Wednesday, April 23, 2014

If any of you are interested in my sweet potato enchilada recipe, it is as follows:

Sweet Potato Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1-2 sweet potatoes (or 1 butternut squash)
2 packages of tortillas (corn or white flour; whole wheat does not work as well)
1 can of sweet corn (or 3 cups frozen)
1 can of black beans (or 3 cups cooked)
1 taco seasoning packet
4 oz cream cheese
1 onion, diced
You can also throw in any veggies- red pepper, jalapeno, summer squash, have all worked well)
8-16 oz of mexican blend shredded cheese

Enchilada sauce:
either canned OR
28 oz can tomato sauce
1/2 cup chili powder
3 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp onion powder, garlic powder
1 tsp cumin
1/4 cup canola oil.


For the enchilada sauce, bring a pot to medium heat, add in canola oil. using a whisk, incorporate the flour and spices. slowly pour in the tomato sauce. let simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

For the enchiladas:
poke holes in the sweet potatoes and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes. Let cool, and peel the skins off. mash the sweet potatoes, cream cheese, and taco seasoning together. (I use an immersion blender for ease, but hand mashing is fine). Add in the beans, corn, onion, and any other veggies. 

Layering:
Spray a 9X13 pan with canola oil. layer tortillas on the bottom. You can either make roll ups with the enchilada mix and tortillas, layering in the pan, or spread the enchilada mix on the tortillas, layering lasagna style. Either way, make sure there is a layer of tortillas on both top and bottom. Cover with enchilada sauce to taste and top with shredded cheese.

bake at 450 degrees for about 15-20 minutes, or until cheese melts and enchiladas are warm.


Ole'!

Friday, April 18, 2014

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

So pungent that my 6 month old reached for it.  Or maybe he's just tired of squash.

Easiest recipe ever, from Allrecipes.com: 

Makes 8 servings with these ingredients:




Place the pork tenderloin in a slow cooker; pour the root beer over the meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked and the pork shreds easily, 6 to 7 hours. Note: the actual length of time may vary according to individual slow cooker. Drain well. Stir in barbecue sauce. Serve over hamburger buns.



Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Be Italian

I'm feeling pleasantly Italian with a big pot of Ragu simmering on my stove. This one is loosely inspired by this Smitten Kitchen recipe. I've added carrots and white beans to beef it up nutritionally, and the resulting pasta sauce is both decadent and healthy! All quantities are fairly approximate, since I just dump in more tomatoes etc.. until everything looks right. 1 T olive oil 1 T butter 1 package sweet italian turkey sausage 1 can Cannellini Beans, drained 1 package chopped mushrooms 2 carrots, minced (I throw them in my food processor b/c carrots take forever to cook when I just cut them up) 2 cloves garlic 1/2 onion, chopped Fresh basil, chopped, to taste (I use a whole package) 1 cup white wine 1 big can whole tomatoes (or diced or crushed or whatever) drained, reserve the liquid splash of balsamic vinegar Salt and pepper to taste Remove sausage from casings and crumble. Sautee, along with the onion and garlic in the butter and olive oil until browned. Splash in a little balsamic vinegar. Add mushrooms, basil, and carrot and sautee until mushrooms have given off their liquid. Add the drained tomatoes and the white wine. Simmer for a couple of minutes until the alcohol has cooked off the wine, then add the beans. Add the tomato liquid if the mixture seems too dry, turn your heat to low, and simmer for at least an hour. Serve over pasta, with cheese if you like. *note- while you're chopping carrots in the food processor- you could easily toss in other veggies like celery or brocolli if you want to hide them in this sauce. :)