Sweet Potato Pie

• 2 cups peeled, cooked sweet potatoes (not yams, sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are white inside unlike orange yams)
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 stick melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1 to 2 tablespoons bourbon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 tsp fresh grated ginger
• 1 cup milk
• 9-inch unbaked pie crust 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
For the filling, using an electric hand mixer, combine the potatoes, 1 cup of the sugar, the butter, eggs, vanilla, salt, and spices. Mix thoroughly. Add the milk and continue to mix. Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Place the pie on a rack and cool to room temperature

Top with sugared pecans and homemade whipped cream!

My Favorite Veggie Scramble

This is my favorite breakfast (or lunch) to make that is healthy, and a great way to get in your daily veggies! You can substitute the veggies for others that you may like better. I like this because these eggs don't need cheese, and if you want to cut even more calories, use one whole egg, and then a few egg whites. This recipe will feed one or two people, depending on if you are eating other things with your scrable (like toast or sausage or whatever).

3 eggs
1/4 red or green bell pepper, chopped or minced
1/2 onion chopped or minced
1/2 carton sliced mushrooms (it may seem like a lot, but they shrink a lot when they cook)
2 handfuls of fresh spinach or baby spinach.

Take all veggies except spinach and saute in olive oil for about 3-5 minutes, until onions are clear and mushrooms are cooked through.

While the veggies are cooking, crack 2 or 3 eggs into a bowl and whisk.

Push veggies over to one side of the skillet, and pour the eggs into the other side of the skillet. Scramble the eggs, and when they are cooked through, stir veggies and eggs together.

Last, mix the spinach into the eggs and veggies. They will wilt after about 1 or 2 minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve!

Other options:
Add a chopped tomato at the end of cooking
Add a sliced avocado at the end of cooking
serve with hot sauce

Roasted Jerusalem Artichokes

1 1b Jerusalem artichokes, scrubbed and dried

2 T extra virgin olive oil

Fresh or dried herbs such as thyme, tarragon, sage, or rosemary

2 chopped garlic cloves (optional)

1 thinly sliced onion (optional)

Freshly ground salt and pepper

Either slice Jerusalem artichokes into ¼ inch slices or put them whole into a shallow baking pan. Toss with oil, herbs, garlic and onion (if desired) and salt and pepper. Roast at 425 for 20-30 minutes, turning once, if sliced, or about 40 minutes if whole.

Cheesy Quinoa Cakes

Cheesy Quinoa Cakes with a Roasted Garlic and Lemon Aioli
This recipe is ridiculously good.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked quinoa (I cooked mine in vegetable broth with a bit of salt, but not enough to overpower the other flavors in this recipe)

• 2/3 cup grated fontina cheese (fontina cheese is an Italian or Danish cheese you can find in the specialty cheese section of the grocery store. It's delicious)

• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour

• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

• 2 ½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt to taste

aioli:

• ½ cup light mayonnaise

• 1 head of garlic, roasted

• 1 lemon, zested and juiced

• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. For the cakes: Place all ingredients, except for the oil, into a mixing bowl and stir together until well combined. Season with salt and allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes.
2. Pour oil into a large sauté pan and place over medium heat.
3. Form ¼ cup patties with the quinoa mixture and place in the heated sauté pan. (this will have to be done in batches)
4. Cook quinoa cakes for about 5 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining patties until all of the cakes have been cooked. Set aside.
5. For the aioli: Place all ingredients into a food processor, season with salt and pepper and blend until smooth. Pour into a small bowl and serve alongside the warm quinoa cakes.

click here to see how to roast a head of garlic

Rosemary Bread

• 1 cup water
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
• 2 1/2 cups bread flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1. yeast + 1/4 c. warm water, wait 10 min.

2. Add flour, salt, sugar, oil to kitchen aid, and using the dough hook, knead well.

3. Add the herbs & pepper and last 3/4 c. water (I used oregano instead of an Italian blend) and knead some more.

4. Let rise an hour or so in an oiled, covered bowl in a warm place.

5. Punch down, shape however you want your loaf to look or place in a bread pan, cover, and let rise for another hour in a warm spot.

6. Bake at 375 until browned for 20 minutes, then turn up heat on oven to 425 and cook for another 10 minutes.

-A few tips for this recipe. Just before putting loaf in the oven, brush the top of the dough with a beaten egg, or butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lastly, if you want a crispy crust and soft center, spritz the baking bread several times while baking in the oven, with water.

Ground Turkey and Quinoa

1 1/2 cups Quinoa
chicken boulion or Better than Boullion
1.5-2 lb ground turkey
1 taco seasoning packet
water
1 onion (optional)
1 green or red bell pepper (optional)

Cook quinoa in boullion according to quinoa directions

Saute turkey, onion, and bell pepper over medium high heat until turkey is cooked and no longer pink. Add taco seasoning according to directions on packet

After everything is cooked, add quinoa to turkey mixture and stir. Eat plain, with taco salads, as taco meat, or as burrito filling.

This is also delicious with black beans added!

Butternut Soup

This is one of my favorites. It reminds me of fall. It is easiest to make if you have an immersion blender (which I do not) but it also works in a food processor (in batches) or in a regular blender.

1 butternut squash, apprx. 8 cups cubed (I buy a package of pre-cut butternut squash at Costco...so much easier than cutting up a full squash)

1 can (14 oz) chicken broth

2 tbsp butter

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups Half & Half or whole milk (I made it recently with fat free Half and Half and it worked great!)

1/4 - 1/2 tsp curry powder (I did a little more because I like the curry flavor)

salt and pepper, to taste

dash nutmeg

sour cream for garnish

optional: 2 tbsp brown sugar

1. Place butternut squash in 3 qt. saucepan, add chicken broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until tender (10-15 min.)

2. While squash is cooking, saute chopped onion in butter until tender and beginning to brown or carmelize. Add garlic for last 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add approximately 1/2 cup Half and Half and puree with handheld blender. (We prefer our soup well blended, so I skipped this step and instead blended it after I added the butternut squash to the mixture)

3. Mash squash; add onion and garlic. (This is when I blended it)

4. Stir in remaining half & half. Season to taste with curry, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Warm through, if desired. Thin with milk, if needed. Garnish with dollop of light sour cream.

Serve and enjoy!