spicy baked sweet potato fries

so joe & i try to avoid white potatoes at all cost and i would never have said i am a sweet potato person. i am however a "fry" person and given that we [with very, very rare exceptions] gave up fried food that doesn't happen too much either! however, on two recent instances i have had baked sweet potato fries and loved them!

this week we recreated the magic and tried to get some lessons learned from our past two experiences.

one thing is that sweet potatoes once you cut them all up make a lot of fries. below is two moderately sized sweet potatoes and their fry offspring!


what you need:
-2 sweet potatoes
-extra virgin olive oil
-salt
-pepper
-seasonings of your choice (crushed red pepper, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder...or all of the above)...i would recommend no more than 1 TBSP total of all flavors combined. it looks like a little but the cornstarch holds it on big time!
-3 tablespoons of cornstarch

what you do: 
this is where it got a bit interesting...cut the ends of the potatoes off so that you don't have odd shaped ends and then slice to about 1/4" by 1/4" and the length of the potato...easy enough. then for at least an hour [& up to overnight] soak [yes...in water...] the cut fries.

preheat oven to 450 degrees. pat off with paper towels after their good soak. line 2 baking sheets with foil and spray with cooking spray. put in a big ziploc the fries, oil, salt, pepper, cornstarch & spices. shake well.

line neatly [not all on top of each other] on a baking sheet. put on the top rack of your oven for 15 minutes then turn the fries and do 15 more.

if they're getting too crispy too quickly, turn down the oven a bit to 400 or 425...we all know how to monitor the cooking process! they very suddenly get cooked and sometimes too much at the end so pull them out before you get them charred!

one caveat that most don't know about sweet potatoes is their nutritional benefits. 1 cup of sweet potatoes can has 2 grams of protein, 4 grams of fiber and virtually fat free. many mommies to be are mindful of certain vitamins, including vitamin A which these are loaded with.  if you're watching out for that, be mindful of where else you're getting it that day [if you have it included in your prenatal vitamins, other foods like broccoli & spinach, etc]. the recommended daily intake is about 2500IU and 1 cup of sweet potato has upwards of 6000IU

fresh [homemade] strawberry ice cream

warning...what i didn't realize when i made this is that you really need to do this two days prior to actually needing the ice cream or be willing to be on a strict timer schedule as there are 8 hours between steps.

fresh strawberry ice cream
what you need....1 quart strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
Pinch of salt
1 whole vanilla bean
6 egg yolks
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

what you do...Prep berries: 

Place the strawberries, ¼ cup of the granulated sugar, and the lemon juice in a food processor. Mash up the berries so that there aren't huge chunks but that its not overly pureed. Transfer the strawberry mixture to a container and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Prep Cream Base:
Warm 1 cup of the cream, the milk, the remaining ¾ cup of granulated sugar and the salt in a medium saucepan set over medium-low heat. Once the cream mixture is warmed through and the sugar is dissolved, add the vanilla bean, cover and remove from the heat. Let steep for 30 minutes.

**I didn't invest in the $8 vanilla bean at Publix and just used 1 tsp of vanilla extract. I didn't steep for an hour either...turned out fab still!

Pour the remaining 1 cup heavy cream in a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula (or reaches 170 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer). 

Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream, then stir in the vanilla extract. Remove the strawberry mixture from the refrigerator and add it to the cream mixture, stirring to fully combine. Set the bowl in an ice bath and cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Once cool, cover and place the mixture in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours (or overnight).

Get out the ice cream maker:
Once the mixture is sufficiently chilled, remove the vanilla bean and churn the ice cream according to your ice cream maker's instructions. I used my Kitchen Aid attachment and followed those directions. After this step the ice cream goes back into the freezer for another 8 hours. 

recipe from Brown Eyed Baker

trader joe's freezer faves

if you have a trader joe's near you you likely either love it or have no earthly idea where to begin! i was getting my feet wet a few years ago in the produce section soon after my "kroger fiasco" as its known in our house. they have so many great things but time & time i've heard friends & family say you just can't get a full meal there.  if you saw my post back in august about my cheater meal, you know thats not the case. this chicken still remains a family fave.

here are 5 more faves...i will admit i do give the sodium & fat a critical run down at ti's when I'm there...some things sound divine but are loaded in fat (or let me rephrase, if you eat the whole bag...which you very well could...it would be fatty).

of course the corn dogs are my fave (child at heart) but make sure you don't get the soy/tofu ones...eek!

fresh produce delivered in atlanta

in support of eating healthier, trying new veggies, and giving back to local communities we have started to receive fresh harvest deliveries every other tuesday at our house. every tuesday a rubbermaid bin appears around lunchtime and is filled with ice packs/blue ice and amazing veggies. the site where you can see more details about whats included is http://freshharvestdelivered.com/bins/

we get a mini bin and it has been so much fun! in the event that you are not adventurous [guilty] you can swap things out for other items also available that week. if you note you are referred by someone [ali davis] you can then receive 50% off your first bin...after that every time you refer someone, you also get 50% off. 

the food is local when it can be and all organic and fresh! we have been more than pleased...to benefit ministries in south Atlanta use the group code "marketplace" for a portion of the money to be donated to charity!

week 1 delivery! YUMMY!!!

look at that head of lettuce!!! & those mini watermelons! 

butter tips

every time i see butter written down in a recipe i hear my husband obnoxiously [love you] saying it in his best julia childs voice from the julie & julia movie [don't ask why he's seen that one either...] but seriously, one of the worst things is to get all inspired to make a great recipe only to find out that it calls for softened butter after you are 3/4 of the way through your recipe or beyond the point of turning back. you pop butter in the microwave, you end up with the valley in the center of somewhat melted butter and the rest so soft that it creates a hot & greasy mess as you open it. or almost even worse than that, you say screw it who the heck cares if its softened my kitchen aid mixer can cream it regardless ending up with large chunks and a burnt out mixer.

creaming butter & sugar together [as many recipes of baked goods require] should be the longest step of the entire recipe if you do it the way we are all actually supposed to. melted butter effects the consistency of the batter and the creaming process is essentially shot at that point. It really is recommended that if you melt the butter, that you put it in a small bowl and back in the fridge for your next baked potato or grilled cheese sandwich and start with a fresh stick. i will admit i've made a batch of muffins or two that ended up with grainy looking "creamed" butter and sugar versus the beautiful, slightly yellow lofted goodness a great recipe has.

in the ideal world we would all have the butter softened perfectly out of the wrapper and ready to go the moment we are ready to get baking. what i have found is that the days that i pull butter out, i don't end up baking...the days butter is frozen solid, its a matter of life or death for me to have a fresh sour cream pound cake...the solution?

all you need is a sandwich size ziploc bag. put your butter in there, and run some hot water over it for about 60 seconds, rotating the butter and the bag so that you don't end up with a hole where the stream of water poured onto the bag. within a minute of using not so scalding hot water, i've been able to soften my butter (from refrigerated temperatures) and creaming it with the sugar within minutes!

reduced sugar=reduced taste?

i read an article not too long ago that 1 gram of sugar equates to 3.87 calories. i was always curious...what does that mean for me the "eater" of these reduced sugar foods? i gave it a personal test. one of foods i eat from time to time is Quaker Apples & Cinnamon instant oatmeal. accidentally, i picked up the "lower sugar" box and started to compare the nutrition facts.

specific to the oatmeal....lower sugar (6g sugars) vs.  regular (12g sugars)

women suggested guidelines is to consume no more than 24g of sugar a day. additionally (& most importantly), i cannot taste the difference in the two oatmeals! i'll keep my reduced sugar product (not chemically sweetened) product and enjoy my glass of wine to make up for the 6 grams of sugar that i saved in my day!

has anyone else had anything lately that is reduced sugar (but not chemically sweetened i.e. aspartame) that is better than the "regular" version?? next on my list is peanut butter!

vermicelli salad

i've had this recipe for a while & brought it to the 4th of July in Seabrook this year! makes for a great side & for those of us who avoid mayo, there is so little in here that you dont even realize it!

Vermicelli Salad
what you need...1 14-oz. Pkg. Vermicelli or angel hair pasta
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 T. Parsley, chopped
1 1/2 t. Celery seed
1/2 t. Oregano
1/2 t. Chopped chives
1/4 cup Italian dressing
1 cup or more mayonnaise (start with 1/4 of a cup, you will not use the full cup)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. Shrimp or crabmeat cooked (optional)

what you do...Cook pasta in boiling water. Drain and blanch with cold water. Add onion, green pepper, parsley, celery seed, chives, oregano and Italian dressing. Moisten well with the mayo (you dont need much I promise)!  Add salt and pepper to taste. Fold in the shrimp or crab.

To roast the shrimp: peel and devein the shrimp. Spread on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast at 400 degrees for 6 - 8 minutes.

starving??? how about....

can you tell that my #1 goal these days is to get more protein?! i'll post the shake recipe this week! soooo yummy & breakfast every AM!

how about an easy dinner?

how about an easy dinner? you can't really get more easier [well maybe you can...but not nearly as good]...here is my freezer meal dinner! my goal is to clear out my freezer by july so we can restock, make great sauces, free up some tupperware, and most importantly, fit my kitchen aid mixer ice cream maker attachment back in the freezer!

so as for dinner...this was super easy & what we ate last night. trader joe's has great [cheap] super low fat [5-7grams] chicken sausages in many flavors. once in a while i stock up and get a bunch then freeze the ones that we aren't currently in the mood for. this photo shows one type but we actually ate sun dried tomato [but i accidentally threw away the packaging].

after that publix offers BOGO specials all the time and cheese tortellini was one of them. as you may recall last year i had more basil than i knew what to do with so i froze some in little glass jars. i busted that out and a handful of fresh today and made a fresh batch of pesto. 

with a pound of broccoli to share, the nutritionist would have been proud!

yummy smoothies!

so i've been trying to be better about 1) getting more fruit and 2) eating the despised breakfast and have come to the consensus that i like smoothies. no not your 1000 calorie smoothie king smoothies but rather some homemade goodness. here is the recipe i've been using for mine--i've noted the variations below too!


ice first in the blender--crushed would be ideal but we dont have crushed ice so i just put two handfuls in the bottom of the blender. then add the following...


1/2 cup plain (unsweetened/flavored) greek yogurt
1/2 cup milk or orange juice...oj gets you the tart taste, milk gets you smooth...if as you are blending its too thick, just add a tiny bit more of milk or oj
1 cup berries/fruit...i use a frozen costco bag of marionberries, blueberries, and raspberries (so pretty tart berries) but you can use fresh fruit too including bananas, pineapples, and more.


thats it/all that goes in there so blend it up really well, stirring as needed...and it makes a HUGE cup (largest tervis tumbler size) make sure to have a straw because its thick and yummy!


i've got mine ready to go in the car & heading to greenville to see the newly engaged Ali Poole!!!!

mission: weight loss

welcome to the world of skinny fat! i am officially convinced (or so i'm telling myself) that to gear up for summer 2011 and beyond we've got to ditch the skinny fat. for those unaware of the term, its the people who look fabulous in everything they wear until they get to the beach or the pool and look like a hot flabby mess. i've always cringed at the idea of exercising when it comes to weights and strength training but since pure barre hit the scene, i've over it. 

the challenge this year becomes 1) eat better...2) work out more..sounds simple but for the girl who can't be in the same room as a cookie without eating it, i've got some self restraint issues to work on first!

on top of that...we've got this new food plate (the old food pyramid is cooked) that reminds us that half of every meal should be fruits and veggies...so this is my goal...to make recipes & meals that are at least half veggies and fruit. expect some good meal plans and recipes coming soon! 


link to new dietary guidelines: http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2010/DietaryGuidelines2010.pdf