Hasselbeck Sweet Potatoes

Yum, to the yum, to the yum yum yum. These are so fatty, and greasy, and yummy. Surprisingly sooo much flavor. A pretty simple and pretty dish if you have a mandolin. Just plan on a decent amount of cooking time (90 min!)

I would plan on 3-4 sweet potatoes. I bought 5 or 6, sliced them all up, and only used like half. I froze the other half for mashed potatoes sometime ???? I don't know if they will even freeze well. Anyway...

I love how pretty they are. Don't be afraid to get your hands messy (cause they will). I filled the cream mix up to half way up the pan, so mine had more liquid than her picture shows...


http://www.thebakerchick.com/2014/11/hasselbeck-sweet-potato/

ingredients

• 3 oz. finely grated cheddar or Gruyere cheese
• 3 oz. finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 5- 6 medium sweet potatoes*
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary, roughly chopped
• salt & pepper to taste
• butter for greasing the pan

Instruction

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Using a microplane or whatever else works for you, slice the potatoes to ⅛ inch thick. Soak in water until ready to use.
3. Combine the cheeses. Take about ⅓ out and set aside. To the rest of the cheese add the cream, garlic, rosemary, salt & pepper. Whisk together.
4. Drain & dry the potatoes and add them to the cheese/cream mixture. Make sure that each slice gets coated, using your hands to separate them.
5. Use the butter to grease a 9-inch skillet or other 2-3 quart sized pan. Grab a stack of the potato slices and arrange them vertically around the perimeter of the pan.
6. Continue, arranging the potatoes in the pan and then continuing onto the inside as well. Pour the remaining cream mixture over the potatoes, filling it about halfway up the side of the pan.
7. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake another 30 minutes uncovered. Finally, add the remaining cheese all over the top and bake for a final 30 minutes, or until super golden brown with the cheese crisp.

Green beans

This is my go to veggie.  We all eat these up.  Don't be shy with the butter ;).  Costco green beans are the best.  Thin and pre-trimmed for me.

Simple Skillet Green Beans

YIELD: SERVES 4-6

After trimming the ends of the green beans, you can cut them into 1- or 2-inch lengths, but I usually leave them long so I can maybe, hopefully teach my kids the importance of cutting up food on their plate before shoveling it into their mouths.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 teaspoon oil or butter
• 1 pound fresh green beans, ends trimmed
• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

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1. In a large 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat the oil or butter over medium heat. Add the green beans and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often, to crisp up the edges of the beans just slightly.
2. Pour in the broth and bring the beans/broth to a simmer. Cover the skillet and cook anywhere from 6-10 minutes, depending on how tender you like your green beans. Keep an eye on the skillet - if it is simmering too vigorously and the liquid evaporates out, add a bit more as needed.
3. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

this is easy. chicken+kale+sweet potatoes

Get yourself a rotisserie chicken from Costco (I get one every time I go) and this is a breeze.  Just add it in at the end.  I just use baby kale from a bag, but spinach would suffice too.  I added like double the greens, but would probably quadruple it next time.  It shrinks to nothing, so why not?  Also, I put the pan under the broiler at the end.

It's not some earth-shattering, over the top delicious meal, but it is really good. And totally nutritious.
carb+protein+veggies+fat. I think I did green beans on the side.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed in 1/2-inch pieces
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup finely diced shallot or other onion (like red or yellow)
• 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded, stemmed and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 2 medium sweet potatoes (about 25 ounces, 3 to 4 cups), peeled and small-diced
• Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups (about 4 ounces) stemmed and chopped kale
• 1/2 to 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack or other cheese of choice 

Instructions

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1. In a large, 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot and shimmering.
2. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and add to the skillet in a single layer. Let them cook and sizzle without moving (so they can get nice and golden) for 1-2 minutes. Flip the pieces and continue cooking until no longer pink in the center, another 1-2 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate, keeping as much liquid in the skillet as possible, and return the skillet to medium heat.
3. Add a drizzle of olive oil if the skillet is dry. Add the shallot (or onions), red pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes, until the onions have started to turn translucent and soften. 
4. Add the sweet potato, red pepper flakes (if using), and broth. Give the mixture a good stir and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover the skillet and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring once or twice to make sure the sweet potatoes aren't sticking (turn the heat down, if needed), until the sweet potatoes are tender. Add more broth as it cooks if the mixture becomes sticky or dry. 
5. Add the chicken back to the skillet along with the kale. Stir and heat through until the kale is bright green and slightly wilted (if you like the kale more tender and cooked, add it to the skillet first without the chicken, cover the skillet and let it steam until it is tender; uncover, add the chicken and heat through).
6. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper. 
7. Sprinkle cheese over the top and cover with the lid until melted or pop under a preheated oven broiler until golden and bubbly. 
8. Serve immediately. 

Stuffed Mushrooms

This recipe is from Andy's mom.  Not sure where it came from originally, but they have it every Thanksgiving and I made them when we were home just last month.

***that 1 package of cream cheese should be 8oz***

When I made them, I only kind of followed this recipe. I was quadrupling the recipe, but didn't have enough cream cheese and somehow I added more bread. So really, you can just adjust everything to how you like (or to what you have). I also didn't have green pepper.

Bacon and Brussels Sprout Salad

Andy's sister has made this for me a couple times and I finally got the recipe. Whenever I make it, I eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. 

You will need a mandolin. Don't even try thinly slicing the sprouts yourself. They have to be shaved. I found this one for $10 on Amazon. The next day I saw it at Target for $20.

Recipe from HERE.

Bacon and Brussels Sprout Salad

Author: Pinch of Yum

Serves: 8-10

 

Ingredients

For the dressing:

• juice of one lemon
• juice of one orange
  
  
• 2-3 tablespoons apple cider (not vinegar, just regular apple cider! for sweetness!)
• 1 shallot, minced
• ½ cup olive oil
• ½ teaspoon salt and pepper to taste

For the salad:

• 4 dozen brussels sprouts
• 1 cup almonds
• 6 slices cooked bacon, crumbled or chopped
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (Asiago or Gruyere are also good)

Instructions

1. Combine the lemon juice, orange juice, apple cider, and shallots in a small bowl. Add the olive oil in a steady stream and whisk for a minute or two, until it becomes creamy-looking.
2. Slice the brussels sprouts with a mandoline, taking care of your fingers! and slicing them as thin as possible. This works best when you hold the stem, slice from the top, and stop with a little bit left at the bottom, discarding the remaining bottom stem part since it's not very leafy anyway. The thinner the shreds, the better the salad! Toss the shreds and loosen them with your fingers to they separate and fluff a little bit.
3. Pulse the almonds in a food processor until finely chopped.
4. Toss the brussels sprouts, almonds, bacon, cheese, and dressing together. Serve immediately or within a few hours of tossing.

Bacon Wrapped Asparagus

Ta da! It's delicious.

Just wash the asparagus, wrap it up, grill it up. I'd say about ten minutes on the grill, low-medium heat. 

Ignore that charred sweet potato. 

Potato Salad

This is "Kim's" recipe we have floating around, but it looks like it's really "Catheryn's". Haha. Either way, it's yummy. 

Kim says she sometimes makes extra dressing to ensure the salad is creamy - not sticky. 

I  like to add chopped celery. 

Frozen peas are also an option. 

Cilantro Lime Dressing

I got this recipe from Andy's sister. I've tried her's, but haven't actually made it myself. I think it's yummy. It's pretty thick. She served it to put on a green salad and over black beans/corn mixture. I LOVED it on the black beans and corn. Very simple and easy peasy side dish. I'm not sure if she follows the recipe exactly or how much evoo she actually puts in it. I think she mentioned she puts a little bit of mayo in it too ?? Also, I really, really like Costco's canned corn (Kirkland brand). It's not frozen, Cottonwood Diary corn, but for being canned corn, it's really good. And better than any other store bought frozen corn too.

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup chobani 0% plain yogurt
• 1 avocado
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1 tsp sea salt

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and puree until smooth.
2. Continue to add olive oil 1 tbsp at a time as necessary to create a smooth finish.

sauteed sugar snap peas--easy side dish

thought I'd share a super easy side dish we like.  I love sugar snap peas raw, but sometimes with dinner you just feel like a warm veggie.  There's a restaurant Jeff and I used to eat at (cannot remember where), that always served sugar snap peas sautéed in butter and topped with salt and pepper.  They are really yummy, and take about 5 minutes.

Melt butter in pan (you really don't need much.  Last night I did a tsp, but it could've used less and still been good).  add peas (I'm lazy and don't wash them.  I know lots of people don't trust the pre washed veggies, but I don't ever feel like washing).  Toss them in and season with salt and pepper.  stir 3-5 minutes until they are bright green.  Should still be crunchy.

They are great.

let's talk onions

In my attempt to stop throwing away so much produce, I have started freezing chopped onions. Now it's a time saver and huge convenience.

One time I had three huge onions that I wasn't going to use any time soon and that were going to get thrown away. I chopped them all up at once, put in freezer bags, and froze them for later. I LOVE HAVING THEM! I get sick of chopping onions and if it's the only thing I have to chop for a recipe, it's an even bigger drag. Now, I can just grab some out of the freezer and plop right into my pan. Of course, some recipes you have to use fresh, but man -- I really like having them in there. Like, the other day, I made taco soup. Already the easiest recipe, right? With frozen onions, it's even easier.

If I'm chopping a fresh one for a recipe, I go ahead and chop another one at the same time to freeze. Or if I only need half of an onion for a recipe and know I won't be using the other half soon, I just chop up the whole thing and throw the other half in the freezer.

Guacamole Salad

I can never think of a vegetable to go with Mexican dishes, like when we have tacos or something. but I discovered this and really like it. I leave the beans out.


GUACAMOLE SALAD
http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2011/05/guacamole-salad.html

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped (about 1/2-inch pieces)
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup small diced red onion
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 2 limes)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 medium garlic clove, finely minced
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 2 ripe Hass avocados, seeded, peeled, and diced (about 1/2-inch pieces)

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the tomatoes, yellow pepper, black beans, red onion, jalapeno peppers, and lime zest in a large bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt, black pepper, garlic, and cayenne pepper and pour over the vegetables. Toss well. This mixture can be refrigerated for 3-4 hours before serving.
2. Just before you’re ready to serve the salad, fold the avocados into the salad. Check the seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste if needed, and serve at room temperature.

Mom's Red Potatoes and Peas

Boil and drain about 4-5 small/medium red potatoes

In a saucepan, make a rue -
3 T butter
add 2 T flour - let it cook in the butter for a minute or so
1 C milk
stir until thickened
salt and pepper to taste

Combine sauce and potatoes and add frozen peas

Remember this recipe? A favorite around red potato harvest season.

Mexican-style corn on the cob

This is a great recipe for having corn on the cob as a meal.


Step by step instructions:

1. Spread a thin layer of mayo on cooked corn.

2. Roll mayo covered corn in cotija cheese (or Kelli, you could use queso fresco but cotija is saltier, or Mary - parm). I used to just spoon it on the corn, but rolling it in it covers it better. I just crumble the cheese onto a plate for rolling.

3. Squeeze some fresh lime juice on the corn.

4. Sprinkle with cayenne pepper (or hot sauce).

 And devour.


Andy ate this every day on his mission. Took me a few years to believe that it was good. And it's delicious! On our honeymoon, the corn street vendor guy just rubbed a sliced of lime on the corn as the first step. I used to do this, but the lime juice would make it hard for the mayo to stick, so I just squeeze it on later.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

This is no original/earth shattering recipe, but since they were so good, I thought that by posting it here, you will be inspired and encouraged to try it :). We had these for Reese's birthday dinner.

I bought sweet potatoes thinking we would have them mashed with dinner, but just the thought of my stove/oven being on made me sweat. Since we were grilling everything else, I decided to try grilling these. It's my new favorite way to have sweet taters.

I just searched for a recipe and found one to help me out here. But here's mine because I didn't have all the spices it called for. I baked them instead of boil them to "parboil" them. I'm sure they would be good with just s&p too.

Here's what I did:

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

3 medium sweet potatoes (or however many you want)

1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp brown sugar
2 T apple cider vinegar
1/4 c evoo

Start by slightly cooking sweet potatoes in the oven (ya, ya ... I defeated the purpose of grilling them to avoid using the stove, but it wasn't on for long so it was ok). I cut a "slit" in the middle of each potato to help with even cooking/softening. Place sweet potatoes in 400* oven. Cook until potato is softened, but not cooked the whole way through ... I honestly have no idea how long this took b/c I was busy doing other things. Maybe 15 min??

While potatoes are in the oven, mix the salt, spices, sugar, vinegar, and oil together in a small bowl.

Once the potatoes are softened, remove from oven. Peel potatoes and cut in 1/4 in slices. Brush both sides with spice mixture.

Grill until cooked through and have pretty grill marks.

Devour.

Some yummy recipes I've tried lately...

(sorry, I'm not giving each its own post)

Roasted Chickpeas  (here from Our Best Bites)
These remind me of corn nuts ... except way healthier and cheaper. Sammy and I gobbled them all down. Yummy snack.

Ingredients:
1 15-ounce can chickpeas
1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drain and rinse chickpeas and pat dry with paper towels. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine the spices and the olive oil. Toss the chickpeas in the spice mixture and spread the seasoned chickpeas over a lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the pan from the oven. Use a spatula to toss the chickpeas, then replace the pan and cook for another 15-20 minutes or until browned (but not burned) and crispy. Allow to cool. Snack away.

Bruschetta  (here from Pioneer Woman)
Entirely, completely delicious. Made it for Valentine's day as an appetizer (I know, so fancy) while I cooked the rest of the meal. The tomato mixture is good by itself, but once it's on the buttery baguette, HOLY MOLY! I loved it. I cooked the bread on a my grill pan. I so felt like Giada ... and was saying bruschetta with her Italian accent. I don't totally love fresh basil, so I went a little easy on it.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 5 cloves Garlic, Finely Minced
• 1 pint Red Grape Tomatoes, Halved Lengthwise
• 1 pint Yellow Grape Tomatoes, Halved Lengthwise
• 1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
• 16 whole Basil Leaves (chiffonade)
• Salt And Pepper To Taste (don't Oversalt!)
• 1 whole Baguette
• 8 Tablespoons Butter

Preparation Instructions

In a small skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and stir, lightly frying for about a minute, removing before the garlic gets too brown (it can be golden.) Pour into a mixing bowl and allow to cool slightly.
Add tomatoes, balsamic, basil, and salt and pepper to the bowl. Toss to combine, then taste and add more basil if needed, and more salt if needed (don't oversalt, though!) Cover and refrigerate for an hour or two if you have the time.
Cut the baguette into diagonal slices to allow for the most surface area possible. Melt half the butter in a large skillet and grill half the bread on both sides, making sure they're nice and buttery. Cook till golden brown on both sides. Repeat with the other half of the butter and the other half of the bread.
To serve, give the tomato mixture a final stir, the spoon generously over the slices of bread. Serve on a big platter as a first course or appetizer.

Chicken Salad (here on Cheeky Kitchen)
I gotta say, this is hands down my new favorite chicken salad. I saw a few people had this posted on Pinterest (no I don't have an account, but I like to snoop around once a month) and it looked so pretty, so I had to try it. I was skeptical since there isn't much to the salad, but no, no. It's delicious. I love that it's not super mayo-y/creamy. And eating it in an avocado --- little difficult and awkward, but the av is soooo good with it. Yum. I made this in like 2 seconds. Really easy. Oh my gosh, I'm still drooling over this. AND I added some sliced almonds instead of corn chips.

But hold on before you go make it --- it makes hardly any, so either make it for 2 people or double the recipe (or triple). 

Ingredients:

1 cup chicken breast, cooked and shredded
¼ cup corn
¼ cup black beans, rinsed and drained
¼ cup green onions, chopped
¼ cup tomatoes, diced
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
¼ cup corn chips, crushed
2 tablespoons white vinegar
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
Salt to taste
2-4 avocados, sliced in half with pits discarded

Directions:

In a medium bowl, toss the chicken breast, corn, black beans, green onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and corn chips together. Add the vinegar and mayonnaise to mixture and toss to coat. Salt to taste. Spoon salad into halved avocados. Serve immediately with a spoon and fork. Enjoy!