Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

Posting this here for easier access. :) This is from Debbie on a Facebook post.


Here's another one.  They had this at a RS function and everyone was asking for the recipe. Full disclosure:  I can never go to the weekday RS meetings because of work conflicts, so I haven't yet tried this one myself. But, I figure if everyone is asking for the recipe, it must be good. Right?!

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

3 sweet potatoes (skinned and chopped into bite size cubes, you can cut larger cubes it may just take longer to cook)
1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 small red onion, chopped
2 cups shredded mexican cheese or cheddar
1 10-12 ounce can red enchilada sauce (I used a 10 ounce can because I don't love a lot of sauce, but if you like your enchildadas saucy you can buy a larger can)
8-10 flour tortillas
3 Tablespoons olive oil
Paula Deens House Seasoning (see recipe below enchilada recipe)

1) Preheat oven to 375F.
2) Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.  Place cut and cubed sweet potatoes in a mixing bowl with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and stir to coat. Place oiled sweet potatoes on prepared baking sheet.  Sprinkle Paula Deen's House Seasoning over the sweet potatoes and cook in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until fork tender.
3) While sweet potatoes are cooking heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in skillet over medium heat until oil is shimmering.  Add the chopped onion and cook until soft. You can add a little salt and sugar at this point to help caramelize the onion and bring out its sweetness. Continue cooking onion until it is a light brown then take off heat and transfer to mixing bowl.
4) When sweet potatoes are fork tender take out and mash with a potato masher or fork until it forms a soft pulp. (Do the mashing right on the pan to pick up any extra seasoning)
5) Transfer the pulp into the mixing bowl with the onion.  Add black beans and 1 cup of the cheese to this mixture.  Stir until well blended.
6) Pour half of the enchilada sauce into a 9x11 baking dish.  Place some of the sweet potato mixture into a tortilla and roll up.  Place seam side down into the baking dish and continue doing this until all of the potato mixture is used up...usually about 8-10 enchiladas depending on how full you fill them.
7) Pour the other half of the enchilada sauce on top of enchiladas.  Sprinkle remaining cup of cheese on top.
8) Cook about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

***These are delicious as is but if you want a little more......you can serve with shredded lettuce, sliced black olives, a dollop of sour cream/plain greek yogurt, or sliced avocado.

Paula Deen's House Seasoning
1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder

NOTE: I like to mix up a batch of Paula Deen's House Seasoning and keep it in my cupboard because I use it on oven roasted veggies or to season lasagna or manicotti.  You can even just mix up half a batch to try it.  If you don't have time or don't want to mix up the season mixture you can simply just season the sweet potatoes with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Zucchini Onion Pie

3 eggs
3 c. grated Parmesan cheese (I used cheddar)
1/2 c. olive oil
1 T minced fresh parsley (I used basil)
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 t salt
1/8 t. pepper
3 c. sliced zucchini
1 c. biscuit/baking mix (I used 1 c. flour, 1/2 t baking powder, 1/4 t. salt)
1 small onion, chopped

In a large bowl, whisk the first 7 ingredients. Stir in the zucchini, flour mixture and onion. Pour into a greased 9-in deep dish pie plate. Bake at 350 for 25-35 minutes or until lightly browned.

Vegetable Curry with Naan

1/4 cup butter
2 tbsp
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
2 large carrots, sliced
2-3 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
salt and pepper to taste
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1 head cauliflower, broken in to small florets
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk

Directions

Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onions and carrots and cook (stirring occasionally) until tender.  Add curry powder, turmeric, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Add cauliflower and potatoes to the pan, stir to coat with spices.  Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and let simmer for 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  Stir occasionally.  Turn off heat and stir in coconut milk.  Serve over rice.

Naan

1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup sugar
3 tbsp milk
1 egg beaten
2 tsp salt
4 1/2 cups bread flour (or use regular flour and replace 1/4 cup with vital wheat gluten)
2 tsp minced garlic (optional)
1/4 cup melted butter

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.
2. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
   Heat griddle to 350 (or frying pan over med/high heat).
   
   Roll dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil griddle. Place dough on griddle, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.
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CHOCOLATE ECLAIR PIE

1 box (1 lb.) Graham Crackers
2 small boxes instant vanilla pudding
12 oz Whipped Topping
3 1/2 cups milk
Frosting (recipe below)

Mix the packages of pudding as directed, using the 3 1/2 cups milk. Fold in whipped topping. Layer bottom of 9 x 13 pan with graham crackers (not crushed), then with about half of pudding mixture. Repeat, ending with a layer of crackers. Frost top layer of crackers.

Frosting:

1 T. corn syrup
3 T. milk
2 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted (I just used the cocoa substitute ingredients...  6 T cocoa & 2 T butter to replace the 2 oz of chocolate)
1 1/2 cups Powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla

Vegetarian Pasta Sauce

3 med. onions chopped
1 med. green pepper, chopped
1 med. sweet red pepper chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 T olive oil
3 med. zucchini, chopped
3 mec. yellow summer squash, chopped, 3 med. tomatoes, chopped
1 med. eggplant, peeled  and cubed
1/2 lb sliced, fresh mushrooms
2 cans (28 oz each) Italian crushed tomatoes
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
2 cans (2 1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
3 T minced fresh oregano
2 T minced fresh rosemary
2 t. Italian seasoning
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper

Saute first 5 ingredients together until tender. Add the next 5 ingredients, cook & stir 5 min. Stir in remaining ingredients, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 1/2 hours or until sauce in thickened. 14 one cup servings.

Whole Wheat Bread (via Loreli Adkins)

Turn oven to 200 degrees, then turn off when preheated. Then start bread.
 Mix together:
3 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. gluten
1 1/4 T yeast (or 1 rounded T.)

Then add:
2 1/2 c. hot water straight from the tap

Mix 1 minute in the mixer; let rest 10 minutes, then add:

1 1/4 t. lemon juice
2 t. salt
1/3 c honey or 1/2 c sugar (might need a tad more flour if using honey)
1/3 c oil
2 c. whole wheat flour

Mix 6-10 minutes in mixer, then put in pans and let rise in the warm oven until almost doubled (about 20 min... it will rise quite a lot during baking). Turn oven to 350 (don't take bread out of oven) and bake about 35 minutes.

CAJUN CORNBREAD CASSEROLE

1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 small onion, diced
2 celery stalks, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 T. Cajun Seasoning (I used 1/2 T. Chile powder would work too.)
1 15-oz can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 c. cornmeal
1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
3/4 c milk
1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce

Drain tomato juices into a skillet and add enough water to cover the bottom with a thin layer. Saute onion, celery, garlic, and bell pepper over high heat until onion is translucent, bell pepper is tender, and all water has evaporated., about 4 minutes. Turn off heat and mix in 1-2 T Cajun Seasoning, tomatoes, and kidney beans, stirring to combine, and set aside.
Corn bread: In a small mixing bowl, whisk cornmeal, baking powder, salt and addition Cajun Seasoning, if desired. Stir in milk and applesauce. It should be thick, but spreadable, and not dry. Pour bean mixture into a casserole dish and top with cornbread mixture. Bake at 400 degrees about 30 minutes, or until the cornbread is golden, cracked, and firm to the touch. Let set out for 15 minutes before serving.

White Bean Gravy (From Everyday Happy Herbivore)

This is a healthy alternative to regular gravy. I tried it on mashed potatoes and we really liked it. You can also use it for biscuits and gravy. The author likes it so well she says she often eats it as a soup. If you don't have all the seasoning ingredients, just jazz it up the way you like.

1 15-oz can navy beans, (or any other kind of white bean) drained and rinsed
1/4 c vegetable broth
2 T nutritional yeast
1/2  t. onion powder
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/4 t Cajun Seasoning
1/8 t. black pepper

Combine everything in blender and puree until silky smooth, adding more broth as necessary to achieve the desired consistency. You don't want to thin it out too much: it should be creamy and gravy-thick. Warm over low heat. (I always cook up a big batch of white beans from scratch, then freeze them in portions. Much better than canned beans, and much cheaper too!)

Here's a similar recipe from "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Mark Bitman

CHICKPEA FONDU

3 cups cooked chickpeas with 3-4 cups of their liquid
2 cloves garlic
3 T extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
3 T lemon juice

Puree all ingredients in blender until very smooth. Add more cooking liquid, broth, or water until the consistency is like a smooth dip or thick soup. Heat mixture over medium heat. Use for dipping such foods as cherry tomatoes, broccoli or cauliflower florets, slices of cucumber, bell pepper, cubes of cooked potato, etc. This fondu won't harden like cheese fondu. Hummus is also a nutritious dip for veggies.

Pie Crust

Makes top and bottom.

2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 cup butter or Crisco
1/2 cup ice water (You probably won't use it all.  Maybe half.)
1 egg yoke

Sift flour and salt together in a bowl.  Add butter or crisco and blend with a pastry blender or 2 knives until the texture of coarse meal.  Add water, a tablespoon at a time until dough is moistened.  Stir until mixture firms a loose ball.

Here's the whole wheat version of the King Arthur  flatbread recipe I linked to awhile back on our fitness group. If you don't have the seeds it calls for, leaving them out wouldn't affect the outcome of the basic recipe. They're supposed to add an extra nutritional punch to the bread. It's great for wraps, and I have several all-veggie wrap recipes, but of course you can make up your own easily enough.

Chia Seed Flatbread

2 cups white whole wheat flour                 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon instant yeast                              2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds or whole flax seeds
2 tablespoons chia seeds                              2 tablespoons soft butter
3/4 cup warm water

Whisk together the flour, salt, yeast, and seeds. Work in the soft butter and water, then mix and knead the dough until it becomes smooth and pliable. Form the dough into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise for an hour or more, until puffy. Turn the dough out onto a greased surface and fold it over several times. Divide the dough into six pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Cover the balls with a damp cloth and let rest for 10 minutes. Starting with the first ball you made, roll each ball of dough into a rough 8" to 9" circle; circles should be a scant 1/8" thick. Heat a heavy frying pan or griddle on  medium heat for a minute or two, and brush the pan with oil just before cooking the first bread. Place a dough round in the pan. Cook the first side for 1 to 2 minutes, until it starts to bubble and has some darkish brown spots; flip over and bake the second side until firm. Stack the breads as they come off the griddle to keep them warm and soft. Yield: 6 flatbreads.

SHOYU CHICKEN

1 cup water
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar mixed
with 2T cornstarch
1/2 t. ground ginger (or fresh)
2 cloves garlic (or
1/2 t. garlic powder)
Boneless, skinless chicken breast

Mix all but chicken together. Pour over chicken pieces in a baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees. Recipe says for 2 hours, covered, but just test for doneness after an hour, which is about how long I bake chicken tenders. Probably depends on how thick the chicken pieces are.

The winning burger

So as it is, we basically have no rights to this recipe anymore. They are using it as a selling point for the cookbook. So they don't want us just giving it away, but I thought we could share it with our family anyway. I don't have the recipe in front of me, but this is very close to what the actual recipe is.

This makes 4 "cameron size" burgers

Bruschetta Turkey Burgers with Avocado Mayo

meat:

1.25 lbs of turkey burger

2 large cloves of garlic

1 bag (8oz) Italian 5 cheese blend shreds- Cache Valley Cheese of course

Salt and pepper

-mix it all together well and form into patties

(one note here, the cheese blend is strictly for the competition's sake, it does help to keep the turkey from drying out, but mixing some ricotta cheese in with the meat is actually my preference. It COULD be omitted all together, just be very carful not to let it overcook and dry out.)

bruschetta:

you can buy prepared bruschetta in the cooler of most grocery stores, but it's simple to make fresh.

4-6 roma tomatoes

1/4 cup packed basil leaves

1 large clove garlic

1 Tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

-chop everything and mix it together. Italian "salsa"

Avocado Mayo

2 large avocados

1 cup mayo

salt

cayenne pepper (1/8 tsp, very little)

-mash avocados and stir everything together

and we make it on a Ciabatta roll brushed with butter and grilled

cook your turkey, assemble and eat.

Oh and we put sliced and melted mozzarella cheese on top to round out the Italian theme going on.

I think that's it. Menu item for next family get-together???

Cream of Broccoli Soup (Sparkpeople Recipe)

I served this soup in whole wheat bread bowls. (Heidi's bread recipe makes fantastic bread bowls.)

Makes 4-1 cup servings

2 tsp unsalted butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 large head of broccoli, florets separated from the stalks (about 4 cups)
1 large or 2 small russet potatoes, peeled and diced (1 cup)

2 cups homemade, low-sodium, or no-salt-added chicken or vegetable stock
1 cup fat-free evaporated milk
½ tsp white pepper
¼ cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

1.Place a large saucepan over moderate heat. Add butter and cook until melted. Add the onions, reduce heat to low, and cook until onions are tender, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Add the broccoli, potato, and stock; stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes.

3. Uncover the soup and remove from heat. Puree with an immersion blender, or carefully transfer the soup to a blender or food processor to puree, then return the soup to the saucepan.

4. Stir in the evaporated milk, season with pepper, and add 2 tablespoons of the cheese to the soup. Simmer for 1 minute. Serve hot, garnished with the remaining cheese.

Per Serving: 178.1 calories, 4.6 g total fat, 13.9 mg cholesterol, 156.3 mg sodium, 23.5 g total carbs, 4.6 g dietary fiber, 10.2 g protein

Galvin, Meg (2011-10-04). The Sparkpeople Cookbook: Love Your Food, Lose the Weight (p. 159). Hay House. Kindle Edition.

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

This is the cheesecake recipe that my mother-in-law brought to Brielle's baby blessing :) YUM!

Sauce

10 oz fresh strawberries hulled and quartered (or frozen rasberries)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons strawberry perserves (or rasberry)
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Process berries, sugar, perserves, and lemon juice for the sauce in a 
food processor until smooth. Transfer to a saucepan, bring to a boil 
over medium high heat. Combine water and cornstarch in a small bow; 
until smooth, whisk into berry mixture. Simmer to ticken slightly, 
about 1 minute cover and chill until cold

Crust

7 chocolate wafer cookies, crumbled
3 whole graham crackers crumbled
2 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt
3 tablespoons butter melted

process cookies salt and sugar in food processor unitl fine
add melted butter as machine is running pat crumbs on the bottom of a 
sping form pan and up the sides if you have enough

Bake 300 with rack in the center of oven


Filling
8 oz white chocolate chopped
Melt chocolate over double boiler and set aside

3 packages 8 oz cream cheese softened at room temp
3/4 c sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup cold strawberry saucce

blend cream cheese and sugar together until smooth this takes about 5 
minutes don't add sugar all at once slowly add keep beating and 
scraping the sides of the bowl periodically
add eggs one at a time until it mixes well . blend in choclolate 
vanilla and lemon juice. Pour batter inot prepared pan then drizzle 
with 1/4 cup sauce
Swirl sauce into batter to create a marbled pattern place pan on a 
baking sheet and bake until edges are set and puffed but center is 
still jiggly 60 to 80 minutes. DONT OVER BAKE IT WILL CRACK turn off 
oven crack open door with a wooden spoon cool inside oven for 1 hour 
remove from oven and cool completely. cover cake with a towel and chill 
overnight. this cheesecake is best if made a few days before the flavor 
is so much better

Potato and Broccoli Soup

If you're like me, you hate to waste all those broccoli stems, which makes up most of your bunch of broccoli. This recipe makes use of them, as well as the florets.

2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 3/4 pounds broccoli, thick stems peeled and diced (about 2 cups), tops cut into small florets (about 1 quart)
1 1/2 pounds boiling potatoes (about 5), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock
3 cups water
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
DIRECTIONS
In a large pot, melt the butter over moderately low heat. Add the onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic, broccoli stems, potatoes, broth, water, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the vegetables are almost tender, about 10 minutes.
In a food processor or blender, pulse the soup to a coarse puree. Return the soup to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add the broccoli florets and simmer until they are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir 1/4 cup of the grated Parmesan into the soup, and serve the soup topped with the remaining cheese.
VARIATION:
 If you'd prefer a completely smooth soup, add the broccoli florets to the pot after the potatoes have cooked for five minutes, and continue simmering until all of the vegetables are tender, about five minutes more. Puree the soup until smooth. Serves 6.

Black Bean Burgers

Black Bean Burgers

Makes 6 burgers

3/4 cup Panko (bread crumbs)

3 Tbsp. plus 2 tsp. olive oil, divided

2 (15 oz.) cans black beans, drained, rinsed, and divided

2 large eggs

1tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 red bell pepper

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, minced

1 shallot, minced

Place medium skillet over medium-high heat.  combine panko with 2 tsp. of the olive oil and mix with a fork to blend. Add mixture to skillet and toast panko, stirring frequently, until golden brown.  Remove from the heat and let cool to room temp.

Place 2 1/2 cups of the beans in a large bowl and mash with a potato masher or a fork until mostly smooth.  In a separate bowl, combine eggs, 1 T. of the oil, cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper.  Wisk to blend. Add the egg mixture to the panko then add the bell pepper, remaining 1/2 cup of beans, cilantro, and shallot to the bowl and mix into the mashed beans.  Stir until evenly combined.

Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions, about 1/2 c. each.  Lightly pack into 1-inch thick patties. (At this point the patties can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 24 hours before cooking)  Heat 1 Tbsp oil in skillet over medium heat until simmering.  Carefully lay half of the patties in the skillet and cook until well browned on both sides (about 8-10 minutes).  Repeat with the rest of the patties. 

Nutritional Info: (for the patties only!)

Calories: 186 calories per patty

Fat: 3 grams

Carbs: 31 grams

Protein: 10 grams

*Note: Serve these with Sandwich Thins (you can find them near the buns at the store) which are only 100 calories.  Also, These are really good with a little fat free sour cream and some low fat cheese and some yummy leafy greens! 

Chicken and Brown Rice Dinner in a Pumpkin

Since I didn't want to take the time to defrost hamburger and I had a rotisserie chicken in the fridge, I decided to find a dinner in a pumpkin recipe that used chicken instead of ground beef. I found this one on http://tonispilsbury.com.

1 small to medium pumpkin
2-3 stalks of celery, diced
1 container fresh sliced mushrooms (I used canned)
2 tablespoons veg. oil
1 Rotisserie Chicken
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
2 cups cooked brown rice (or 1 cup instant brown rice)

Cooking Instructions:

Pull meat from chicken. Wash off outside of the pumpkin. Cut off top of the pumpkin and save, and thoroughly clean out seeds and pulp. In a large skillet, saute celery and mushrooms in oil until tender. Add chicken and season with rosemary, thyme and a little salt & pepper. Stir in soup. Simmer for just a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cooked rice. Spoon mixture into clean pumpkin shell. Replace pumpkin’s top. Place filled pumpkin onto a baking sheet. Bake at 350 for one hour or until meat of the pumpkin is tender.

Zucchini Bread (from Claudia Teeples)

Cream together:
3 eggs
1 c. oil
2 c. sugar
3 T. vanilla
Add:
3 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
3 t. cinnamon
 Stir in:
2 c. grated zucchini
whatever extras you want (ie: nuts, etc)

Bake in 2 greased & floured breadpans at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Hey all you domestic divas....

my garden is going crazy. I need some of your favorite canning recipes. Most particularly salsa or anything you love to do with tomatoes. I also want some good pickle recipes, I have more cucumbers than I know what to do with. And, has anyone ever done pickled beets? I have never done anything by myself before so I am really dumb, any tips or tricks would be very appreciated. Love you all!!

Eclair Dessert

I got this recipe from my friend Brittany (Mower). Yum!

Eclair Dessert

    Crust: Boil 1 cube of butter and 1 cup of water. Remove from heat and stir in 1 of cup flour with a fork. Add 4 eggs one at a time, beating with electric mixer after each. Spread on a greased 12x16 sheet pan and bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. Flatten any bubbles. Cool.

    Filling: Mix in blender two 3-ounce packages instant vanilla pudding mix, 3 cups of milk, and 8 ounces of cream cheese. Blend well and spread on crust--chill.

    Top with 12 ounces whipped topping, chill over night. Drizzle with chocolate syrup just before serving.