Dubbel Mashed Sweet Potatoes

On to the next Thanksgiving side!

Forget the marshmallows and pecans. Serve up these mashed sweet potatoes with a surprising twist! A Belgian dubbel's subtle spice and banana notes will sing when served alongside this dish. Again, I turned to Boom Island for their HooDoo Dubbel. Chimay Red, Ommegang Abbey, Goose Island's Pere Jacque and Rochefort 6 will work wonderfully in a pinch. Or omit the beer all together and stir in chicken or vegetable stock instead.

Recipe adapted from Rachel Ray
 
serves 8

Ingredients:
• 3 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 overripe banana, sliced
• 1 orange, zested and juiced
• 1 cup Belgian dubbel (or stock)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
• Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with 1 to 2 inches of cold water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and cook potatoes until tender. Drain potatoes and set aside.
• Return the pot to the stove top over medium heat. Add butter and bananas to the pot. Cook bananas 5 minutes and add the juice of 1 orange to the pot, reserve the zest. Allow the juice to cook out, 1 minute.
• Add the potatoes to the pot along with the Hoodoo and brown sugar. Mash potatoes, banana, stock and sugar together until well combined. Season with nutmeg, salt, pepper and orange zest, to your taste.
• Mash to combine spices and serve

Sweet Potato and Gruyere Stacks

I very quickly tire of the tried and true.  Why else would I be pushing myself to try 100 new recipes every year?  Don't get me wrong...I love traditions.  And I absolutely adore sweet potatoes.  But I can only tolerate them slathered in brown sugar and marshmallows for a very, very limited time.  I've tried them scalloped, which was a nice change of pace. But this preparation truly steals the cake.

My mind in now a-whirling about other spuds to apply this to.

The key to a less stress mess is to find sweet potatoes no larger in diameter than the width of the cups of your muffin tin. Trust me...skip the bigger tubers.

Adapted from Southern Living

yields 12 stacks

The Ingredients:
3 small sweet potatoes, about 2-2 1/2 inches in diameter
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme, divided
2/3 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2  tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper 


The Process:
Preheat the oven to 375 and lightly oil a 12 count muffin tin


Peel and thinly slice the sweet potatoes.  Starting with the smallest slices and working up in diameter, layer the sweet potato slices about halfway up the muffin cups.  Sprinkle each stack evenly with the thyme and Gruyere.  Continue to fill the muffin cups with the remaining potato.

In a small saucepan, heat the cream.  Whisk in the garlic, salt and pepper.  Simmer briefly.  Remove from heat and spoon about 1 Tbsp over each sweet potato stack.

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.  Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake an additional 20 minutes, or until cheese has melted.

Run a knife around the outside of each cup, and carefully lift and transfer each stack to a serving platter.  Garnish with a sprinkle of thyme.
 

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

I am certain I have waxed poetic about my fondness for sweet potatoes in the past.  So I will keep such pronouncements of undying affection to a minimum in this post.

And yet, sweet potato fries...these may be the ultimate snack food.

adapted from Cookie + Kate

serves 2

The Ingredients:
1 extra large sweet potato or 2 small
2 tsp corn starch
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp granulated garlic
1/4 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp olive oil.

The Process:
Preheat the oven to 450

Peel the sweet potato(es) and slice into even match sticks, about 3/8-inch squared and 5 to 8 inches long.  Place the fries in a gallon-sized zip top bag.  Sprinkle with corn starch, salt, spices and oil.  Seal the bag and toss to coat.

Arrange the fries in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Flip the fries over and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes or until crisp around the edges.  Thicker cut fries may need a little more time.

Serve hot with aioli or your favorite dipping sauce.

Sweet Potato Apple Casserole

For our family, Thanksgiving dinner must include sweet potatoes.  Sadly my earliest introduction to this wonderful yam was a concoction of canned sweet potatoes tossed in a casserole with brown sugar, pecans and marshmallows.  And I absolutely adored it.

It wasn't until college that I tried sweet potato in its simple. roasted form.  I was in love with the mellow sweetness of the tuber from that point on.

I may love mashed sweet potatoes more than regular mashed potatoes.  Blasphemy.  I know...

Our Thanksgiving dinner was dotted with apples throughout, and this side dish is no exception.  The blend of savory and subtle sweet paired perfectly with the apple pecan stuffing.  And because the side wasn't overly sweet, we were well prepared for the wonderful praline pumpkin pie my mom had brought up with her.

adapted from Fitness Magazine

serves 6

The Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground allspice
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch rings
2 Tbsp maple syrup

The Process:
Preheat the oven to 350. Place the sweet potatoes on a piece of aluminum foil and roast until tender, about 45 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Trim the ends and pull off the peels; slice into 1/2-inch rounds.

Butter a 9x9 inch baking dish with half of the butter.  In a small bowl, stir together the cinnamon, ginger and allspice. Arrange one third of the apple rings in the bottom of the casserole and layer half oft eh sweet potatoes on top.  Sprinkle with half the spice mixture and half the maple syrup. Repeat the layers, sprinkling with remaining spice and syrup.  Layer the last third of the apples on top.  Dot with the remaining butter.

 Cover and bake until the apples are tender, about 45 minutes.

Sweet Potato Blondies

Cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger.  The smell of fall.  The perfume of the holidays.  These days it seems as though all one need to do to quantify any thing as a holiday treat is to add these spices in one combination or another.

You know what?  It works.

Something about that combination conjures up all the cozy, warm memories of autumns gone by.  The warmth of ginger and cinnamon certainly help me mentally prep for that first snow fall!  (We did see our first flakes already, as the East Coast braced for Sandy and Hawaii headed inland for the tsunami warning.  I'll glad take a little snow over those events any day.)

The earthy sweetness of pumpkins and sweet potatoes meld so well with these spices;  try as you might I doubt we'll ever pull away from the combination.

This bar recipe conjurse up memories of the sweet potatoes my family always made for the holidays.  I was well into college before I learned you could eat sweet potatoes other ways besides slathered in brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkled with marshmellows, pecons and the occasional raisins.  It was truly dessert parading as a vegetable.  But it was the holidays.  These bars make no attempt to be something they are not.  Sweet, cinnamon-y and chewy.  Here sweet potatoes are allowed to be the full fledged dessert they always dreamed of being.

adapted from Susan at OurTableEats

yeilds 18-20 bars

The Ingredients:
2 large sweet potatoes
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 cup butter, melted (1 stick)
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla

Maple drizzle:
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1/3 powdered sugar 

The Process:
Wrap the sweet potatoes in foil and bake in a 350 oven for 60-75 minutes or until soft.  Or, pierce the potatoes all over and microwave on high at 3 minute intervals until soft.  Set aside until cool enough to handle.

Preheat the oven to 350.  Oil one 9x13 baking dish for thicker bars, or two 9x9 pans for thinner bars.

In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, bkaing soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.  Mix unitl combined.

In a second bowl, whisk together butter, eggs, sugar and vanilla.  Remove about 2 cups of flesh from the cooked sweet potatoes and add to the egg mixture.  Whisk until smooth.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry, stirring until just incorporated.  

 Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking pans.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the edged are lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  ALoow to cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes.  Remove from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile prepare the glaze by adding the syrup and powdered sugar to a zip top bag and massaging until well combined.  Once the blondies are cool, cut into bars.  Snip the corner off of the glaze bag and drizzle the glaze over the tops of the bars.

Harvest Root Vegetable Stew

Root vegetables are filler.  Peasant food.  Cheap.  Heavy.  Starchy. Sustaining.  Absolutely delicious.  And oh so plentiful this time of year.  We sadly received the last of our boxes from our CSA farm last week.  But boy, howdy was it heavy.  Three or four types of potatoes, parsnip, carrots, rutabaga, turnips, radishes, sweet potatoes,leeks, squash...

All that I love best about fall.

This recipe is sort of a garbage casserole.  Really.  Anything goes.  Particularly if it is starchy.  Throw it in.  The end result will probably be tastier than you expected.

the recipe is my own

serves 6-8

The Ingredients:
3 Tbsp butter
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 leeks, whites sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
1 cup apple cider (NOT hard cider)
1 1/2 cups beer
3-4 small russet potatoes,cubed or quartered
2-3 red potatoes, cubed or quartered
1 small sweet potato, cubed
2-3 small turnips, cubed or qaurter4ed 
2-3 carrots, cut into 1 inch coins
2-3 parsnips, cut into 1 inch coins
1-2 radishes, quartered
1 tsp fresh thyme, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

The Process:
In a large, heavy bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over medium high heat.  Add the garlic and leeks until the garlic is fragrant  the leeks are tender, 5-7 minutes.  Pour in the  cider and beer, deglazing the bottom of the pan.

Add the vegetables and seasonings.  Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover Simmer for 35-40 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and the liquid reduced by about  one third.

Serve hot with cheddar and ale biscuits.

Sweet Potato Beer Biscuits

I am on a beer cooking kick at the moment.  There are a few to blame for this.  First, the Better Beer Society for tasking us, the students, with pairing a harvest beer with a meal.  Second, the breweries for continuing to release such wonderful and inspiring harvest beers.  Third, our CSA for loading our last boxes to overflowing with sweet potatoes, squash and other amzaing fall bounty.  And fourth, the Beeroness, Jackie, for continually posting such mouth watering recipes.

A perfect storm...

adapted from Jackie at the Beeroness

yields approximately 10 biscuits

The Ingredients:
1 large sweet potato, cooked, peeled and mashed (about 3/4 cup)
2/3 cup ale (pumpkin, Oktoberfest or hefenweizen)
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp brown sugar
pinch of cinnamon
1/2 cup chilled butter (1 stick) cubed
additional butter, melted, for brushing

for the maple sage butter
3 Tbsp butter, softened
1-2 sage leaves, finely minced

1 tsp pure maple syrup.

The Process:
Preheat the oven to 425

In a medium bowl, mash the beer and sweet potato together until well combined.

In a second bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and cinnamon.  Using a pastry cutter or your fingers add the butter, mixing and cutting until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Add the sweet potato mixture to the flour and mix until just combined.  Using well floured hands, roll the dough into a ball and turn out onto a well floured work surface.  Flatten and shape the dough into a rectangle about 6x14-inches and  about  1 1/2 inch thick.  Using a floured knife, divide the dough into 10 equal rectangles.  Transfer the biscuits to a parchment lined baking sheet.  Brush generously with melted butter.

Bake for 15-18 minutes.

Meanwhile, mash remaining butter, sage and maple syrup together in a small bowl.  Form into a small pad and chill until ready to use.

Serve the biscuits warm with flavored butter.

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Soup

The time has come to purge the fridge and pantry again...my cabinets are perpetually stocked with broths, beans, chilies and tomatoes.  Coupled with the oddball tidbits of vegetables that fall between the cracks mid-week, I usually have the fixings for some amazing soups and chilis.  As the weather becomes warmer, soups, stews, chilis and chowders will become far more rare.  This hearty vegan dish sends them off in style.  Until the fall, of course.

the recipe is my own

serves 6-8

The Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic,  minced
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 small carrots,diced
1 can green chilies
1 can stewed tomatoes (15 oz)
2 cans black beans (15 oz each), drained and rinsed
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cups water or vegetable stock
1/2 tsp cumin
2 bay leaves
1 tsp salt

The Process:
Combine all of the ingredients in a large stockpot over medium high heat.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 2-3 hours or until the sweet potato is soft and the black beans are tender.  Gently mash or puree if desired.

The Review:
I'm not sure why, but the combination of sweet potato and black beans is fast becoming a favorite.  I'll be making this again.  Once I finish up the leftovers I had to stash in the freezer...

Twice Baked Cardamom Sweet Potatoes

As a child, my only exposure to sweet potatoes came in the form of a marshmallow and pecan studded mush swimming in brown sugar, honey and butter.  My young mind was agog to see such a sickly sweet side dish served up as a vegetable during the holidays.  For years, this was the only way a could fathom preparing the bright orange spud.

Then the spell was broken.  Sometime late in college I was introduced to the baked sweet potato.  Grated this first deviation from the holiday norm was also swimming in butter and brown sugar.  But the scales had fallen from my eyes.  Sweet potato fries with garlic cracked the facade even further.  Savory with sweet?  No brown sugar and cinnamon?  I needed more.   Sweet potato gnocchi with brown butter and thyme, cheesy scalloped sweet potatoes,baked sweet potatoes topped with chili, sweet potato soups and stews, sweet potato pancakes...the doors had suddenly been flung wide open...

Now I use sweet potatoes far more regularly than russets, Yukon and even baby reds.

This recipe is a simple twist and a classic twice baked potato.  Indian spices remain one of my favorite pairings with this beautiful root vegetable.

the recipe is my own

yields 4 side servings

The Ingredients:
2 large sweet potatoes
1 russet potato
1/4 cup plain yogurt
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin, ground
1/2 tsp cardamom, ground
1/2 tsp salt



The Process:

Preheat the oven to 400. 

 

Pierce each potato in several places with a skewer the tines of a fork.  Place the potatoes directly on the rack in the center of the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Rotate the potatoes and bake an additional 30 minutes, or until tender. They should yield slightly when pressed.  Remove potatoes from the oven, and turn the reduce the oven heat down to 350.

Allow the potatoes to rest until cool enough to handle.  Slice the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise.  Scoop out the flesh of the potatoes, leaving a 1/4-inch shell.  Reserve the flesh. Set the sweet potato shells aside in a baking dish.  Remove the flesh from the russet potato, reserving with the sweet potato flesh.  Discard the skin.

In medium bowl, combine the potato flesh, yogurt, salt, cumin, and cardamom.  Mix until well blended.  Spoon the mixture into the potato shells, mounding slightly. 

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minute or until the potato skins begin to crisp and the top a lightly golden.  Serve with a dusting of cumin or cardamom powder.


The Review:
Savory, sweet and slightly salty.   The potatoes were a huge hit with our dinner guests, despite the lack of presentation.  Sweet potatoes do seem to have an elevating effect on the whole meal...

The cardamom is a warm spice that most people can't quite place.  It hinted at cinnamon, particularly when paired with the sweetness of the potato, but the flavor is so distinct.  Slightly exotic.  But again, so familiar.  It is a great substitute for cinnamon whenever I want to push people slightly out of their culinary comfort zone.

The garlic and cumin heated things up a bit and took the dish out of the realm of the typical sweet potato prep.  No brown sugar and marshmallows here!

Chicken and Sweet Potato Stew

Oh for the chance to cook a decent dinner once and again!  Life has become ridiculously busy over the past weeks (as my more faithful follows may have noticed due to the lapse in postings...trust me, it's not for lack of cooking or interest so much as lack of time in front of the computer).  Short of the odd gathering or forced night with company I haven't focused on many entrees of late.  But when I came across this recipe I knew I'd have to make the time.  Though with a crock pot in the mix, I was free most of the afternoon to carry on with my overbooked list of projects, with the satisfaction of knowing a hot dinner would await me in a few hours.

Adapted from Eating Well, March/April 2006

Serves 6

The Ingredients:
6 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed, trimmed of fat
2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into spears
1/2 lb white button mushrooms, thinly sliced
6 large shallots, peeled and halved
4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 cup dry white wine
2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp white-wine vinegar

The Process:
Layer the chicken, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, shallots, garlic, wine, rosemary, salt and pepper in a 6-quart slow cooker. Put the lid on and cook on low until the potatoes are tender, about 5 hours. Before serving, remove bones from the chicken, if desired, and stir in vinegar.

The Review:
I was amazed at the simplicity and elegance of the dish.  I was wary to layer so much with so little liquid, but as everything cooked down over the 5-6 hours, a wonderful broth emerged.  The sweet potatoes needn't be stirred or submerge to cook fully.  The chicken stayed picturesquely intact but fell from the bone in tender forkfuls.  The broth was cloudy but clean.  A picture perfect dinner with very little effort.

The flavors were light and earthy.  Meaty chicken, savory rosemary, tart and slightly sour broth from the wine and vinegar underscored with an earthiness from the mushrooms.  Despite these being run of the mill white button mushrooms, they lent quite a bit of flavor.  While our mushroom-phobe was able to pick around the slices of fungi, he did complain about the flavor lingering  the dish.

Sweet Potatoes with Warm Black Bean Salad

A huge thank you to my husband for helping out on this dish by baking the sweet potatoes ahead of time. Few foods exist that I abhor more than microwaved "baked" potatoes, convenience be damned. I almost skipped over this recipe completely due to its dependance on the modern kitchen appliance. I'm glad I didn't.

adapted from Eating Well Magazine, Dec 2005/Jan 2006

serves 4

The Ingredients:
4 medium sweet potatoes
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream*
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

The Process:
I'm ignoring all microwaveable directions on principle. Below is my process. For microwave instructions, visit the original recipe at eatingwell.com

Prick sweet potatoes with a fork in several places. Alternatively, place in a baking dish and bake at 425 degrees F until tender all the way to the center, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine beans, tomatoes, oil, cumin, coriander and salt; heat over medium heat until just heated through.

When just cool enough to handle, slash each sweet potato lengthwise, press open to make a well in the center and spoon the bean mixture into the well. Top each with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of cilantro.

My Modifications:
I prepared this dish in the oven and stove top, foregoing the deplorable microwaveable option. Microwaves never seem to yield the same creamy interior that an oven baked potato offers. For want of fresh tomatoes (most in the store and even, sadly, at the farmers market appeared more like pink Styrofoam than juicy, pulpy produce) I opened a can of diced tomatoes. The substitution wasn't ideal, but passable. Canned tomatoes still supersede flavorless genetic monsters. We also skipped the cilantro.

The Review:
I am a huge fan of sweet potatoes. They are capable of dishes far superior and nuanced than the overly sweetened marshmallow-y concoction most people familiarize with the tuber. I've eaten sweet potatoes baked before, but the Tex-Mex dressing was a new twist well worth trying out. The coriander and cumin, a pairing I am becoming quite fond of, played very well off of the sweet meat of the potato. The sour cream added a wonderful tart edge, with a creamy finish. With large enough potatoes and a generous spoonful of the filling, these could easily pass for a vegetarian entree (*or vegan if you omit the sour cream).

Kidney Bean and Yam Stew with Oranges

Winter's not giving up its frigid grasp and the colds are making their rounds again. So this thick Indian stew sounded perfect to fight off the chills and sniffles. Yams, kidney beans, oranges, garlic, ginger...talk about a bowl full of health. How much beta carotene, vitamin C, fiber, protein can one really cram into a single meal? I refuse to get sick now, with spring so close!

adapted from Everyday Indian by Ball Arneson

Serves 4

The Ingredients:
2 Tbsp grapeseed or olive oil
2 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
2 Tbsp finely chopped garlic
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
2 Tbsp cumin seeds
1 Tbsp garam masala
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp rosemary, dried or fresh
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp salt
one 14 oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 cups cooked, cubed yams (approximately 2 medium)
1 cup water
one 14 oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups peeled, cubed oranges (approximately 2 medium)

The Process:
Place the oil, ginger, garlic and fenugreek seeds in a big pot over medium-high heat and cook for 2 minutes. Add the cumin, garam masala, bay leaves, oregano, rosemary, turmeric, and salt, and cook for an additional 2 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, yams and water: increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 7 to 9 minutes. Add the kidney beans and oranges and cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat, cover and let stand for 10 minutes. remove bay leaves and serve.

My Modifications:
I lacked fenugreek seeds in whole form, but had the ground seeds on hand. I substituted that at half the amount. And while on the subject of spices, I've begun making my own garam masala blend. My recipe consists of whole cloves cumin seeds, green and black cardamom pods, coriander seeds, peppercorns, a bay leaf, a cinnamon stick, and a pinch of nutmeg. Countless variations of this Indian stable abound. Feel free to experiment...or pick up a pre-made variety at the store.The original recipe did not specify that the yams be cooked, though given the short cook times listed it seemed unlikely the tubers would be tender without a little pre-stew prep. I prefer to bake mine in the oven for about an hour, but in a pinch the microwave will do the trick. The original recipe also did not specify to peel the oranges. The thought to chewing on orange peel did NOT appeal...so their exteriors were disposed of prior to cubing and adding to the pot. Mine oranges were a seedless variety.

The Review:
The warm oranges were a bit odd, and the cumin a tad overpowering, but overall the stew was a big hit. It struck me as sort of like the Tex-Mex chili's long lost cousin. The kidney beans gave the stew the hardy parallel. And the cumin lent a familiar flavor. But the meat was hardly missed. It's nice to have another vegan friendly main course in the arsenal.