Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Chipotle Pecan Streusel

It's hard to characterize this recipe--it's almost like a dessert rather than a side dish, but if you like sweet potatoes, you will love it!  I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because it is not very pretty, fairly time consuming, and it's probably not lo-cal : (    Next time I make it, I'd cut the amount of topping at least in half. 
submitted by chris
4 stars
Sweet Potatoes:
6 medium red-skinned sweet potatoes or yams
1 tbsp canola oil
5 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp chipotle chile powder
Pinch salt

Chipotle Pecans:
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/3 cups pecans
1 tbsp plus 1 tsp granulated sugar
3/4 tsp chipotle chile powder
Pinch salt

Streusel:
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp unsalted butter, slightly softened
2/3 cup chipotle pecans, chopped

Sweet potatoes:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Set one rack in the lowest position and the other in the middle of the oven. Place a foil-lined baking sheet on the lowest rack.

Rub sweet potatoes with canola oil. With a fork, pierce each potato 5 to 6 times in different places around the potato. Place the potatoes directly on the upper rack and bake until tender when pierced with a fork, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and place on a cutting board to cool slightly.

Cut each potato in half lengthwise. Gently scoop out the flesh, leaving a 1/4-inch layer of potato. Place 8 of the potato shells on a large baking sheet and discard the remaining shells. Place the sweet potato flesh in a large saucepan set over medium heat. Using a whisk, mash and vigorously stir the sweet potato until slightly dry, about 5 minutes. Add butter, maple syrup, cinnamon, chipotle chile powder, and salt. Whisk until the mixture is smooth.

Evenly divide the sweet potato mixture between the shells.

Chipotle Pecans:
Melt butter in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add pecans, chipotle chile powder, and sugar to the skillet and cook, stirring, until the sugar begins to caramelize and the pecans are coated with the sauce, 4 to 5 minutes. Make sure the pecans do not burn. Spread the pecans on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, sprinkle with salt, and cool.

Streusel:
In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, chopped pecans, butter, and salt. Using your fingers, mix the ingredients together until combined.

Sprinkle the streusel mixture evenly over the mashed sweet potatoes. Bake until the streusel mixture is melted together and beginning to bubble, about 15 minutes. Serve.

Serves 8.

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

 This is the salad I made for Megan's Twirp dance 11/06/10

submitted by Chris
4 stars

2 bunches spinach, rinsed and torn into bit-size pieces (or one 10-12 oz bag)
4 cups sliced strawberries
sliced almonds, if desired

dressing:
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I use Canola oil)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup regular sugar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
1 Tablespoon poppy seeds

Crepes!

Basic Crepes

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup fat-free milk
2 large eggs, gently beaten

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, and nutmeg.  In a small bowl, combine th emilk and eggs.  Slowly whisk the milk mixture into flour mixture until smooth.  Let stand 15 minutes.  Coat a skillit with nonstick spray and heat over medium heat until hot.  Stir batter and pour 1/4 cup into the skillet, then quickly (before the batter cooks) tilt the pan until to cover the bottom of the skillet in a thin layer.  Cook for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.  Turn crepe over and cook for 30 seconds.  Transfer to a plate and reheat.

This recipe makes 8 crepes when using a large skillet.  Note that this recipe works well for a dessert and a breakfast, depending on what you put inside.

Some stuffing options:
Nutella
Fresh fruit
Ham, bacon, spinach, and goat cheese
Tomato, fresh mozzarella, and bacon topped with romesco sauce (my favorite!  See below).

Quick Romesco Sauce

1 cup roasted red peppers
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup almonds
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
pinch of salt and red pepper flakes

Blend in food processor until sauce-like.  Store in small containers and freeze.  Use as needed as a sauce on vegetables, salmon, chicken, shrimp, hamburgers, and basically anything.

oatmeal pancakes

submitted by Ashley
5 stars
3 1/2 cups dry oats (I use quaker oats)
3 cups wheat flour
2 cups white flour
3 tablespoon sugar
3 talespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
1/2 cup vegetable oil
mix all ingredients until crumbly. Store in an air tight container. When ready to make a batch of pancakes mix 1 1/2 of mix, 1 egg, and 1 cup of buttermilk.(If I don't have butermilk, I take 1 tablespoon of lemon juice put it in bottom of a cup and pour 1 cup of milk on top of it and let set for 5 min, stir and add add to mix.
1 1/2 cup of mix will serve 3-4

Salmon and Polenta

Submitted by Kelsey

4 stars

Polenta

Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for grilling or sautéing if desired

* 3/4 cup finely chopped onion

* 2 cloves garlic, finely minced

* 4 cups chicken stock or broth

* 1 cup coarse ground cornmeal

* 3 tablespoons butter

* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

* ¼ cup Parmesan, grated

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Saute olive oil, onion, garlic, and salt over medium heat until onion is translucent, approximately 6 to 7 minutes.

Turn the heat up to high, add the chicken stock, bring to a boil. Gradually add the cornmeal while continually whisking. Once you have added all of the cornmeal, pour everything into a 2 inch deep square baking dish. Cook for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to prevent lumps. Once the mixture is creamy, remove from the oven and add the butter, salt, and pepper to taste. Once they are incorporated, gradually add the Parmesan, stirring with whisk.

Serve as is, or put container in fridge until solid. Cut into triangles and freeze. You can pull out a chunk of polenta and put in the microwave to thaw out, then saute until browned with olive oil or butter.

Salmon Marinade

4 stars

Marinade 4 pieces of salmon in 3 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp lemon, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper for at least half an hour.  (You can marinade this for up to 24 hours but it needs a minimum of half an hour.)  Sear salmon in a pan on the stove top, then turn temperature down to cook to your liking.  Top with roasted tomatoes, sprinkled with olive oil, salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar, basil, and oregano.  Note - I have used this simple recipe on chicken, shrimp, and salmon.  It seems to be very versatile and keeps the meat very moist. 

Spinach Salad with Pomegranate Vinegerette Dressing

submitted by Chris

4 stars
This recipe is adapted from Judy Cannon
4 cups baby spinach leaves
1 can mandarin oranges
1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
1/3 cup almond slivers
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 ounces swiss cheese, grated
1/3 cup salad dressing (recipe below)Toss all ingredients in a bowl. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

POMEGRANATE VINAIGRETTe
This dressing recipe is from Judy Cannon's blog
1/2 cup pomegranate juice
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 cup olive oil
salt, to taste
fresh ground pepper, to taste

Creamy Chicken Soup

submitted by Chris
4 stars
2 tablespoons butter
1 yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 cup diced carrots (about 2 regular carrots or a handful of baby carrots)
3 cups chicken broth
2-3 potatoes, peeled and finely diced (I like to leave the peels on red potatoes, if using them)
1 cup milk (1% is my milk of choice)
4 tablespoons flour
1 (8 oz. package) regular or light cream cheese
2-3 (about 1 pound) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and diced
In a large pot, melt the butter and add the onion, garlic, celery and carrots. Saute, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes, until the veggies are slightly tender and the onions are translucent. Add the chicken broth and potatoes. Bring the soup to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. In a liquid measuring cup, vigorously whisk the flour and milk together until smooth. Whisk the mixture into the soup, stirring quickly, and cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, until the soup begins to thicken slightly. Stir often to ensure the soup doesn’t burn. Soften the cream cheese in the microwave until it is very soft/melty. I usually place the unwrapped cream cheese on a plate and microwave it for one minute at 30% power. I like it really, really soft so it doesn’t leave lumps in the soup. Add the cream cheese to the soup in small tablespoon-size pieces. Let the pieces sit in the soup and warm through then whisk or stir the soup until the cream cheese melts and mixes in well. Add the cooked chicken and heat through. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.