Monday Meals: Sweet Potato Hash Browns (my version of them, anyway.)

After a trip to the farmer's market Sunday, the kitchen was overflowing with sweet potatoes, onions and squash. I decided to put some of these guys to use and make sweet potato hash browns Sunday morning. I made a version of this recipe, but I had leftover corn on the cob in the fridge, so I sliced the corn off and threw them in the skillet too. After frying a couple eggs, the final product was a delicious homemade brunch that made my quiet Sunday morning that much more enjoyable.

You'll need:
Olive oil
Minced or fresh garlic
3 large sweet potatoes
1 white onion
4 strips uncooked bacon
About 3/4 cup corn (I used the corn from one cob)
1/4 cup water

Dice sweet potatoes and onions. Add olive oil and garlic to skillet and place on medium to high heat. Add the potatoes and onions. While they cook, use kitchen scissors to cut bacon into small pieces, cook on high in separate pan. Once onions are translucent and potatoes are soft, add bacon and corn. Add water and stir for a minute or so. Eat with eggs in any form and feast.

Did you make any delicious dishes this weekend?

Monday Meals: Chipotle Chicken Sweet Potato Skins

At this point, it's clear that I love sweet potatoes, yes? Well here's another one I found via Pinterest from Half Baked Harvest.  Enjoy!

Photo also from Half Baked Harvest

Ingredients
3 medium sweet potatoes
3/4 pound (about 2 small) boneless skinless chicken breast
1/4 cups olive oil
2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
3 whole chipotle pepper, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder salt and pepper
2 (half a 10oz bag) cups spinach
5 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese,
grated chopped cilantro, for garnish
greek yogurt, for serving

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Wash your sweet potatoes and prick all over with a fork. Place in the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes or until fork tender. Place your chicken in a baking dish and rub with a tablespoon of olive oil, salt and peper. Place in the oven with the potatoes and bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool and shred the chicken with a fork or your hands. When the sweet potatoes are done cut in half and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes.

In a medium size bowl combine the olive oil, lime juice, garlic, chipotle peppers, oregano, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper. Set aside. Heat a small skillet over medium heat and wilt the spinach (this can also be done in the microwave). Toss the spinach and shredded chicken together, set aside and keep warm. Turn the oven up to 400 degrees. Scrape the sweet potato out of the peel, leaving a medium size layer of flesh inside with the peel so that it can stand up on its own (I reserved the remaining flesh, for another use) and place in a baking dish.

Brush the skins with with a little of the chipotle sauce and bake for 5-10 minutes until nice and crisp. While the skins bake mix the spinach, chicken and chipotle sauce together. Remove skins from the oven and stuff with the chicken mixture, top with shredded cheese and bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the skins are hot and crisp. Serve with fresh chopped cilantro and greek yogurt if desired.

Monday Meals

My first year in DC, I lived primarily on lean cuisines, pizza and take out Thai food. I had never really cooked before, and didn't really feel like I had the time to learn. A new job, a new city, and trying to make new friends made my time in the kitchen minimal. Then I moved in with little Lanie, and I was inspired by her ease at the stove and the wonderful smells that filled our apartment. I decided to try my hand at simple dishes (pasta), and gradually worked my way up (pasta and chicken).

Being back in Abilene, where I have the ability to drive to and fro the grocery store and can actually buy more than I can carry, I try to cook a few meals every week. They're usually a random mixture of everything I have in the fridge that is about to go bad, but sometimes I throw together something that's actually decent. So I'm going to try to post a new recipe here every Monday, even if it's a recipe I ripped off borrowed from another blog or Pinterest. The inaugural post: Turkey and Black Bean BBQ Stuffed Sweet Potato (the name needs work...)

Ingredients:

-favorite BBQ sauce
-crushed red pepper
-chopped parsley
-1 can black beans
-sweet potato
-onion
-spinach
-minced garlic (duh)
-1/2 pack of ground turkey (or beef or chicken)
-colby jack shredded cheese (or your favorite)

Poke the sweet potato all over with a fork and bake at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes. While it's baking, heat oil in a pan and add garlic, crushed red peppers and onion. Brown the turkey and then add the spinach. Once the spinach is wilted, add black beans. Sprinkle parsley to taste, then add BBQ sauce. I added a lot because I love it, but any amount will do.

Once the potato is done, cut it open and smash the insides with a fork. Add a spoonful (or two) of the turkey BBQ mix and mix with the sweet potato innards.

Sprinkle your favorite cheese over the top and voila!!

Have a favorite sweet potato recipe? Or BBQ recipe? I'd love to hear it. Please share in the comments!