Sweet potato

Sweet Potato Enchiladas

~ lk529 ~ 5 Comments

Mexican Monday has taken a serious hit this year. The league that I bowl on happens on Monday nights and while I don’t bowl every week it’s often enough that our traditional dinner gets switched around or even skipped.

The enchiladas I’m sharing with you today are a meatless variety – perfect for a Friday during this Lenten period. Which is when I made them. If you want to add some meat to these be my guest; cooked shredded pork or chicken would be great. The meat isn’t missed though.

There are some changes I would make though. The sweet potato is cubed instead of mashed, which provides body and meatiness to the filling, but I struggled with the texture. Next time, I’ll mash the sweet potato and add some Mexican rice to the filling to add some more substance.

Sweet Potato Enchiladas

Ingredients:

  • 1 large sweet potato
  • 1/2 C corn & black bean salsa (I used Kroger brand)
  • 2 C shreded Mexican blend cheese, divided use
  • 2 C red enchilada sauce
  • 8 flour tortillas

Steps:

  1. Microwave potato for 10 minutes. Allow to cool and remove the skin. Cube or mash as desired.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  3. Mix sweet potato with salsa and 1 1/2 C of cheese.
  4. Pour half of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish.
  5. Assemble enchiladas: Place about 1/3 C of the sweet potato filling into each tortilla, roll, and place seam side down in the prepared casserole dish.
  6. Top enchiladas with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese. Bake 20 minutes, or until bubbly and golden.

*This recipe is adapted from Averie at http://www.averiecooks.com/2014/06/sweet-potato-corn-and-black-bean-enchiladas.html*

Sweet Potato Enchiladas | Sew You Think You Can Cook

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

~ lk529 ~ 13 Comments

Happy Cupcake Day everyone!

Okay, so it’s not REALLY cupcake day.

That’s NEXT Monday.

But 25 other bloggers and I are celebrating a week early.

Coleen of The Redhead Baker set this party up and I’m happy to have found this group. If only for the excuse to make some cupcakes. (Cupcakes I sent to Stuart’s Crossfit gym for their monthly potluck. Eh, they’ve burned enough calories to not feel guilty about eating a cupcake or three, right?)  I put one of these cupcakes in Stuart’s lunch and the first words out of his mouth when he got home were “That cupcake might be the best thing you’ve ever baked!”

I decided to stay with the season we’re still technically in – Fall – and make Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting. This sweet dessert is a play on the beloved sweet potato casserole that honestly might as well be placed at the dessert table during Thanksgiving. As a bonus, if you’re still in that pumpkin craze feel free to swap the sweet potato for pumpkin, I’m sure it’d be equally delicious.

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

Ingredients for Cupcakes:

  • 1/2 C mashed cooked sweet potato
  • 1/2 stick butter, softened
  • 1 1/3 C brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 C buttermilk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 C canola oil
  • 1 1/4 C flour
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Ingredients for Frosting:

  • 1 stick butter, softened
  • 1 container (7.5 oz) marshmallow cream
  • 1 1/2 C powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp milk

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 15 cupcake molds with cupcake liners.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat sweet potato, butter, and brown sugar. Add eggs one at a time until incorporated. Mix in buttermilk, vanilla extract, and canola oil.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Add to wet ingredients in two batches, mixing until combined.
  4. Fill cupcake molds with batter. Bake 18 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Allow cupcakes to rest in mold for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.
  5. Make frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter with marshmallow cream until combined. Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk.
  6. When cupcakes have cooled, frost with the marshmallow frosting.

*This recipe is modified from Erin at http://www.imperialsugar.com/recipes/desserts/cupcakes/Sweet-Potato-Cupcakes-with-Marshmallow-Frosting*

SP cupcake FG1

Check out all of these other awesome cupcakes:

Hot Cocoa Cupcakes by The Redhead Baker

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes by The Cooking Actress

Vanilla Candy Cane Cupcakes by Noshing With The Nolands

Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Nerds Cupcakes by Amy’s Confectionery Adventures

Vegan Midori Melon Cupcakes by NinjaBaker

Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie Cupcakes with Candied Butter Pecan Frosting by From Gate to Plate

Dark Chocolate Rum Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Buttercream by Lemony Thyme

Gingerbread cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting by Eva Bakes

Cranberry Apple Cupcakes by The Pajama Chef

Almond Joy Cupcakes by Our Eating Habits

Buttered Rum Cupcakes by Adventures in All Things Food

Maple Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting by Karen’s Kitchen Stories

Cone Head Cupcakes with Ice Cream Frosting by The Spiffy Cookie

Candied Buddha’s Hand-Eggnog Cupcakes by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Almond Joy Cupcakes by Food Lust People Love

Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting for 2 by Kate’s Recipe Box

Cranberry Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream by Cheese Curd In Paradise

Peppermint Patty Cupcakes by Comfortably Domestic

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Biscoff Marshmallow Buttercream by Making Miracles

Chocolate Cupcakes with Red Velvet Frosting by {i love} my disorganized life

Lemon Cupcakes by Miss Information

Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes by Kosher Kitchen

Peppermint Cream Cookie Cupcakes by Take a Bite out of Boca

Cupcake Christmas Wreath by Lick the Spoon

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Quesadillas

~ lk529 ~ Leave a comment

I must admit, I haven’t quite gotten into a menu planning rhythm yet. Between the move and becoming a new mom it’s been hard to create some sort of schedule, but now that my husband has started his new job things might evolve into our new normal.

I’m still planning out my blog post ideas a month at a time, and I try and set a date for when I will make which dish. What I haven’t been doing is determining what we’re actually having for dinner in advance and most nights turn into a “what can we throw together?” kind of meal. Honestly though, this method means we’re saving money and wasting less food! I’m going to keep the “use what we have” mentality to plan my weekly menus – when I get back to planning weekly menus.

This Mexican Monday post evolved from just that – four easy ingredients that created a quick Monday dinner.

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Quesadillas

Ingredients:

  • 1 small sweet potato
  • 1/2 lb Mexican chorizo
  • 4 flour tortillas
  • 1/2 C shredded cheese

Steps

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Wash potato and poke with a fork. Bake 40-50 minutes until fork tender. Allow to cool before peeling. Mash potato.
  2. In a small skillet over medium high heat, brown the chorizo until fully cooked.
  3. Assemble quesadillas by spreading the mashed sweet potato on two of the quesadillas. Place one plain tortilla in a large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle with half of the cheese, top with half of the chorizo, and place the tortilla with the mashed sweet potato potato side down on top of the quesadilla. Cook on both sides until cheese is melted and tortillas are golden. Repeat for the second quesadilla.
  4. Serve with your favorite salsa.

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Quesadilla

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Hand Pies

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

After a month of quilting posts it’s time for the return of Mexican Monday.

This dinner was the first dinner I made after having my son. My mom was back for two weeks to help out and spend lots of time with her first grandchild, and then we had friends make dinner for us, and I had a couple freezer friendly slow cooker dishes prepared.

It may have been a little ambitious to tackle something this time consuming, but my husband was home and able to help keep our son satisfied. I was able to make the dough and get the sweet potatoes in the oven before needing to feed Wesley. And while he was napping I cooked up the chorizo. Later in the day, after the dough had chilled I started assembling the hand pies. I did have to swap out with Stuart so Wesley could eat – and I am thankful for his help in assembling!

The original recipe suggested using a 5-6″ round cookie cutter and folding the hand pies in half moons. I don’t have a round cookie cutter, so I used a glass – which I do with pierogi. But because there’s more filling in these hand pies than in my pierogi, I wasn’t able to fold them into half moons. So I created full circle hand pies by placing another circle of dough on top of the filling. (Good thing I doubled the recipe!)

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Hand Pies 1

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Hand Pies

Ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 C flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt, divided use
  • 2 sticks butter, cold and cubed
  • 1/2 C cold water
  • 2 sweet potatoes
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 lb chorizo
  • 1/2 – 3/4 C shredded Mexican blend cheese
  • 1 egg

Steps:

  1. Make the pie crust: In a food processor pulse together the flour and 1 tsp salt. Add in the cubed, cold butter and pulse until it becomes crumbly. Stream in the cold water until the dough comes together around the blade. Remove, wrap in plastic, and chill in fridge at least 2 hours.
  2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  3. Poke holes with a fork in the sweet potatoes. Place in oven and bake 40-50 minutes, until soft. Remove and place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set aside until cool enough to touch. Peel away the skin and mash potatoes. Stir in the cumin, cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp salt. Set aside.
  4. In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown chorizo. Breaking up with a wooden spoon. When cooked through, drain fat and set aside.
  5. Make egg wash by beating the egg with 1 tsp water.
  6. Roll out dough on a clean, floured surface to 1/8″ thickness. Using a cookie cutter or glass cut out circles. Top dough with sweet potato, chorizo, and shredded cheese. Rub egg wash around the edge of the dough and either fold into half moon or top with another circle of dough. Press hand pie closed with a fork. Cut a slit in the top of the hand pie, brush with egg wash, and sprinkle lightly with salt. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
  7. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, until lightly golden.

*This recipe is adapted from Kelley at http://www.mountainmamacooks.com/2014/03/sweet-potato-and-chorizo-hand-pies/*

Sweet Potato and Chorizo Hand Pies 2

Papa’s Sweet Potato Casserole

~ lk529 ~ 5 Comments

An absolute must have on the Thanksgiving table is Papa’s Sweet Potato Casserole. This recipe originated from Stuart’s grandfather. I have to admit that I have changed the recipe to decrease the amount of sugar.

The first time I made this casserole I substituted real pureed sweet potato in place of canned yams at my mother-in-laws recommendation. I looked at the recipe and the large quantity of sugar in the casserole frightened me, so I halved it. Even still it was way to sweet for my family members. Since then I’ve decreased the sugar even more and even reduced the amount of heavy cream. I must confess, every time I make this it turns out a little bit differently. Using fresh sweet potatoes means that I might not have the exact amount of puree once I pull it out of the food processor so I eyeball the heavy cream until the mixture reaches the perfect color.

On Thanksgiving I never have enough SPC! I even double the recipe allowing me to make one version with pecans and one version without. (My dad is allergic to nuts) To save on kitchen counter space, I make the casserole filling on Wednesday leaving only the topping to make and add right before putting in the oven Thursday.

Papa’s Sweet Potato Casserole

Ingredients:

  • 3-4 sweet potatoes
  • 1/2 – 3/4 C heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 stick butter, divided use
  • 1/2 C sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 1/2 C brown sugar
  • 1/2 C flour
  • chopped pecans (optional)

Steps:

  1. Prick potatoes with a fork and bake at 400 degrees F for 60 minutes until soft.
  2. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
  3. Peel potatoes when they are cool enough to handle.
  4. In a food processor puree sweet potatoes with heavy cream (you may need to do this in batches).
  5. In a large bowl, combine potatoes, 1 stick melted butter, sugar, vanilla, spices, and eggs. Pour into a casserole dish.
  6. Make the topping: combine brown sugar, flour, and 1/2 stick melted butter. If using pecans add to this mixture as well. Cover casserole with topping and bake 30-40 minutes, until it no longer jiggles.

Sweet Potato Casserole Sweet Potato Casserole 2