Sweet Potato Taco Casserole

Source: Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:
2 medium-large sweet potatoes
1 lb lean ground beef
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves (large) garlic, minced
1 large red bell pepper, diced (I only had a green)
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 can (15 oz. size) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 1/2 oz. size) diced fire-roasted tomatoes (do not drain) (I had diced tomatoes with chiles, so I used that instead)
2 cups chunky salsa (I used picante sauce)
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (just regular for me)
1 teaspoon dried mexican oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste) (skipped it)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
thick corn tortilla chips, as needed (we always have santitas brand because they're cheap and good and they were just great)
8 ounces, weight shredded mexican cheese blend (I just grated some sharp cheddar)
4 ounces, weight shredded pepper jack cheese
sliced green onion and chopped cilantro, for garnish (optional)
salsa, guacamole, sour cream, to serve (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with nonstick spray and set aside.

Peel and spiralize sweet potatoes, chopping just a bit to shorten very long strands. If you don't have a spiralizer, just dice the sweet potato into small cubes. (I don't have a spiralizer, but I kind of wish I did after seeing this application for it.  I just did the dice thing and it was fine.)  Set aside.

In an extra-large skillet over medium to medium-high heat, brown beef with onion, breaking up any large chunks and stirring occasionally. When the pink color is almost gone from the beef, stir in garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in red pepper, corn, and sweet potato. Then add the beans, tomatoes, salsa, chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper, folding to combine. Turn heat down just a bit to medium and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring a few times. If you are using diced sweet potatoes rather than spiralized, you will need to cook this a bit longer. Just make sure that the sweet potato has softened.

Spread 2 cups of the beef mixture into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Layer tortilla chips on top, slightly overlapping the chips. Drop half of the remaining beef mixture  by spoonfuls over the chips, and then spread it out into an even layer. Sprinkle half the Mexican cheese and half the pepper jack cheese over the beef mixture. Top with another layer of tortilla chips, followed by the remaining beef mixture and then the cheeses.

Cover pan loosely with foil (so the foil doesn't touch the cheese) and cook for about 30 minutes (I think I had mine in the oven for a bit longer to get my chunks of sweet potato to cook through thoroughly), or until cheese is melted and the casserole is heated throughout. Remove foil, place pan under broiler, and broil until cheese is browned to your liking. Remove from oven and top with optional green onion and/or cilantro. Serve immediately with optional sour cream, guacamole, and/or salsa on the side.

Notes:
I love me some sweet potato tacos, a favorite in our meal rotation for four years now.  So when I saw this recipe pop up in my blog feed a few weeks ago, I knew I would love it, too.  Same flavors (plus corn and tortilla chips - bonus!) in a casserole form (I know they get a bad rap sometimes, but I LOVE casseroles!).  Perfect.  I set my sights on May 5th - Cinco de Mayo - to give this dish a try.  Oh, it was good!  I really love the addition of the tortilla chip layers.  It reminded me of what I imagine chilaquiles would taste like (I haven't had them, but what I know about them, I bet it's similar).  They lose their crunch, but add a delicious level of corn flavor, much like a tortilla would add, but without becoming soggy.  I am a fan.  Big time.

Peach Salsa Pork Roast with Sweet Potatoes (Slow Cooker)

Source

Ingredients:
1 (2 - 2.5 pound) boneless pork roast
salt and pepper
1 tablespoons oil
5 small peeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
2 cups peach salsa

Directions:
1. Scatter the cubed sweet potatoes in the bottom of a slow cooker/crock pot. Put the lid in place and set the slow cooker to high.
2. Sprinkle the pork roast generously with salt and pepper on all sides.
3. Sear the pork roast in a skillet over high heat. Set the pork roast on top of the cubed sweet potatoes. Pour the peach salsa over the top, put the lid in place, and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 7-9 hours. (The pork is done when it measures 145 F on a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the roast.)

Notes: Oh my heavens. This was delicious. I served it with garlic-mushroom couscous and green beans and it was one of the best Sunday dinners that we've had in a while. A few notes/adaptations:
- I think the outcome of this recipe is quite subjective to the quality of the salsa you use. As much as I wish I had home-bottled peach salsa in my pantry, I don't (but making some is now on my to do list for next summer!), so I picked up some fresh mango salsa from my grocery store's deli, then added a can of peaches (drained) into the crockpot. When making this in the future, I'll definitely always use something as yellow as possible (as opposed to tomato-based salsa with a few chunks of peach tossed in).
- This didn't have as much flavor as it smelled like it would. I was expecting more of a saturated, stand-alone flavor, but it wasn't like that. We had to top each piece with some salsa for it to have enough flavor. It worked out nicely though because the kids liked how plain it was and gobbled it up. This may also have to do with the fact that I used a huge roast (almost 4 pounds) so that we would have lots of leftovers to freeze for lunches and future pizza nights.
- The sweet potatoes were very soggy, delicious (maybe even my favorite part), but more mashed than cubed by the end.

Kielbasa Tinfoil Dinners

Source: inspired by a photo on pinterest that had no recipe to go along with it

Ingredients:
1 lb kielbasa sausage, sliced into 1/2 discs
1 green pepper, cut into chunks
1 onion, cut into chunks
4 red potatoes, cut into chunks
1 medium sweet potato, cut into chunks (are you noticing a theme here?)
1-2 Tablespoons butter
salt, pepper, garlic powder and parsley, to taste

Directions:
Even though I originally intended to make this as a foil pouch meal and cook it on the grill, I actually ended up just tossing everything into a 9x13" baking dish, adding a couple dollops of butter on top, and seasoning to taste with whatever I grabbed from the spice cabinet.  Then I covered the casserole with tinfoil and baked at 375 degrees until the potatoes were tender.  I honestly can't remember how long it took; probably 30-45 minutes, I'm guessing.

Notes:
I love tinfoil dinners, but I normally make them with a ground beef patty, sliced potatoes, and carrots and onions, with a squirt of ketchup for moisture and seasoning.  When I saw this photo pop up in my pinterest feed, I knew I had to give it a try.  It was fantastic!  So flavorful and delicious.  We all loved it.

Penne with Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Source: my mom, who got it from a Quick Cooking Magazine (she thinks)

Ingredients:
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 medium onion, halved and sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced (I'm out of fresh garlic and my garlic press broke - sad day! - so I just used 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
1 Tablespoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried sage leaves (I didn't have any sage so I subbed marjoram - don't ask me why I have marjoram but not sage!)
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 cups penne
2 Tablespoons butter
1 cup whipping cream (I used the 1/4 cup butter + 3/4 cups 1% milk substitution trick for the cream - and I also sprinkled in a bit of flour to help it thicken up, but I don't know that it actually helped so I'll probably just skip that next time)
1/2 cup chicken broth
shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:
Place sweet potatoes and onion in an ungreased baking pan. Combine the garlic, oil, salt, sage and pepper; drizzle over vegetables and toss to coat.

Bake uncovered at 400 for 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Cook penne according to package directions.

In a small saucepan melt butter; stir in cream and broth. Bring to a gentle boil; cook for 10-12 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Drain penne, add to vegetables. Add cream, toss to coat. Sprinkle with cheese.

Notes:
My mom served this for dinner while I was there visiting last week and Callie and I loved it.  It's a meal that's right up our alley with our love for sweet potatoes.  I decided I had to make it soon upon my return home, and Gregg loved it, too.  I was happy with how quickly it all came together and how delicious it smells while the potatoes are roasting.  This one will definitely be staying in our meal rotation. (I always call this and then search for "roasted sweet potato penne" and it never comes up in the search . . . so maybe it will now that I've made this random little note.)

Lentil-Sausage Soup (ie: "Sick Soup")

Source: me

Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
4 large carrots, peeled and chopped
1 large onion, diced
4-6 stalks celery
2 tsp minced garlic
1/2-1 lb. Sage ground sausage (optional)
6 cups beef broth
2 medium zucchini, diced
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 c. lentils
2-3 tsp italian seasoning

Directions:
1. Saute carrots, onion, celery, sausage  and garlic in oil until sausage is browned. Drain, if needed.
2. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer for 30 minutes or until lentils and sweet potatoes are soft.

Notes: Our family caught a wicked cold/flu bug this week and spent all day in bed today. With my limited energy, I wasn't interested in making a fancy dinner, I just wanted something soothing and nutritious. I tossed this with low expectations (for flavor, but high expectations for nutrition), but the final product was so delicious that I had to record and share it immediately. Mom's whole wheat stir-and-roll baking powder biscuits were the perfect side dish.

Balsamic Root Vegetables

Source: here, after a google search for "crock pot vegetable side dishes"

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (I probably had closer to 2 lbs)
1 pound parsnips (I think my parsnips came out to a little over a pound)
1 pound carrots
2 large red onions, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper (left it out on accident and it was fine - you could just add pepper at the table, if you'd like)
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (bought it, but totally forgot to add it - would've looked nice, I think, but otherwise was not missed)

Directions:
Peel first 3 ingredients, and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Combine parsnips, carrots, onions, and cranberries in a lightly greased 6-qt. slow cooker; layer sweet potatoes over top.  (I didn't follow this layering technique - just threw everything in together.)

Whisk together sugar and next 4 ingredients in a small bowl; pour over vegetable mixture. (Do not stir.)

Cover and cook on high 4 to 5 hours or until vegetables are tender. Toss with parsley just before serving.

Notes:
I was assigned a vegetable side for Thanksgiving with the Blanchards (which happened on the Sunday before) and I remembered that last year the oven was quite occupied before the big meal.  In an effort to avoid waiting for vegetables to cook in a crowded oven or stove top, I decided to utilize the trusty crock pot.  After googling recipes for vegetable sides cooked in a slow cooker, I saw this one first thing.  It looked good, and with Laurel's encouragement, I decided to give it a try.  I admit I felt a little nervous trying a brand new recipe for a big family dinner, but Kim's excitement over the ingredient list gave me hope that it wouldn't be a huge flop.  I'd never bought or eaten parsnips before, but they turned out to be delicious.  And I'm glad Kim talked me into using both red onions; it definitely wasn't too oniony and they cooked up nice and sweet.  This was a hit and totally delicious!

Sweet Potato Corn Chowder

Source: Me, based on this

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 10-oz package frozen corn
2 medium zucchini, quartered then sliced
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon paprika
3 tablespoons flour (I was making this gluten-free so I subbed with cornstarch at the end of cooking)
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream (I used more milk to keep it healthy)
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped (optional - I omitted)
Salt & Pepper

Directions:
1. In a large soup pot, heat the EVOO over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook until crisp at the edges. Add the onion and sweet potato and cook until softened. Add the corn, zucchini, thyme, bay leaf, and paprika and cook until tender. Sprinkle the flour into the pot, stir and cook for 1 minute. Gradually stir in the broth and simmer until thickened a bit. Stir in the milk, cream, and parsley and simmer until the potatoes are tender.
2. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Thicken with cornstarch, if needed.

Notes:
Make this. Make this now. It's the best chowder you've ever made, with a spectacular new flavor. The perfect comfort food to warm you up during this everlasting cold spell!

Sweet Potato Tacos

Source: adapted from a recipe by Natalie (Perry's Plate), via the Tasty Kitchen blog

Ingredients:

½ pound ground beef or turkey

2 Tablespoons taco seasoning

½ cup tomato sauce (usually I use a whole 8 oz can)

1 can (15 oz.) black, kidney, or pinto beans, drained (I'm usually a huge fan of black beans in things like this, but this time I opted for kidney and LOVED it)

6 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (I used 4+ cups - filled up my large liquid measuring cup - which came from one biggish and one smallish sweet potato)

2 tablespoons butter

½ teaspoon salt

1½ cups chopped fresh spinach (didn't have any, but I didn't let that stop me from making it)

1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese

tortillas, sour cream, salsa, fresh cilantro, and/or guacamole for garnish

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425ºF.  (I actually had it a little lower - more like 380 or so and cooked it a bit longer because I got it into the oven a bit earlier than I needed to)

Brown ground meat in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in taco seasoning, tomato sauce, and beans. Set aside.

Spray a 9x13 inch casserole dish with non-stick spray.  Place sweet potato cubes in the pan and top with the butter and a sprinkle of salt.  This is where you'd add the spinach if you had it, but if you don't, it's still darn yummy.  Then add the taco meat and bean mixture and the cheese (but next time I'm debating about whether I'll skip the cheese at this step and just add it at the end with the garnishes).  Cover with foil and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are tender.

The original recipe assembled everything in foil packets: To assemble packets, spray the foil with non-stick spray. Place 1 cup sweet potato cubes in the center of each piece. Top with a small piece of butter (about 1 teaspoon) and a pinch or two of salt. Sprinkle some chopped spinach over the sweet potatoes, followed by about 1/3 cup of taco meat and a sprinkle of cheese. Fold the sides in, then bring the top and bottom ends of the foil together in the center and fold, sealing the packet.
Repeat with remaining ingredients, placing the packets on a rimmed cookie sheet.  Bake as above.  I thought this might make a great campfire meal idea - with or without the tortilla.

Serve in a tortilla with sour cream, salsa and a few sprigs of fresh cilantro.  And guacamole if you have some.

Makes 6 servings.

Notes:
This may be my fastest turnaround from seeing a recipe to saving it (on Pinterest, of course) to making and eating it to photographing and blogging it.  All done in just about a day and a half!  And that's saying something.  I'm really on a sweet potato kick at the moment, so whenever I see a recipe doing something creative with them, I get really excited.  And this one was really, really great.  A keeper, for sure.  Especially with homemade tortillas, as seen in the photo above (only because we didn't have any from the store, but now I wonder if I'll ever go back!).

Update:
I've made this multiple times now - we LOVE it!  I even tried it in the crock pot recently and it worked like a charm.  I did up the sweet potatoes to 3 medium sized (probably closer to that 6 cups of cubed sweet potato that the original recipe calls for, but I'm not totally sure because I didn't actually measure).  I also added a whole can (1 cup) of tomato sauce to the meat/bean mixture just because I didn't want to have a half can sitting in my fridge and then going moldy (that's what happened last time).  It was perfect.  Still haven't tried it with spinach, but I think it would be wonderful.  Black or kidney beans are my usual choices.  And I don't add cheese in the oven/crock pot (I did the first time, but ever since nope) - I just sprinkle some on top as garnish in my taco shell.

Mexican Sweet Potato Skins

. . . or Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potatoes (if you don't eat the skins - are you supposed to eat the skins? I just don't know about that . . .)

Source: slightly modified (because I didn't have everything that was needed but wanted to eat them anyway) from pinchofyum.com (via Pinterest)

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients:
3 medium sweet potatoes
1 can corn, rinsed and patted dry (forgot the rinsing and patting step - whoops!)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 Tablespoon butter
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
2-4 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced or pureed (didn't have this - but subbed in a roasted chile pepper that I've had in my freezer since last fall)
1 ounce light cream cheese (didn't have this either - just bumped up the sour cream a titch instead)
1/4 cup light sour cream
1 teaspoon salt (+ more to taste)
1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
6 Tablespoons shredded cheese (Pepperjack, Cheddar, Colby Jack… anything will work)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake the sweet potatoes for 45-60 minutes.

While sweet potatoes are baking, place corn in a heavy cast-iron skillet (didn't have one - and while my corn wasn't quite as lovely and roasted as the original author's, I think it smelled and tasted quite divine anyway) over medium-high heat with no butter or oil. Sprinkle with salt and other Mexican seasoning (as much as you want) (I used a few shakes of homemade taco seasoning). Do not stir! Let corn roast for several minutes before stirring. Let it roast for a few more minutes before stirring again. Continue this for about 10 minutes, until corn is browned and roasted on the outside. Set aside in a small bowl with the black beans.

Saute the onion in the butter over medium heat until soft and translucent. Set aside.

Remove sweet potatoes from the oven when fork-tender. Let cool for 5-10 minutes. Cut the sweet potatoes in half. Scrape the flesh of the sweet potatoes out, leaving the skins intact. Sometimes leaving a thin layer of potato inside of the skins helps them hold together better.

Mix the flesh of the sweet potatoes with the cream cheese, sour cream, chipotle peppers, and salt. You can use a mixer or just a spoon (or a potato masher worked awesome!), depending on how soft the potatoes are. When well-mixed, gently stir in the black beans, roasted corn, sauteed onions, and cilantro.

Scoop the filling into the skins and top each with 1 tablespoon shredded cheese. Broil for about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Notes:
We had sweet potato fries one night for dinner while I was in Virginia with Victoria and Ryan and it reminded me how much I love sweet potatoes.  So much, in fact, that after I got home I bought some, fully intending to make some fries myself.  Then, I saw this recipe on pinterest and I knew I had to try it with my newly acquired sweet potatoes from City Market.  Black beans plus corn plus anything is lovely in my book, so I knew it would be a winner.  I was a bit hesitant about the whole "twice baked" idea, thinking that it would be kind of a pain and take a long time.  Don't be scared!  This really was a pretty simple recipe to throw together - just be sure to give the potatoes enough time to bake (ours took about an hour) and you're set.  Mmm . . . super filling and super delicious.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Source: Susan Brown
Contributor: Victoria Blanchard

Ingredients

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes (Yams)

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup melted butter

Topping

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup melted butter

1 cup chopped pecans (Sue said she probably doubled the amount of nuts---I'd recommend doing that!)

Directions

Combine first 6 ingredients. Pour into a buttered 1 1/2 to 2 quart casserole dish. Mix remaining ingredients together and sprinkle over top. Bake at 350 for 30 to 40 minutes until hot and browned. Serves 6 to 8.

Notes: This was my and Ryan's favorite dish at the Thanksgiving dinner potluck we shared with some friends this year. We've never been big fans of marshmallow topping on sweet potatoes, but pecans, mmm, boy! There were several versions of this served at the Ward Christmas Party, so I think this is a pretty classic southern holiday dish. I recommend it (especially with extra pecans for the topping). Also, I'm pretty sure she used fresh sweet potatoes, not canned, which probably makes a difference.

Honey Glazed Roasted Vegetables

Source: www.eggplantrecipes.net

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes (or more depending on how many veggies you use)

Ingredients

1/4 cup Honey
1/4 cup Olive Oil
3 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
1 Garlic Clove, peeled and crushed
Salt, Pepper, and Dried Thyme, to taste (I didn't use any of these)
4-6 cups mixed halved Red Potatoes, sliced Zucchini, thickly sliced Onions, Red Peppers, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, sliced Eggplant (I did big chunks of everything, and I sweated my eggplant first.)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. 2. Combine honey, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, crushed garlic, salt, pepper, and thyme in small bowl. 3. Mix well. 4. Arrange red potatoes, zucchini, onions, red peppers, carrots, sweet potatoes, and eggplant in roasting pan. 5. Brush honey mixture over vegetables. (I just spooned it over and stirred it around well.) 6. Bake 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. (I only stirred it when I made the 9x13; the 8x8 didn't need it.)

Comments: The recipe is AMAZING. Seriously, it's a new favorite for Ryan and me. We got an eggplant with our CSA veggies, and I had no idea what to do with it (Can't have Eggplant Parmesean with Katie's milk allergy). I found this recipe and knew I would like it (I have a pretty big sweet tooth.) The great thing is, you can use whatever veggies you have in the house. I used potatoes, carrots, sweet red peppers, eggplant, and onion. The first time I just did an 8x8 and the 30 minutes of cooking time was plenty. The second time I did a 9x13 (doubling the glaze recipe), and it took at least an hour (the carrots were the real problem--I finally covered the pan in foil, which helped). Also, the second time, we served the veggies over Ry's incredible garlic (non-dairy) mashed potatoes. It was so amazing! The vegetables taste like candy, and with the mashed potatoes, it was so filling and the perfect comfort food. I can't wait to make this in the winter!

East Potato Sides

Source: Laurel

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Bake Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Bret and I have started adding a potato side dish to most of our dinners for several reasons: 1) eat more vegetables, 2) reduce our calorie intake by filling up on lighter side dishes instead of just one large main dish, and 3) add more volume to the meal for super cheap (let's face it, we're farrers/blanchards and it takes a lot to fill us up). We've had a lot of fun mixing and matching different combinations:

Step 1: Potatoes (cut and spread in a single layer on cookie sheet)

-diced red or russet potatoes

-thinly sliced sweet potatoes

Step 2: Seasonings (rub potatoes with a little olive oil and desired seasonings)

-parmesan cheese, italian bread crumbs, and garlic salt

-seasoned salt, pepper, chili powder, cinnamon

-salt, lemon pepper, orange zest

-invent your own!

Step 3: Bake (425F oven for 20-30 minutes, longer if potatoes are cut extra thick)

Step 4: Enjoy!

Note: For efficiency, I usually make the potatoes first, then make the main dish while they're cooking so that both are done around the same time and ready to serve.