Healthier Sweet Potato Casserole

One of my favorite things in the world is sweet potato casserole.  Probably due to the insane amounts of sugar that are added to this side dish.  Brown sugar is usually mixed in and some sort of candy coating goes on top- often marshmallows (made with sucralose and gelatin- gelatin is made from animal hooves and bones) and more sugar.

 So I've made a healthier, less sweet version. Sweet potatoes are naturally sweet (duh), so I don't see a reason to load up on added sugar.  I added 1 tsp of honey to 2 cups mashed sweet potato, and then added a granola topping mixed with a bit of turbino sugar (also called muscavado sugar- a brown sugar made by adding mollasses to white sugar). Turbino sugar gives a nice sugary crunch. 

Sweet potatoes are also considered one of the world's healthiest foods, so don't wait until Thanksgiving to eat! They give you a big dose of beta-carotene, are high in vitamin B6, vitamin C, and also contain vitamin D, vitamin A, iron, fiber, potassium  and magnesium- the 'relaxation and anti-stress' mineral- necessary for healthy artery, blood, bone, heart, muscle, and nerve function. Read more about sweet potatoes health benefits here.  

It may not be Thanksgiving but I'm enjoying sweet potatoes year round.  If it WAS Thanksgiving, this is a nice make-ahead dish.  You can add the sweet potato mixture to a glass baking dish and store in refrigerator a day or two.  Just add the granola topping right before you pop in the oven or it'll get soggy in the fridge. 

Sweet Potato Casserole

Sweet Potatoes
2 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 tsp honey
2 tbsp melted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1/4 cup milk

Granola Topping
1 1/2 cups granola 
2 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup turbino sugar (can also use brown sugar if you have on hand)

Preheat oven to 325.

1. Lightly beat egg. Add all sweet potato ingredients to bowl and mix well. Pour into 8 x 8 glass baking dish.

2. Toss all granola ingredients together. Sprinkle on top of sweet potatoes. 

3. Bake 45 min to an hour, until granola topping a light brown in color. 

Upside Down Caramelized Root Vegetable Tart with Flaky Gruyere Crust

What's that you said?

You don't know what a parsnip is either?

I've started a new thing- I go to the supermarket, see something I've never cooked, and buy it.  

Then it sits in my fridge for a week because I don't know what to do with it. 

So I bought a couple parsnips.  Research says they are a root vegetable related to the carrot.  Makes sense, as they look like white carrots.  Wikepedia (yes, I really did get my info here) says they are buttery, sweeter than carrots, and have subtle flavors of butterscotch, honey, and cardamom when cooked.  Sounds pretty good.  

If you don't know (as I didn't) they get peeled the same way carrots do, and then simply cut into slices for this recipe.  

Sounded to me like parsnips and sweet potatoes would go pretty well together, and lucky me- I had a leftover sweet potato! So for you, I decided to make this upside down tart, quite lovely as an appetizer, a lunch, or a snack.  It can be eaten either hot or cold, though the crust is so delishiously flaky right out of the oven. 

Why upside down, you ask?

Because the vegetables caramelize so beautifully when cooked in oil in the hot cast iron skillet.  They turn a nice golden brown and have such a sweet flavor- butterscotch and honey are good ways of describing it. 

And the crust gets SO flaky when not weighed down in the bottom of a pan.  

If I had other root vegetables, I would have thrown them in too.  Experiment with whatever you have on hand, this recipe is pretty basic and forgiving.  

Upside Down Caramelized Root Vegetable Tart with Flaky Gruyere Crust

1 sweet potato, peeled, rinseed, and cut into thin (1/8 inch) slices
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/8 inch slices
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper
olive oil

Flaky Gruyere Crust
1 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
5 tbsp butter, cut in pieces and chilled
5 tbsp ice cold water
1/4 cup packed shredded gruyere

Crust:

Combine flour and salt in a large bowl.  Add the cold butter, and using your hands, work it into flour mixture until it is a crumbly texture.  Do this quickly, you don't want butter to melt too fast.  Drizzle water in and incorporate quickly (I don't mean you need to speed through this, but don't start and then walk away..)  Form gently into a ball, flatten into a 6 inch dish, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 375.

The veggies:

Heat a few drizzles of olive oil in your cast iron skillet over medium, medium high heat. Add the red onion. Saute until soft.  Add garlic, saute a minute longer, and remove red onion and garlic from pan and set aside. 

Add a bit more olive oil, allow it to warm up for 30 seconds, and add half of the sweet potato. Saute until sweet potato begins to get golden brown color.  Remove from heat and saute other half of sweet potatoes. Remove and repeat with parsnips. 

Once all your veggies are sauteed until golden, remove them all from pan and remove skillet from heat.  Now you can arrange them in a pretty manner.  Pour 1 tbsp of olive oil into the cast iron skillet and disperse.  Evenly sprinkle the thyme directly onto the pan. Begin layering veggies: I started with layering the smallest parsnips in the middle of the pan, followed by a layer of the smallest sweet potato slices, the red onion mixture, more parsnips, and more sweet potato. Season generously with salt and pepper. 

Remove the crust from the fridge and roll out until it is large enough to fit over the cast iron skillet. Quickly place it on top of the veggies and tuck the sides in a bit.  

Place in cast iron skillet in oven and bake for about 25 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

To remove the tart from the pan: 

Let cool 5-10 minutes until easier to handle.  Using a thin spatula, gently work it underneath the tart to try to lift any veggies stuck to pan.  Remember your pretty arrangement- be gentle with the spatula.  

Grab a plate- most dinner plates will fit just perfectly inside the cast iron skillet.  Place the plate on top of the tart, and (with oven mitts on!) lift the whole pan up and turn is upside down quickly.  Your tart should fall right out and look ever so perfect on your plate!  If it doesn't pry stuck veggies off and rearrange- the tart is pretty east to work with! 

Sage Rubbed Pork Chops with Fennel Orange Puree, Truffled Sweet Potato Matchsticks, Charred Brussel Sprouts

Sounds so fancy right?

Well it can be whipped up in a jiffy.

Probably one of the fastest dinners I've prepared

(have you seen my chili post?! I'm not good at whipping up quick meals!)

The porkchops are lightly seasoned with salt and pepper and rubbed with a bit of sage.  The Fennel Orange Puree is what really does it for these chops- the deep, caramelized flavor of the fennel, the freshness from the acidity in the OJ.. works really well here.

And who's gonna turn down crispy Truffled Sweet Potato Matchsticks- which by the way, all you do is cut and throw in the oven. Do buy a julienne peeler if you haven't already.  I can't imagine trying to cut sweet potatoes into uniform size by hand.  Eek. The julienne peeler works like a vegetable peeler, only instead of peeling skin off, it peels spaghetti-sized perfectly uniform 'matchsticks.'  If you don't have truffle oil, don't sweat it.  Some salt and these will still be delicious.

A weeknight meal to impress or a weekend dinner you don't have to slave over.

Either way, you win.

Sage Rubbed Pork Chops with Fennel Orange Puree, Truffled Sweet Potato Matchsticks, Charred Brussel Sprouts

2 pork chops, trimmed of excessive fat (leave some fat for flavor!)
1 tbsp fresh minced sage leaves (about 5 or 6 leaves)
1 sweet potato
1 lb brussel sprouts
1 small bulb of fennel, trimed, cored, and thinnly sliced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
2 tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
1 tsp white truffle oil
extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tbsp balsamic vinger
salt and pepper

Make the Fennel Orange Puree
In a small pot, heat a few drizzles of olive oil over medium heat.  Reduce heat to medium low and add the shallot and fennel.  Saute about 15 minutes, until fennel is very tender. Place the mixture in a blender and season with salt and pepper. Pour in 1 tbsp of olive oil and puree.  With blender still running, slowly pour in the orange juice.  Check the taste and consistency of your puree- add more salt and pepper if needed, or add more olive oil if too thick for your tastes.  Alternatively you can substitute the olive oil for milk or cream if desired for a different flavor.

Truffled Sweet Potatoes Matchsticks
Preheat oven to 400. Cut the sweet potato in half and use a julienne peeler to cut into matchsticks. Drizzle the matchsticks with a bit of olive oil and season with a few shakes of a salt and pepper shaker.  Lay the sweet potato matchsticks out on two baking sheets.  If you use one baking sheet it will be to crowded, and the sweet potatoes will steam, leaving you with soggy matchsticks.  Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until tender and crisp. When ready, drizzle with white truffle oil, toss to combine, and serve.

Charred Brussel Sprouts
Cut the ends off of sprouts and remove loose outer leaves.  Cut each one in half lengthwise (cutting through the stem).  Heat a large DRY skillet over medium high heat with NO olive oil.  Once hot, place the brussel sprouts in pan cut side down.  Let sit and cook until the sprouts begin to blacken on the bottom.  Once they do, give them a quick stir, pour in two tbsp of olive oil, and give another stir.  Let cook about 5 minutes, season generously with salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Pour in a couple dashes of balsamic vinegar (maybe a half a tbsp).  Cook about 5 more minutes or until brussel sprouts are tender but still just a bit crisp. 

Pork Chops
In a small bowl, mix together a tsp of olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and the sage.  Rub this mixture on the pork chops, coating both sides.  Heat a few generous drizzles medium high heat.  Once hot, add the pork chops.  Cook about 4 minutes per side, until chops have a nice dark golden color and are thoroughly cooked. Remove and let rest for a few minutes.

To serve, arrange pork chops on plate.  Spoon Fennel Orange puree over top and garnish with a few fennel fronds or parsley.  Arrange Sweet Potato Matchsticks next to pork chops, and enjoy!

Sweet Potato Bisque

I'm feeling a little under the weather.

Of course I still made dinner!  

The Boyfriend offered to pick up something, but oh no, you can't keep me out of the kitchen!

What's a better solution for the sniffles than a nice hot bowl of homemade soup and some crusty bread anyway?!

This soup was a culmination of ingredients on hand. 

It's a creamy medley of sweet potato and carrot, with some added rich sweetness from the caramelized onions. 

Ever the critic (which I greatly appreciate, do not get me wrong), 

The Boyfriend says to me..'It's good, but I don't taste any butternut squash..'

To which I replied 'That's cause it's Sweet Potato!!  =)

In his defense, I have been in a bit of a butternut squash rage lately.  

In fact, I garnished this soup with toasted butternut squash seeds for a nice salty crunch.