablespoons of diced cilantro
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
A large splash or about 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons butter
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste

For the garnish (We do this when we are serving chili at a party along with corn bread and corn chips)
1/2 red onion diced
1/2 red pepper diced
1 jalapeno diced

Special Directions:

Peel two sweet potatoes, dicing one into bite size pieces, the other sweet potato dice into very fine pieces. This is a very important step to this recipe and should not be skipped.

 Combine all ingredients into the crockpot and season with salt and pepper. Set on high and let cook for about 8 hours until everything is tender and the smaller sweet potatoes have become very soft.

I feel like there should be more directions to this recipe, but that’s it!  The labor of this recipe is really only in the chopping. It also tastes even better second day, and after freezing as it breaks down the sweet potatoes in the sauce a little bit more, so don’t be afraid to double this recipe!  

This is a great link for picking out the right sweet potato- http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/sweet-potatoes-101/sweet-potato-varieties/ I like O’Henry for this recipe.

Potpie- And a little bit of courage

I enter cooking contests now and again- sometimes because there is an amazing prize like a Kitchen-Aid mixer, or a trip to California, but more often because it challenges me to make something that I’ve never made before, forces me to flex my cooking muscles a little bit, and challenges me to make something that has stumbled me in the past. One of those major stumbling blocks in my culinary world has always been pie crust! Chewy, heavy, dense pie crust has always been all I’ve managed to turn out, but it’s never really bothered me because honestly, I don’t really care for pie, with one exception. Potpie! Potpie is one of those amazing dreamy rich comfort foods that I love, but always top with mashed potatoes due to my crust fears. When the Today Show asked for our best potpie recipes I decided it was time to face my potpie dilemma head on and find a way around not only not being able to make a decent crust, but also not enjoying crust. The solution I came up with is this: Greek Pot pie! With puff pastry atop a savory Greek inspired filling I couldn’t be happier with my dish. Plus my daughter ate something chocked full of strange vegetables just because it had the word pie in it. Even though the Today Show didn't choose to feature my recipe, facing my potpie fears, and getting my daughter to eat more vegetables makes me a winner with this recipe anyway! And I will be adding this to our dinner rotation.

Greek Potpie:

2 TBSP olive oil

1 white onion

2 cloves garlic

1 eggplant diced small

1 yellow squash diced small

1 portabella mushroom diced small (or 1 cup baby portabella mushrooms)

1 cup frozen spinach

1 Tbsp. dried oregano

1 Tsp. fresh dill

1 Tbsp. fresh parsley chopped fine

1 can garbanzo beans drained

1 can petite diced tomatoes

1 1/2 - 2  cups vegetable stock

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Salt and pepper

Buerre manie of 1 Tbsp butter, 1 Tbsp wheat flour kneaded together

4 oz reduced fat feta cheese crumbled (or as much as you like!)

1 sheet puff pastry

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

In a large Dutch oven heat 2 tablespoon of olive oil. Add onion and cook until softened, add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add all other vegetables and herbs, season with salt and pepper and cook for about 10 minutes until the vegetables release their juices. Add canned beans and tomatoes. Add just enough stock to resemble a very chunky soup, and the juice of 1/2 lemon.

In a zip lock bag knead together 1 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp wheat flour. When well incorporated scoop out of bag into soup. Stir into soup and let simmer until stew is just thickened. Add crumbled feta cheese.

Place thawed puff pastry on lightly floured surface and roll out until it’s just a little larger than your pan

Scoop stew into a pie dish or tart pan and cover with puff pastry dough cutting away extra.

Bake in oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Eggs- They are not just for Breakfast anymore!

I need to do a first post sometime- it might as well be now.

At least one night a week we try to eat an egg based dishes, for several reasons. They are inexpensive, contain valuable nutrients and are typically quick and easy to cook. I’m a busy working mom, and at least once a week we have days where things just fall apart and I need a quick week night meal to save us from the dreaded fast food window. Eggs always come to the rescue on nights like that.

Tonight I planned to make Shak-Shuka (a dish where eggs are poached in richly seasoned tomato sauce popular in the middle east and north Africa.) As soon as I got home though I decided that this wasn’t going to work for us tonight. I couldn’t find the beans I needed for the dish. I didn’t have the paprika and I needed to come up with a plan B. I decided to use the same cooking technique with the foods I did have on hand to make a kind of poached huevos rancheros.

(Little girl and I ate some of the eggs before I took a photo, can you tell?)

Drizzle of olive oil

1 medium red onion chopped fine

2 gloves garlic chopped fine

1 can fire roasted diced green chilis

1 15oz can black beans drained

2 tsp ground cumin

1 28oz can organic diced tomatoes in juice

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese (we used 3 cheese blend because it was what we have, but next time will pick a soft Mexican cheese)

8-9 large eggs

In a large oven proof Dutch oven heat oil. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is soft. Add chilies, black bean and cumin and stir until spices are well combined. Add entire can of diced tomatoes and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes until sauce becomes slightly thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Turn off the heat and add sprinkle 1 cup of Mexican cheese. Crack eggs one at a time and place over sauce. Work quickly as eggs start to cook as soon as they touch the hot liquid. Place entire dish uncovered in an oven @ 350 degrees and allow to cook for about 8 minutes until eggs are just cooked but yolks are still slightly soft.

Maybe I should explain that I am in love with egg yolk! Soft silky smooth egg yolk. It's like a golden treasure that I crave and seek. Also I ate this with a crusty bread left over from Tuesday.