Roasted Sweet Potato Fries w/Rosemary

I have to admit, I'm not fond of sweet potatoes or yams, but I love these!

3-4 Yams, washed, peeled and cut into chunks
Olive oil
A couple pinches of rosemary
Sea Salt

Toss all ingredients. Bake at 375 for 30-60 minutes depending on the size of your chunks. We broil them for a minute or two at the end to add a bit of crispness!

Inside out Sundae

Just a fun little trick!!

Make cake batter, fill cupcake tray with liners, fill the liner. Add a maraschino cherry to the center. Bake as directed (may need an extra minute or two).  When cool, Pipe whipped cream into the center of the cupcake.  Frost & decorate as you'd like!

This makes for a great surprise--biting into a cupcake filled with whipped cream and a cherry! So fun!

Photo: My whipped cream had lost its volume by the time I piped it into these cupcakes, which is why they looked filled with milk. But... if you use stiffer whipped cream you'll end up with great results! It worked well for me last time!!

Salmon-- how do you love it?

What is your favorite way to prepare salmon?

A couple of days ago I tried a new recipe. I mixed some chipotle powder into honey. I added a few drops of sesame oil and spread onto the raw fish. After covering the baking dish with foil, I baked at 300 for 30 minutes. It was really tasty. I especially enjoyed the sweet sesame flavor, but I felt that the honey didn't penetrate the fish, so only the outer layer was seasoned.

I usually make salmon with lemon juice and a sprinkling of salt and pepper and cook them in little wrapped foil packets. Sometimes, I add a coating of mayonaisse or a few capers.  I love how this flavors all of the fish and is delicious and simple!

What do you love?

Very Delicious Ham and Potato Soup

For Christmas we had a spiral cut ham and there was plenty of leftovers.  I searched for a recipe where I could use some of the leftovers.  This recipe was SO good!  I would have posted a picture, but we ate it too fast.  I think that next time I will double it so I can have some leftovers.  The good part about using the food processor was the veggies were so small that you could add other vegetables without anyone noticing.

Ingredients


2-3 stalks celery, diced or chopped
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1 T oil of your choice
3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1 cup diced cooked ham
3 3/4 cups water
2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground pepper, or to taste

5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk

Directions

1.I used my small food processor to chop the celery and onion.  I sauted them in canola oil in my stockpot.  Add the potatoes, ham and water.  Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.  Keep an eye on the water level, you may have to add more during cooking.  Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.

2.In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thickened, 4 to 5 minutes.

3.Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through. Serve immediately.  Garnish with shredded cheese or green onions.

Soup in a Pumpkin

I've been waiting to make pumpkin soup in a pumpkin since I read Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle book a couple of years ago. Since we grow pumpkins in our garden, I was set to do it last year, but didn't get around to it before the mold did.

This year, I set aside the pumpkins to try again and decided I better hurry up. So, tonight was the night!!  I have been eating very limited gluten, dairy and sugar the past couple of months, and so I didn't follow the recipe to a tee. Which, I'm sure is why I have only rated this three stars. I'm sure that this soup is great!! But... alas, mine was very fun to make but didn't quite make the cut for me.  I do have to say that it tastes a bit better to me now (10 minutes after making it) than it did right after it came out of the oven, so perhaps, I'll try again in the morning and it will be fabulous!  And, my pumpkin shell got too soft and the bottom burst out when I tried to remove the soup to puree it. Maybe I cooked it a bit too long.

Since it isn't fabulous, try Barbara's recipe if you decide to brave it. I omitted the sage (I have some but couldn't find it) and the milk and added parsley and thyme.  I like the consistency and the flavors of the garlic and spices.  Maybe its the pumpkin flavor that I'm not so fond of, but it is ultra healthy so I gave it an extra star!  (In the picture, I've added a dollop of yogurt after the pureeing.)

But... its got me to thinking that I might be able to figure out a way to make pumpkin pie soup in a pumpkin as a dessert. Hmm.. Sounds yummier to me, but it might not be gluten, dairy and sugar free. Oh, well.