Sweet Potato and Chard Gratin

I made this for Christmas dinner with my extended family. Everyone loved it-- big hit. (As a note, I used emmenthaler for the cheese and half-in-half instead of the cream)

What I did with my farmer's market broccoli today

Broccoli Slaw
Adapted a bit from a Smitten Kitchen recipe


1 heads of broccoli, broken into bits
1/4 cup thinly sliced almonds, toasted
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 c. red onion, finely chopped

Dressing-- whisk together
1/4 cup mayonnaise )
1ish tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
milk to thin

Recent craving.

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into "fry shapes"
olive oil, generous amount
kosher salt, to taste

-- toss together in bowl. Line cookie sheet with foil and spread fries onto sheet. Bake at 425 for 30-40 minutes, turning once.

-- Serve immediately with yummy Newman's Own Ranch Dressing.

Sesame Noodles

We all love this side dish a lot. My kids inhale it.

2 t. sesame oil
1 garlic clove, minced
3 T. tahini (sesame seed paste)
Chili sauce to taste
3 T. Soy sauce
2 T. Rice vinegar
2 T. Sugar
1/2 t. Salt

1- 12(ish) oz. pkg. Udon noodles (I suppose you could use linguine)

Wisk together all items except noodles.

Cook noodles according to pkg.; rinse with cold water, but I like them a little warm.

Add sauce to noodles and mix.

Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and/or chopped scallions.

Beet and Leek Salad with Peanut Dressing

we made this salad again this weekend. it's really good. i got this out of cooking light years ago -- this photo is fromt he first time i made it. i think caleb and i had jara and kenley over for dinner. and obviously someone else, but i can't remember! (those are chicken lettuce wraps on the tray -- the salad is actually on the plates. blurry, i know)

Ingredients

2 medium beets (about 3/4 pound)
Cooking spray
4 cups thinly sliced leek (about 1 pound)
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 cups alfalfa sprouts

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425°. Leave root and 1 inch of stem on beets; scrub with a brush. Place beets on a small baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425° for 1 hour or until tender when pierced with a fork. Cool. Trim off beet roots and stem; rub off skins. Cut each beet in half lengthwise; slice each beet half crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

Combine leek, oil, and 1/4 teaspoon salt on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; toss well to coat. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes or until tender and just beginning to brown; stir after 8 minutes.

Combine water, lime juice, peanut butter, ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon salt, stirring well with a whisk until smooth.

Arrange 1/3 cup sprouts on each of 6 salad plates; divide the beets and leek evenly among servings. Drizzle about 2 teaspoons dressing over each serving. Makes 6 servings.

Look at the name of the person who created it..... ;)

Didi Emmons , Cooking Light, MARCH 2005

Radish Curry

caleb's roommate john michael made up this dish. it's one of our favorites! sorry there are no measurements. do it to taste.

cut up:
a bunch or two of radishes, slivered
1/2 medium onion, chopped finely

Heat 2 T. oil (veg or peanut. not olive)
add mustard seeds cook until they pop
add 1 T. minced curry leaves

add the onion and cook until brown. add salt
add minced garlic and turmeric

add radishes. cook until they turn color.
put on lid and simmer until consistency turns mushy. the radishes will keep their form though. this will take a while. once they're mushy, bring heat up until radishes brown.
add 1 T. curry leaves

How I make my guacamole.

Ada hearts this.

1 ripe avocado
1ish T. lemon juice (I like this better than lime)
2ish T. minced white onion
pinch dried oregano (kinda weird, but makes it yummy!)
1 small garlic clove, minced
salt to taste

Mash this all up with a potato masher and serve.

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

These have a perfect bit of spice to them! Don't even need ketchup.

Credit for this recipe goes to this blogger where full post and photos may be found.

Sweet Potatoes, one per person
Olive oil (see below)

Seasoning Mix:
2 T ground coriander
1 T ground fennel
1 T dried oregano
1 T Aleppo Pepper (or use a smaller amount of cayenne pepper)
2 T kosher salt

Preheat oven to 425 F. Peel sweet potatoes and cut into strips about 3 inches long and 3/4 inches thick.

In mortar and pestle or spice grinder, grind together coriander, fennel, oregano, and Aleppo pepper. Mix in salt. (This makes enough for several batches of sweet potatoes, so you'll need a small jar to store the extra.)

In plastic bowl, toss together cut sweet potatoes, olive oil, and spice mixture. You will need about 1 T olive oil and 2 tsp. of the spice mixture for every two sweet potatoes, depending on how spicy you like it.

Spray flat roasting pan with non-stick spray. Spread out sweet potatoes in single layer. Roast 30-40 minutes, turning about every ten minutes. Sweet potatoes should be softened through and lightly browned when they're done. (They will only be slightly crisp. If you wanted them crisper I might increase the temperature to 450 F or use convection if you have it, but sweet potatoes never get as crisp as fried potatoes.) Serve hot.