Recipe (Re)creation: Hearty Fall Salad

I know what you are thinking. If this is a salad, where are the greens?  It's not that kinda salad.  This is a grain salad, rather than a green salad. It's perfect for fall, very hearty, and comforting.  It also happens to be gluten free and full of nutrients (fiber, protein, beta-carotene, vitamin b + c, etc).  I like to double the recipe so I have leftovers during the week.  If you are going to keep some for later, just store the dressing separately. Feel free to play around with the ingredients and substitute different root vegetable or grains if you prefer. Enjoy!

Serves 3

Ingredients:

For the salad:

• 1 large sweet potato 
• 1 head of cauliflower
• 4 organic chicken apple sausage
• 1 cup cooked quinoa
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1 tsp. dried thyme

For the dressing:

• 1 cup Italian parsley, minced
• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tsp. agave or honey
• salt & pepper, to taste

Directions:

-Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with tin foil.

-Peel and chop the sweet potato and and cut the cauliflower into small florets. 

-Slice the sausage in 1/2 inches rounds and toss with the veggies. 

-Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt & pepper and top with herbs.

-Roast for 20 minutes, then stir and return to the oven for another 10 minutes. 

-Remove from oven when golden brown and set aside. 

-Meanwhile, toss all of the dressing ingredients into a jar and shake to combine.

-Mix the precooked quinoa in a large bowl with the roasted veggies and sausage.

-Toss with dressing and season with salt and pepper.

Recipe (Re)creation: Black Rice + Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

                         

I found the inspiration for this dish while perusing my January edition of Bon Appétit.  I made a few tweaks here and there, opting for sweet potatoes in lieu of butternut squash and using pine nuts instead of pistachios, and topping the dish with crispy sweet potato chips.  You can modify this to your heart's desire!  The best part is, it is gluten free, vegetarian, vegan, and totally-nutrient packed.  I added a fried egg and feta cheese to make it a well rounded and wonderfully satisfying meal, but it works just as well as a side.  Enjoy!

Serves 6-8 (as a side) 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup black rice
• 1/2 cup wild rice
• Kosher salt
• black pepper
• 1 sweet potato, peeled
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp. honey
• 2 scallions
• 1 cup mustard sprouts
• 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
• Optional additions:
• fried eggs
• feta cheese

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 450 and begin peeling and cutting your sweet potato into 1 inch cubes.

-In a baking dish or sheet, place the peels on one side, and the cubes on the other.

-Toss with 1/4 cup olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.

-Meanwhile, cook rice in a large pot of boiling salted water for 35-40 minutes.   

-Roast the sweet potato for 15 minutes, remove the crunchy peels, & cook the cubes for another 5-10 minutes.

-Whisk together the vinegar, honey, and 1/4 cup olive oil in a small bowl. 

-Transfer the rice to a large bowl and top with scallions, sprouts, pine nuts & sweet potato cubes and skins.

-Add the dressing, season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine.

-Serve as is, or add a fried egg and feta to the salad to complete your meal. 

Recipe Creation: Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

This recipe was inspired by my brand new Vitamix!  I got it for Christmas and have been hooked ever since.  I literally can make breakfast, lunch, and dinner with that bad boy. Soups, in particular, are a breeze with the Vitamix.  This soup is loosely based on a Vitamix recipe, with a few changes and improvisations.  Also, I tribute my friend Casey with the idea of adding sweet potato chips to the top.  I will never again throw away the peeled sweet potato skins!  Enjoy!

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• 1 large sweet potato
• 1 1/4 cups chicken broth
• 1/4 cup low fat evaporated milk
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 large shallot, peeled
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• olive oil
• salt & pepper

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 425 F and line a baking sheet with foil.

-Peel the sweet potato (keeping the skins) and cut into 1 inch cubes.  

-Place the sweet potato, garlic, and shallot on one side of the baking sheet.

-Place the sweet potato skins on the other side of the sheet and distribute evenly.

-Drizzle all the veggies generously with olive oil and season with salt.

-Roast for 10-15 minutes, then remove the skins when they are crispy.

-Continue cooking the other veggies for another 10 minutes, or until tender.

-Warm the chicken broth and evaporated milk in a bowl in the microwave.

-Add the spices to the creamy broth and pour the broth in your Vitamix (or blender).

-Next, add the veggies and blend, starting at the lowest setting and working up.

-Blend until creamy and smooth and serve topped with crispy sweet potato skins.

Recipe (Re)creation: Crispy Low-Sodium Sweet Potato Wedges with Lemon-Chive Yogurt Dip

I developed this recipe for a LOVE YOUR HEART RECIPE RALLY that a friend of mine does annually.  Her blog, SODIUM GIRL, is totally inspirational and full of mouthwatering low-sodium dishes. This recipe rally was particularly challenging for me because I happen to LOVE salt. However, many people (and their bodies) do not love salt and obviously need to find other flavor boosters to make up for the absence of salt.  That is where herbs and spices enter the picture!  I usually cook with herbs and spices anyways, but if you kick them up a notch, you don't even miss the salt.  I promise.

Our recipe rally mission was to take a typically salty, crave-worthy dish and create a low-sodium version of it.  I chose sweet potato wedges since they are a current obsession of mine and I wanted to see if I, the lover of salt, would still like a salt-free version.  After seasoning the sweet potatoes with different combinations of herbs and spices (and doing a lot of taste testing- thank you husband!), I decided on not one, but two different versions that I just had to include.  One is a hot and spicy version, and one is a mixed herb version.   The cooling yogurt dip is also low-sodium and pairs beautifully with those savory little sweet potato wedges.  So easy, breezy, and totally low-so (haha, and no one will even know).

Serves 6, as a side

Ingredients:

For sweet potato wedges:

3-4 medium sized sweet potatoes, unpeeled
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp chipotle chili powder
1 tsp chili flakes
2 springs of rosemary, stems removed and chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme
1/2 tbsp dried (or fresh) oregano
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp corn starch
Olive oil

For yogurt dip:

1/2 cup greek yogurt (Fage 2%)
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Slice sweet potatoes in even wedges (about 8 wedges per potato).

Generously brush each wedge with olive oil and a little sugar and a little corn starch (it helps them caramelize and get crispy).

Put the spices on one plate and the mixed herbs on another.

Rub half of the wedges (individually) in the spices and half of the wedges in the herb mixture.

Make sure that each wedge has ample spices or herbs covering it.

Place wedges on a baking sheet and spread out evenly.

Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, then take the sheet out, rotate the wedges and return them to the oven for another 10 minutes, or until they start to brown.

Reduce the oven temperature to 200 degree F and bake for another 5 minutes, or until crispy.  Remove from oven to cool.

Meanwhile, scoop the yogurt into a small bowl and mix with lemon juice and most of the chives.  Garnish the top with the remaining chives.

Serve the sweet potato wedges with the lemon-chive yogurt dip.

Who knew low-so could taste so good?

Recipe (Re)creation: Kale & Sweet Potato Salad

~From top: sweet potatoes ready for the oven, partially assembled salad,
fully assembled salad with balsamic drizzle, close-up of the deliciousness~ 

If you haven't realized it yet- kale is all the rage right now.  Its on restaurant menus left and right, either in soups, salads, or even in the form of chips (stay tuned for that recipe).  This salad, whether eaten as an appetizer or as a main, is for the days you don't have much time and are in the mood for something healthy.  Its the perfect dish for January, since you're likely burned out on cookies, holiday parties and heavy food.  This dish is light, but super satisfying with the sweet potatoes, almonds, and cheese.  My kale salad was inspired by this recipe but I decided to use sweet potatoes instead of butternut squash since they takes less time to cook.  I also added thyme, garlic, and balsamic drizzle for more flavor.  The best bit about this salad is that it is great for leftovers since the kale doesn't get soggy.  Healthy, quick, and totally delicious!

Serving Size: 2

Ingredients:

1 bunch Lacinato or Dinosaur Kale, ribs removed and thinly chopped
1 sweet potato, cubed
2 sprigs of thyme (optional)
3 garlic cloves
3 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons sliced, roasted almonds
Freshly grated pecorino or parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon balsamic reduction (optional)
Sea salt, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place sweet potato cubes, thyme leaves, and whole garlic cloves on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.

Roast the sweet potatoes for 25-30 minutes in the oven, or until fully cooked and tender.

Meanwhile mix the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil with the lemon juice and pour the dressing over the kale.

Top the salad with the roasted sweet potatoes and garlic and garnish with almond slices and freshly grated cheese

Add sea salt to taste and drizzle balsamic reduction over the salad (optional).

Enjoy!

Recipe (Re)creation: Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili

~ My Chili (Re)creation (both pictured above) ~

This recipe was not inspired by a restaurant, but rather was inspired by a chili cook-off that I went to yesterday.  I figured there would be a lot of traditional meat-heavy chilis and thought it would be a refreshing change to have a seasonal chili in the mix.  I based the chili on this recipe but made a few important changes.  I used black beans instead of pinto beans, substituted chicken broth for vegetable broth and used fire roasted instead of stewed tomatoes.  I also added chipotle chili powder, garlic, corn, cocoa powder and chili sauce for a little extra kick.  Then I finished the chili by garnishing it with chopped avocado and shredded cheese and served it with warm corn tortillas.  You won't believe its vegetarian when you try it because its super rich and hearty on its own.  Maybe even the staunchest of meat-eaters can be swayed?

Serving Size: 2-3 generous portions (recipe can easily be doubled)

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chili
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 10-oz red-skinned sweet potato, peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 1 can of fire roasted tomatoes
• 1 can of black beans
• 1 can of sweet corn
• 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
• 1 avocado (for garnish)
• Grated jack or white cheddar cheese (for garnish)
• Tortillas

Directions:


Heat olive oil in heavy medium sauce-pan over medium heat.

Add onion and sauté until golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Then add garlic, both chili powders and the cocoa powder and stir 1 minute.

Add broth and potato and cover pan; reduce heat to medium and simmer until potato is almost tender, about 10 minutes.

Add tomatoes with their juices, corn, and black beans.

Simmer uncovered until chili thickens and potato is very tender, about 10 minutes.

Mix in cilantro, orange peel and a splash of chili sauce.

Season to taste with salt and pepper and garnish with avocado and cheese and serve with warm corn tortillas.

Bon Appétit!