Budget Friendly Recipes for Foodies
Whatever your personal feelings might be re: Rachael Ray, particularly some of the nicknames and abbreviations she comes up with, honestly, I think this fits into the RayRay-invented category known as “stoup”, somewhere between a stew and a soup. Continue reading ‘Sweet Potato, Spinach & Lentil Stoup’
For our usual big Sunday dinner, we asked folks to bring a sweet potato dish – such a yummy and healthy meal! Hence the “Sweet Potato Sunday” theme.
I decided to try to upgrade my usual pumpkin cheesecake dessert by trying sweet potatoes in place of the pumpkin. Yams have the same inviting color as pumpkin, but are so much more flavorful and sweeter. So, to cut the sweetness just a little, I added some sour cream to the recipe. It turns out that sweet potatoes are perfect for cheesecake – the same color and texture as pumpkin, but with more flavor. The cheesecake was fluffy, light and creamy to boot. I highly recommend this recipe!
Remember to bring ALL the ingredients to room temperature before mixing – this eliminates lumps and adds to the fluffy texture.
SWEET POTATO CHEESECAKE
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup gingersnap cookie crumbs
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Mix all crumbs and butter together and then press into the bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan. Chill in the refrigerator while mixing the cheesecake filling together.
16 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla, divided
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sour cream, divided
1/2 cup powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix with mixer the following, adding each ingredient slowly while mixer is on medium speed: cream cheese, sweet potatoes, brown sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, eggs one at a time and 1/2 cup of sour cream. Pour mixture into spring form pan. Wrap pan bottom and sides with aluminum foil. Place spring form pan in a large roasting pan and fill pan with hot water, half way up sides of spring form pan.
Bake for 30 minutes. Lower oven temperature and bake another 20 to 30 minutes, until cheesecake is mostly set in center but is still a little jiggly.
Mix together the remaining 1 cup sour cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla and all the powdered sugar. Pour on top of cheesecake. Return to oven and bake another 8 to 10 minutes, until topping is set.
– posted by Donna
It’s true, I can’t get enough. I could eat sweet potatoes every day, easily. (As could my almost-one year old daughter!) Here’s another, great for spring and summer, perfect for picnics as there’s no pesky mayo to worry about, and sure to be a healthy hit.
SOUTHWEST SWEET POTATO SALAD
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
5 garlic cloves, 2 minced and 3 peeled but whole
2 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
dash chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2 to 2 inch chunks
2 poblano peppers, seeded, roasted, skinned and diced*
2 cups corn
2 red bell peppers, diced
3 scallions, chopped
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
Whisk together vinegar, seasonings and the two minced garlic cloves. Slowly whisk in olive oil; set aside. Boil sweet potatoes and remaining three whole garlic cloves in salted water just until fork tender – approximately 20 minutes. Drain and let cool, discarding garlic cloves.
In a large serving bowl, stir together vinaigrette, poblano peppers, corn, bell peppers, scallions and cilantro. Add sweet potatoes and toss together. Add additional salt and coarse black pepper to taste.
*For tips on roasting peppers of all kinds, check this out from The Wednesday Chef!
– posted by Anne
Sweet Potato Extravaganza 2009 continues with this easy, healthy treat. I do like using coconut oil if you have it on hand, but if not, olive oil will work just fine. Also, I used my Cuisinart’s shred function for the sweet potatoes, but if you don’t have one, the large holes on a good old-fashioned box grater does the job perfectly well too.
CARIBBEAN SWEET POTATO HASH BROWNS
1 tablespoon coconut or olive oil
2 large sweet potatoes (garnet variety), peeled and shredded
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon salt
1 red bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1/3 cup unsweetened grated coconut
juice and zest (finely grated) of one lime
Heat oil over medium high in a large skillet. Add sweet potato, onion and salt; cook, stirring frequently, until sweet potato starts to soften up, about 3-5 minutes. Add red pepper and garlic, incorporate thoroughly, and cook for another4-5 minutes, stirring, until the sweet potato is just starting to brown a bit. Stir in coconut, cilantro, lime juice and zest, and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Serve with Tangy Spiced Ketchup. Like so:
TANGY SPICED KETCHUP
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon coconut or olive oil
1 cup ketchup
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
dash cayenne pepper, or more to taste
Saute garlic in oil of your choice (as above, I prefer coconut but olive does just fine) over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes. Stir in ketchup and spices, adjust seasoning to taste. Serve warm or refrigerated.
The very words “sweet potatoes” conjure up soothing images of holidays, favorite comfort foods and love! The classic 9 by 13 filled with sweet creamy marshmallow-topped goodness comes immediately to mind.
Sweet potatoes are incredibly delicious, budget-friendly and packed with nutrients. So, yes!, sweet potatoes will be a regular feature here at fabfrugalfood.
And, between the two recipes on this post, I used up every single morsel of the sweet potatoes – flesh and skins alike!
Sweet potatoes are wonderful baked into a first course flan or custard. I created this recipe based on a Garlic Custard I once had as a first course at a southwest restaurant. It is light and yet creamy at the same time. The hazelnuts are a perfect accompaniment – they add a toasty, crunchy counterpoint to the sweetness and creaminess of the flan.
These flans take only about 10 minutes of prep time, and then can be thrown into the oven and ignored for an hour. Sprinkling the ramekins with the brown sugar before filling them gives the flans a darker top and resembles a traditional custard flan.
SWEET POTATO FLAN WITH TOASTED SPICED HAZELNUTS
1 cup mashed cooked sweet potato flesh
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
4 tablespoons dark brown sugar, divided
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
A little canola cooking oil spray
Toasted Spiced Hazelnuts (recipe follows)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Blend in blender until smooth the sweet potatoes, lemon juice, evaporated milk, 1 tablespoon of the brown sugar, cumin, paprika and salt. Whisk eggs and egg yolks together in a mixing bowl. Whisk sweet potato mixture into egg mixture until very smooth.
Spray 6 one-cup ramekins with a little cooking oil. Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon of brown sugar into the bottom of each ramekin. Pour sweet potato mixture into ramekins, filling the cups about 3/4 of the way to the tops. Place filled ramekins in a 9 by 13 inch pan. Pour hot water around ramekins to reach halfway up sides of ramekins. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in middle of oven, until each flan is set and slightly puffed but not browned.
Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature. Slide knife around inside edge of ramekins. Invert each flan onto a small serving plate. Garnish by sprinkling paprika over tops (if desired) and with hazelnuts spooned around the bottom edge of flan on the plates.
TOASTED SPICED HAZELNUTS
Bake 8 ounces of whole hazelnuts on a dry baking sheet for 15 minutes at 325 degrees. Remove from oven and place nuts on one half of a kitchen towel. Fold empty towel half over top of nuts and then rub to remove skins. Dice nuts and toss with 1 tablespoon of melted unsalted butter. Toss with 2 teaspoons cumin; 2 teaspoons brown sugar; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
sweet potato skins
Forget plain boring potato skins – sweet potatoes make this traditional “Happy Hour” dish so much more flavorful and delicious! When you make a dish using the flesh of sweet potatoes, throw the skins in a zip lock bag and freeze them for later use in these fabulous appetizers.
This recipe came about as I was making the sweet potato flan (above) and thought it was a shame to throw away the flavorful skins. Naturally, the traditional crispy potato skin appetizer came to mind, and this flavorful update of that traditional dish was born!
SWEET POTATO SKINS
3 medium sized sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds total)
1 teaspoon cumin, divided
1 teaspoon smoked paprika, divided
A little canola oil spray
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup light sour cream
3 green onions, thinly sliced, tops included
1/2 cup cooked bacon bits
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place whole sweet potatoes on wire racks in oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Cut sweet potatoes in half width wise and then each half in quarters lengthwise. Lay each potato piece on a flat surface, skin side down. With knife parallel to cutting surface, cut most of flesh off of skins, leaving about 1/4 inch of flesh on skins. Reserved removed flesh for another use. Sprinkle flesh sides of potato skins with 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika. Place skins on an oiled wire rack on a baking sheet, skin sides up. Spray generously with canola oil spray.
Bake near top of oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and spray skins again with canola oil. Return to oven and bake another 12 to 15 minutes, until skins are well browned and crispy, watching closely so as not to burn.
Place skin sides down on a serving platter. Sprinkle on salt and pepper as desired. Mix sour cream with remaining 1/2 teaspoon cumin and remaining 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, and drizzle over skins. Sprinkle with green onions and bacon bits. Serve immediately. Serves 4 to 6.
– posted by Donna
