Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Feel like I hit the jackpot with this recipe. I needed to use up a few sweet potatoes purchased as an “impulse buy” at the grocery store a couple weeks ago. And this was a much easier recipe to make than the other sweet potato recipe that I found a while back.
This recipe uses ingredients you probably already have in your own CF kitchen. Minimal prep, simple ingredients, one pot! Plus this particular recipe is higher in fat from the dairy ingredients and lower in sugar from the minimal use of sugary ingredients.
Cleveland Clinic did a great comparison between sweet potatoes and white potatoes and found that sweet potatoes are lower in total carbs even though they pack more sugar. The bonus is that sweet potatoes pack more vitamins and fiber – both important to CF digestion.
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 tablespoons heavy cream (I used the half n half we give to my CFer to drink)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar (I used white sugar)
2 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut crosswise into 1/4 inch-thick (about 2 large or 3 medium-small potatoes)
Nutmeg, cinnamon and black pepper to taste
Directions:
Combine butter, cream, salt, sugar, and sweet potatoes in large saucepan. Cook, covered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, until potatoes fall apart when poked with fork. This will take between 30 to 45 minutes. Take off heat and mash sweet potatoes in saucepan with potato masher.You can also put potatoes into kitchen aid mixer and mix. Stir in nutmeg, cinnamon and/or pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
Notes:
Don’t turn the heat up too high – low or medium low heat will do the trick. Just be patient, it took a full 40-45 minutes for our potatoes to soften.
This recipe says it serves four and it does serve four decent-sized side portions but for a larger family dinner, you would need to double it for sure.
Monday, September 15, 2014
Monday, September 8, 2014
Recipe: Cheesy Chicken Meatballs
Cheesy Chicken Meatballs
As a mom of a CFer, I’m always looking for great ways to combine meat and cheese for that extra fat. And as a full-time working mom of a CFer, if I can find a recipe that can be made during treatment times, even better!
I found the original recipe on AllRecipes.com but it was a little too spicy for the kids. But if you like the taste of Italian chicken sausage, you can’t go wrong with the original version.
The recipe was easy to make but is deceiving. The mixture will actually seem too wet when forming the meatballs but don’t overcook them because they can dry out quickly. If your meatballs look lopsided, just spray your hands with a little cooking spray and reshape once they are on the baking sheet. Or use a cookie scoop with a trigger release to form the meatballs without getting your hands too dirty.
I struggled with what to serve these with but ended up drizzling them with marinara sauce and serving with a cheese garlic bread. These would probably do well in a stroganoff sauce or chicken-based gravy served over egg noodles, or as a meatball sub slathered with marinara sauce and topped with provolone or American cheese. Could also toss with bow-tie pasta and spinach in a light alfredo sauce for a hearty dish.
Original recipe makes 20 meatballs about 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter
Ingredients
1 pound ground chicken
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup Philly cream cheese chives and onion spread
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dry bread crumbs
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon minced garlic from the jar
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions
1.Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, and spray with cooking spray.
2.Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl, then add the wet ingredients, followed by the ground chicken; mix well. Form mixture into 20 meatballs; place on prepared pan.
3.Bake in center of preheated oven until juices run clear, 17 to 18 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
As a mom of a CFer, I’m always looking for great ways to combine meat and cheese for that extra fat. And as a full-time working mom of a CFer, if I can find a recipe that can be made during treatment times, even better!
I found the original recipe on AllRecipes.com but it was a little too spicy for the kids. But if you like the taste of Italian chicken sausage, you can’t go wrong with the original version.
The recipe was easy to make but is deceiving. The mixture will actually seem too wet when forming the meatballs but don’t overcook them because they can dry out quickly. If your meatballs look lopsided, just spray your hands with a little cooking spray and reshape once they are on the baking sheet. Or use a cookie scoop with a trigger release to form the meatballs without getting your hands too dirty.
I struggled with what to serve these with but ended up drizzling them with marinara sauce and serving with a cheese garlic bread. These would probably do well in a stroganoff sauce or chicken-based gravy served over egg noodles, or as a meatball sub slathered with marinara sauce and topped with provolone or American cheese. Could also toss with bow-tie pasta and spinach in a light alfredo sauce for a hearty dish.
Original recipe makes 20 meatballs about 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter
Ingredients
1 pound ground chicken
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup Philly cream cheese chives and onion spread
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dry bread crumbs
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon minced garlic from the jar
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions
1.Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, and spray with cooking spray.
2.Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl, then add the wet ingredients, followed by the ground chicken; mix well. Form mixture into 20 meatballs; place on prepared pan.
3.Bake in center of preheated oven until juices run clear, 17 to 18 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
Monday, September 1, 2014
Recipe: Minestrone Vegetable Soup
It's Labor Day here and I have the urge to make some soup for fall. The boys start school this week and I'm trying to pack my freezer with easy meals to thaw/reheat.
This veggie soup is pretty hearty but I wouldn't call it a stew. My advice is to make it exactly as planned and then if you feel it needs more salt, heap on the parmesan cheese for the extra calories and sodium.
Minestrone Vegetable Soup
Note this recipe halves nicely but I make the full amount and freeze it for the fall.
Ingredients
8 cups chicken broth (2 quarts)
2 cans of cannellini beans (or kidney beans if you prefer)
3-4 carrots (1 cup chopped)
2 stalks celery (½ cup chopped)
1 white onion (1 cup minced)
2 large potatoes (3 cups cubed)
2 cans of petite diced tomatoes (we prefer the Italian spiced ones)
8 tbsp butter
1 cup frozen spinach
1 can tomato paste
4 cloves garlic (I used the pre-minced kind and measure it by the instructions on the jar)
4 tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp salt
1 tsp beef bouillon paste (for that beefy minestrone taste)
1 ½ cups ditalini pasta (can sub in elbow, shell or other small macaroni)
½ to 1 cup grated or shredded parmesan cheese for topping
Instructions
In a large pot, saute butter, onion, celery, carrots. Then add all other ingredients except the pasta and cheese. Bring pot to boil and simmer for 1 hour. Then add the pasta and simmer for another 20 minutes. Serve with parmesan cheese on top.
Freezing tip: Coat the inside of the container with olive oil before adding the soup, it will prevent your freezer container from permanent stains.
Monday, March 3, 2014
Recipe: Scalloped Sweet Potatoes
I love sweet potatoes but wanted to stay away from the traditional
sugared-up versions found on many recipe sites. So I was thrilled to find thisgreat option for scalloped sweet potatoes on the Tasty Kitchen Blog.
But…I’ll be honest; I struggled with the preparation part. It calls for
sweet potatoes cut in ¼ inch slices. I’m terrified of knives so my slices ended
up more like ½ inch thick with various levels of thickness in each slice. So it
kind of turned out crappy. It’s really important to get the sweet potatoes as
thin and consistent as possible for the best cooking results.
 |
| What is the secret to getting these so thin? |
Ingredients
5 strips bacon
½ white onion, chopped finely (add more if you like onion)
2-½ tablespoons white flour
½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoons black pepper
1 cup Half N Half
1 cup skim milk
1-¼ cup grated or shredded parmesan cheese
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Peel
potatoes and cut into 1/4 inch slices or thinner. Place potatoes in a large pot
of boiling water. Cook for 5-10 minutes or until just tender. Don’t overcook! Drain
well and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, fry bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Drain on a paper towel, crumble and set aside.
3. Add chopped onion to bacon drippings and cook until tender. Stir in flour over low heat and cook to a paste. Add salt and pepper. Add milk and cook until mixture thickens slightly.
4. Arrange half of the sweet potatoes in the bottom of an 11×7 inch baking dish. Sprinkle on half of the crumbled bacon. Pour on half of the milk mixture. Arrange remaining potatoes, sprinkle with remaining bacon and pour the rest of the milk mixture over the top. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. If desired, brown cheese for 1-2 minutes under the broiler.
2. Meanwhile, fry bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Drain on a paper towel, crumble and set aside.
3. Add chopped onion to bacon drippings and cook until tender. Stir in flour over low heat and cook to a paste. Add salt and pepper. Add milk and cook until mixture thickens slightly.
4. Arrange half of the sweet potatoes in the bottom of an 11×7 inch baking dish. Sprinkle on half of the crumbled bacon. Pour on half of the milk mixture. Arrange remaining potatoes, sprinkle with remaining bacon and pour the rest of the milk mixture over the top. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. If desired, brown cheese for 1-2 minutes under the broiler.
Notes:
I use thislittle chopper to mince up the onion – works great!
I had some leftover bacon from my Turkey
Meatloaf recipe so I cooked it ahead of time and forgot to save the bacon fat.
So I just used a bit of olive oil to fry the onion in.
I would not recommend leaving out the bacon or the onion –
the parmesan cheese is a nice touch but the recipe still needs all the flavor
it can get. I still think it needs a bit of savory zip in there somewhere so
was going to experiment with some herbs next time around.
Potluck tip: if prepared in advance,
bake as directed, cover and refrigerate for up to one day. Reheat at 325
degrees for 15 minutes covered, then remove cover and continue heating until
warm.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Recipe: Oven Baked Parmesan Chicken
We have been stuck inside since Polar Vortex Part II arrived a few days ago and Big Guy has wasted no time cleaning out the pantry of all the food. Did I mention that my non-CFer has a BMI that plots above the pediatric growth charts? WTH.
Anyway, we were left with pretty much NO ingredients for anything substantial except for this little supper gem. Ironically Big Guy hated it and Lil Guy loved it so we'll make it again.
Ingredients
6 to 8 chicken breasts, pounded thin (or just buy them thin and trimmed like we did, it saves time)
1 clove garlic (I used 1/2 tsp minced garlic already in the jar)
1/2 cup melted butter
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup regular bread crumbs (you can substitute Italian seasoned bread crumbs and skip the next three spices)
1/2 tsp each of dried basil, oregano and Italian seasoning
2 tsp dried parsley (or 2 tbsp. fresh if you want to get fancy)
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a shallow glass dish with cooking spray.
2. Combine the garlic and melted butter in one bowl.
3. Combine the bread crumbs, cheese, spices, salt and pepper in another bowl.
4. Dip the chicken pieces in the garlic butter and then into the crumb mixture to coat.
5. Place the coated chicken pieces into the baking dish and drizzle with remaining garlic butter and bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear.
Notes
I made the recipe with four chicken breasts and had lots of garlic butter and breadcrumb coating left over. So I think it would work well with eight small chicken breasts or six medium size ones.
For CFers: I drizzled extra garlic butter on Lil Guy's chicken piece and was surprised to find that it didn't seem soggier than the other pieces. A great way to get in some extra fat calories.
For non CFers: If you are trying to keep calories low, try skipping the butter wash and just top those chicken pieces with the breadcrumb mixture.
This recipe was adapted from AllRecipes.com.
Anyway, we were left with pretty much NO ingredients for anything substantial except for this little supper gem. Ironically Big Guy hated it and Lil Guy loved it so we'll make it again.
 |
| Photo courtesy of AllRecipes.com |
Ingredients
6 to 8 chicken breasts, pounded thin (or just buy them thin and trimmed like we did, it saves time)
1 clove garlic (I used 1/2 tsp minced garlic already in the jar)
1/2 cup melted butter
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
1 cup regular bread crumbs (you can substitute Italian seasoned bread crumbs and skip the next three spices)
1/2 tsp each of dried basil, oregano and Italian seasoning
2 tsp dried parsley (or 2 tbsp. fresh if you want to get fancy)
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a shallow glass dish with cooking spray.
2. Combine the garlic and melted butter in one bowl.
3. Combine the bread crumbs, cheese, spices, salt and pepper in another bowl.
4. Dip the chicken pieces in the garlic butter and then into the crumb mixture to coat.
5. Place the coated chicken pieces into the baking dish and drizzle with remaining garlic butter and bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear.
Notes
I made the recipe with four chicken breasts and had lots of garlic butter and breadcrumb coating left over. So I think it would work well with eight small chicken breasts or six medium size ones.
For CFers: I drizzled extra garlic butter on Lil Guy's chicken piece and was surprised to find that it didn't seem soggier than the other pieces. A great way to get in some extra fat calories.
For non CFers: If you are trying to keep calories low, try skipping the butter wash and just top those chicken pieces with the breadcrumb mixture.
This recipe was adapted from AllRecipes.com.
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