Sweet Potato French Toast

My husband wanted to have a Good Friday bunch after church.  He wanted bacon, eggs and french toast.  Often, when we have something like that, I'd just eat what I can and not worry about the rest but this time I decided I wanted to try and make some french toast that I can eat.  It was a nice surprise!  I want to play around a bit and see if I can get the egg mixture to stick to the sweet potato a bit better but for now, this was good.

If you are eating AIP, you need to know that this isn't compliant as it has eggs and almond milk.  But once you successfully re-introduce those things, this is something you can try! 

All I did was slice the sweet potato and toast it in the toaster.  I found that the thinner slice was better than the thicker slice.  I toasted it two or three times ... til it was browned.  

Then I made the 'batter" just like normal french toast.  I used an egg, some almond milk, homemade vanilla extract, and a bit of cinnamon.  Dip the toasted sweet potato slices into the batter and then cook in an already heated fry pan.

I topped the toast with a bit of pure maple syrup and fresh raspberries.

And we had scrambled eggs (I just do eggs with nothing added) and some AIP compliant bacon.

A delicious Good Friday brunch! 

Senator Russell's Sweet Potato Souffle

(table decorations H.L. ~ original photo E.O.)

We were invited to share Thanksgiving with friends this year and I was given the task of making Senator Russell's Sweet Potato Souffle. A favorite in the family ! NO PRESSURE ! ha ha. I had never made this dish before but I had eaten it once so I had that at least ! Anyway ... it turned out well and I think it will be a regular at our future Thanksgiving feasts !

(recipe D.L.)

Don't you just love handwritten recipes ? I do !!

You can pretty much see everything there to make it ... But a couple little things I should tell you. You can start with 1/4 cup sugar and taste as you go. I added a little bit more than 1/4 cup but didn't get up to 1/2 cup. Actually I double the recipe and for that whole thing I used 3/4 of a cup. It depends on the sweetness of your sweet potatoes ... and palate, I suppose :)

AND ... mash the potatoes smooth. My friend who gave me the recipe said "you're not lookin' for rustic here, you're lookin' for smoooooth ..." I used my food processor.

For the Aussies ... 350F is 180C.

**
I forgot to take a photo ... can you believe that ? ME ?? Forgetting to take a photo ?? Of food ?? Crazy !! Luckily, photos went up on facebook and I found this one ... well, sort of ...

Edited 15/12 ... the photographer of this photo emailed me the original after he saw the ridiculous photo I posted in it's place !! Thanks !! Here is the photo I wanted to have here ...

(photo by E.O.)

I could NOT for the life of me get the photos off of facebook ! Seriously !! I could drop and drag but when I clicked on the photo on my desktop it just took me back to facebook. I did 'save photo' but then when I clicked it told me no such photo existed ! Stinking thing ! Never one to be defeated ... I just took a photos of the photos with my iPhone ... emailed them to myself and voila ... !

I hope you make this soon. It's YUM YUM YUM !! If it wasn't summer, I'd be making it again today ....

Yummy yummy yam yam

SEASONED SWEET POTATO BITES


Cut two large yams into bite-sized chunks.
I like jersey yams, but any sweet potato will do.

Soak in ice water for about 20 minutes.
Dry with paper towels.

Add in one tablespoon of oil for each pound of yams.
Shake in enough Lawry's Seasoned Salt to coat.

Spread on a cookie sheet in a single layer
Bake at 450 degrees for 45 minutes (or so) until soft on the inside
and browned on the outside

Crock Pot Baked Potatoes

I got this recipe from fat free vegan.com
She has got an incredible collection of vegetable recipes ... as one might imagine !

I left these in all day and they were delicious.
The ones on the bottom of the crock pot got a bit toasty on the bottom tough.
Next time I will wad up balls of tin foil and put them on the bottom
and I think all my problems will be solved ...

at least where crock pots and potatoes are involved.

I did sweet potatoes too.
And then I just topped them with what we had in the house which happened to be :
Frozen peas and corn ... that I heated, of course !
Greek yogurt, grated cheese and a tiny bit of bacon.

Here's how I am going to do it next time.
Wad balls of tin foil and put in bottom of crock pot.
Wrap potatoes and sweet potatoes in tin foil and put in crock pot.
Turn crock pot on low. Come back in 8-10 hours.

Menu Plan Monday

Ok so it's not Monday here yet, but I won't get to it tomorrow and I'm leaving town Tuesday night. They baby and I are flying to Ithaca, New York for my annual sister's get together. (There are eight of us sisters :) )
So here are my two days of menus and the boys will have to eat leftovers and fend for themselves while I'm gone because Jared doesn't cook - but his Mom is in town so I doubt they will starve.
Tonight we had - Sweet Potato Black Bean Burritos
Monday - Honey Pork Chops
Tuesday - Penne with Chicken Broccoli and Cheese


Here are the recipes :)

Sweet Potato Black Bean Burritos
(I got this recipe from my sister - not sure where she got it) We all love these and though they might sound a bit weird, the flavors really mesh well together. I promise! I usually half the recipe.



3 tsp oil
1 onion chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
6 cups black beans rinsed and drained
2 cups water
3T chili powder
2t cumin
4t yellow mustard
1 pinch cayenne pepper
3T soy sauce
4 cups mashed cooked sweet potato
flour tortillas
shredded cheese
sour cream
salsa -optional

Saute the onion and garlic in the oil. Add the beans to the pan and mash with a fork or potato masher. Stir in the water and remove from heat. Add the chili powder, cumin, mustard, cayenne pepper and soy sauce.
To serve spread some mashed sweet potatoes onto a tortilla. Add some bean mixture and shredded cheese Serve with sour cream and salsa if desired. roll up and eat :)


Penne with Chicken, Broccoli and Cheese

1 cup broccoli florets
1/4 cup butter
2 skinless chicken breasts halves cut into thin strips
2 garlic cloves crushed
salt and pepper to taste
3 1/4 cups penne pasta
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup heavy cream
3 1/2 gorgonzola cheese, rind removed and diced small
parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Plunge brocoli in a saucepan of boiling salted water. Return to a boil and boil for two minutes, then drain in colander under cold running water. Shake to remove surplus water and set aside to drain completely.
Melt butter in large skillet or saucepan. Add chicken and garlic, with salt and pepper to taste; stirl well. Fry over medium heat for 3 minutes or until chicken becomes white. Meanwhile, begin cooking pasta according to package instructions.
Pour wine and cream over chicken mixture in pan. Stir to mix, then simmer stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes, until sauce has reduced and thickened. Increase heat, add brocooli, and toss to heat through. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
Drain pasta and add it to the sauce. Add gorgonzola and toss well. Top with parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

(recipe from "Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer" Some of the recipes in there are written really wonky! For example, "Plunge broccoli. . ." ha ha)

Honey Pork Chops

(I havn't tried these yet- hope they're good)
6 boneless pork chops
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 t ground ginger
1 clove garlic minced
2 T soy sauce
dash of pepper

Place all ingredients except pork chops in blender and mix thoroughly. Place pork chops and the marinade in baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/4 hours turning chops occasionally while baking. Pork chops may also be grilled.(recipe from "Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer")

Potato and Sweet Potato "fries"

These were so yummy and so easy ... I served these with Rory's salmon. I also made Paella de Granos de Paraiso (Amaranth Paella with Peppers and Greens) and it was NASTY. We did not eat it. I hate it when that happens. It happens to rarely that when it does, it really bums me out ! I'm glad I thought to do these as well !! I think it's always a good idea to have a second side when the side you are trying is new !

So ... how to ? I just cut up a big sweet potato and a couple potatoes ... french fry style ! i lined a baking dish (actually, I used two) with baking paper. Drizzled a bit of olive oil and then used my pastry brush to coat them evenly. Sprinkled with a bit of garlic salt. Into a hot (400F/200C) oven for 45 (?) minutes. Delicious !!! The kids weren't that fussed on the sweet potato ones but they ate the three that I made mandatory eating without complaint.