Savory Sweet Potatoes

First up...it's podcast Tuesday! Hope we can keep you company while you decorate or wrap or address cards or whatever you've got going on this week! Lots of fun this week: stories from Thanksgiving, decorating our new home, and some highlights from our anniversary trips in the past few years!

Click here to listen. 

And now...it's time for a new recipe!

As you know, I didn't know until this past year that I even liked sweet potatoes. I had been tainted by the Thanksgiving presentation of them buried in marshmallows and pecans, and I didn't have a clue there were other options of ways to prepare them.

In the process of learning that I actually do like them, I also learned I prefer them to lean a bit more to the savory side. I started out making the sweet potato chip/fries, and I still like them that way, but not every meal is a chip/fry meal, so I've been on the hunt for additional recipes.

So I found this recipe on Pinterest and did some tweaking to make it my own. I have served it twice now at Tuesdays at the Table, and both times, it got rave reviews - and one time the thumbs up came from a couple who doesn't even really like sweet potatoes. Ryan also really likes it, so I've decided to make it a permanent fixture in the Shafferland recipe box. 

I also want to say, before I launch into the recipe, that seriously, the hardest part of this recipe is cutting up the sweet potatoes. It is so easy to make. I love a recipe that is simple and delicious, so here you go! 

Savory Sweet Potatoes

* 3 average sized sweet potatoes

* 1 1/2 Tablesoons olive oil

* 1/2 teaspoon thyme

* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

* 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

* 1/2 teaspoon cumin

* 1 teaspoon sugar

* 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt

Wash sweet potatoes and cut into small cubes. Dump cubes into an oven safe baking dish and drizzle with olive oil. Use a spatula to toss potato cubes in oil until well coated. In a small bowl, combine all the seasonings and sprinkle over the potatoes in oil. Stir until well-coated. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for an hour, stirring two or three times throughout the hour. Check potatoes to make sure they are soft when speared with a fork.

* A Few Tips

* The smaller you cut the potato cubes, the faster they will cook. It will take longer to prep, but you'll be glad you did it when the house starts to smell delicious!

* The original recipe said to bake on a large cookie sheet for 40 minutes. The potatoes will definitely bake faster if spread out like that, but since I'm usually making this recipe for a nicer dinner, so I prefer to go ahead and put it in a nice baking dish, even though that means it has to bake longer.

* Make sure you don't skip stirring the potatoes; this helps bring the uncooked ones to a new spot in the dish to speed along the process.

* If the potatoes are still hard after an hour, keep baking them and check the dish every five or ten minutes until they are soft. 

* If you like your veggies extra seasoned, you could always double the seasoning, and likewise, if you prefer them a little more bland, you could cut the seasoning in half. I think this amount is just right for our tastes. 

* This pairs really nicely with any meat and makes for a colorful vegetable option. It's also a good thing to serve if you have company with babies, because if they've started on solid foods, sweet potatoes are often a big win!

* This also reheats nicely if you have leftovers.

Sweet Potato Chips

A few of you asked me for this recipe, so I made it a few nights ago so I could share it with you!

Let me start by saying that until this clean eating adventure, I did not know I liked sweet potatoes. Correction: I knew I did not like sweet potatoes. The only way I had ever eaten them was on Thanksgiving, drowned in marshmallows, butter, and pecans. Now doesn't that sound just like something I would adore? Vegetables masked with sugar and more sugar? It does, and I still don't know why I didn't like it, but I didn't. I tried them every few years, just to see if my tastes had changed, but they had not.

But I learned when I started clean eating, that sweet potatoes were one of the vegetables I was allowed to have, so I was determined to learn to like them.

I started making this as a substitute for fries, serving them alongside turkey burgers, and I found out...I really like them!

They are pretty quick to put together, don't take long to bake, and while they aren't the same as greasy French fries, I do find them delicious and a much healthier alternative! And perhaps, with time, I will learn to like sweet potatoes fixed other ways, too!

Sweet Potato Chips

* 1 medium sweet potato
* 1 egg white
* 1 Tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
* 1/3 teaspoon seasoned salt
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

 Wash and dry the sweet potato and cut it in the shape of chips or fries as desired. Spray a cookie sheet with olive oil and arrange fries/chips on sheet. Brush with half the egg white. Mix together the parmesan, seasoned salt, and garlic powder and sprinkle half of it over the chips/fries. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes, remove from the oven, flip them over, brush with the other half of the egg white and sprinkle on the other half of the cheese mixture. Return to the oven and bake for 10 more minutes. Serve warm!

 A Few Tips:

* If you hate the skin of a potato, you can peel the sweet potato, but the skin is actually very good for you, and I'm also too lazy to peel potatoes, so I just leave the skin on. I wash and dry it really well before I slice it.


* I always cut mine like chips so they bake faster and are a bit crispier. If you prefer, you can cut them like fries. Totally a personal preference thing!

* I use a silicone brush to brush half the egg white on the pan. Spoiler alert: If you drip some egg white on the pan by accident, it will bake up like a fried egg! Not that I know this from experience....

* Also, I've learned to put parchment paper on my baking sheet for easier cleanup. I hate scrubbing dishes. 

* These do bake faster, and are in my opinion, crispier in the oven, but you can also grill them if you prefer. Just keep an eye on them to know when you need to flip them and have them be done. I think Ryan probably had them out there on the grill somewhere between a half hour and forty minutes. Part of that will depend on the strength of your grill, of course.

* If you want, you can add other spices: oregano or chili powder would work well! The more you add, the less you'll notice the sweet taste, so if you prefer that it tastes more savory, just add a bit more of those spices on to put that taste back at the front.

* If you warm these over in the microwave, they will be softer, so either warm them up in the oven to crisp them back up, or be prepared for softer chips/fries. They still taste great. Just not as crispy.

Zucchini Bake

Anyone else grow up thinking zucchini was created for the express purpose of being made into bread? My mom always made zucchini bread when I was little, and it's true! I thought for many years that the only thing you could do with zucchini was grate it up and put it in bread. THEN I learned it had a second purpose. CAKE! Mom gave me a recipe to make chocolate cake squares with zucchini, and I was so excited to finally have a second option for this green zucchini thing.

Leave it to me think a vegetable was only suitable for making dessert items. {You're starting to see more and more why I needed this clean eating change, aren't you?}

I actually found this recipe in some of the 21 Day Fix recipes I was given along the way, I tweaked it just a bit to fit what we have here in our house, and it has quickly become one of our favorite side dishes. {I even served it - with much nervousness - on Mother's Day, and the family cleaned that dish out entirely.} One of the things I love most about it is that it IS quick. It assembles quickly and bakes quickly. It has good flavor and it's good for you. Win, win, win!

Some of you have asked for this recipe, so here it is! {And for those of you who asked for the sweet potato chip/fry recipe, I'll get that to you soon!}

Zucchini Bake

* 1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
* 1/2 teaspoon thyme
* 1/2 teaspoon oregano
* 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 4 large zucchini cut into spears or cut into "chip" circles
* 1 Tablespoon olive oil

Wash and cut zucchini and place it in a 9x13 baking dish. {If cutting the zucchini into spears, put it in the dish skin side down.} Brush olive oil evenly over the pieces. Combine the cheese with all the herbs and spices and sprinkle over the dish. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until zucchini is tender. Serve warm.

A Few Tips:

* Zucchini, at least here in Indiana, goes through phases of growth. When it's not in season, I tend to find smaller ones that are more the size of a large pickle. When I get them that size, I cut them into spears and pretend they're fries when I eat them. When they are in season, they tend to be HUGE - sometimes more like the size of an eggplant. That's when I switch to cutting them into the circles, just so they bake faster. It all tastes the same.

* Make sure you stir up your cheese/herb/spice mixture really well or you'll get a big bite of just one on some piece. That can be shocking - especially if it's garlic!

* This does warm over decently well, so if you make too much to eat on the first serving, it can work as a leftover.

* I like to make this to serve with dishes that would pair well with fries. The night I made it to take the pictures, I served it alongside turkey burgers. I've also paired it with sloppy joes. But it also works nicely with chicken or any other meat that needs a veggie beside it.

* Zucchini itself is fairly flavorless {in my opinion} but the blend you sprinkle over it really does give it good flavor. No boring dish here!

Happy eating good-for-you food and using zucchini for purposes other than bread and cake! :)

Macaroni and Cheese

We really do try to be healthy people. But sometimes - and you know it as well as I do - you just need some comfort food. The lovely Katie Farrell has some really scrumptious comfort-food-turned-healthy recipes over on her website, Dashing Dish, and she even has a couple options for macaroni and cheese. I've made one and really like it, but Ryan still likes a more original version than the healthy kind I make for me. So we compromise...sometimes I make Katie's version, and sometimes I make a more traditional recipe, changing out some of the more original ingredients to make it as healthy as I can.

I won't lie. I LOVE mac and cheese. Especially the cheese. And in my adulthood, I've tried several recipes, trying to find the perfect blend of creamy and dry. We don't like it on the soupy side, but we also don't like it TOO dry. This recipe, which I originally found on Pinterest and tweaked to fit us, has been our favorite.

We've loved it in the summer as a side with a burger and hot dogs grilling fest...we've loved it in the winter with BBQ pork in the crock pot or sloppy joes after work. It's warm, it's filling, it's cheesy, and it's our favorite.

Since the forecast for the week is filled with gray skies and rain, I thought maybe you could use a comfort food fix. Hope you enjoy it!!

Macaroni and Cheese

* 2 1/2 cups dry macaroni
* 1 Tablespoon flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
* 2 Tablespoons butter
* 2-3 cups shredded cheese of your choice
* 1 cup milk

Bring 5-6 cups of water to a boil in a pan and cook macaroni until tender. Drain and return pasta to pan. Add flour, seasoned salt, butter and cheese and stir until well mixed. Pour in greased baking dish, pour milk over mixture, and bake covered at 350 for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy!

A Few Tips

* I use whole wheat macaroni. It tastes the same to me, but it makes me feel a little better about eating pasta. Ryan was worried the first time that the macaroni was overdone, because it was so dark, but the wheat pasta just is darker. So it might look different from what you're used to, but it'll taste the same!

* I also use whole wheat flour. It just thickens up the recipe a little bit. The original called for twice as much as I use, but I didn't like that much in it, so I lightened it up.

* You can use any old kind of seasoned salt you like. We like to use it in place of just salt and pepper in almost every recipe.

* I try to use lowfat cheese, and I use less or more, depending on HOW healthy I'm trying to be that day. I've used just about every kind of cheese. Mozzarella, cheddar, colby-jack, Mexican blend...all of it. We usually buy a couple bags of cheese to use in recipes and on our food throughout the week, so when I get to a recipe like this, I just use what I have on hand. It works for us.

* We buy either fat free or 1% milk, depending on what the store has that week. Either will work fine in this recipe. You can also use a creamier milk. Can't go wrong with that in a dish like this!! :)

* This does warm over well, but it gets a bit dry after a few days, just FYI.