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Easy Olive Tapenade

Angela | February 25, 2014

Before we get to today’s recipe, thank you all for your outpouring of support recently about my “letting go” of all the bad stuff that has happened with my knee. Your kind words and encouragement mean the world.

Now, for today’s main topic: Olive tapenade. Sounds so fancy, doesn’t it? It doesn’t look all that fancy. But, when verbalized, it sounds very elitist!

The truth is, olive tapenade is really easy to make in any food processor or Ninja Blender. My take on this spread includes sun-dried tomatoes, but you can certainly leave them out. Same goes for the capers. Some people like capers, some don’t. If you don’t, ditch the capers!

You can use this recipe in all sorts of ways – for a dip/spread, in sandwiches, or, how I use it most: On top of a salad as the dressing.

Olive Tapenade | Test Kitchen Tuesday

Easy Olive Tapenade

Print this Recipe!

Makes: About 1 cup, serving size is 1/4 cup

Best Ninja Jar Choice

  • Ninja Pulse: Standard jar with standard blade
  • Ninja Professional Blender: 72 ounce jar with standard blade
  • Ninja Kitchen System: Food processor bowl with standard blade
  • Ninja Mega Kitchen System: Food processor bowl with standard blade

Ingredients:

  • 40 pitted Kalamata (black) olives
  • 2 tablespoons capers, drained
  • 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes
  • 2 cloves fresh garlic
  • Juice from 1/2 lemon
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • Pepper to taste (you shouldn’t need salt with all the sodium from the olives)

Olive Tapenade | Test Kitchen Tuesday

Method:

  • Add all ingredients to the jar of your Ninja Blender or food processor
  • Pulse 5-6 times to get started, then, use long pulses to thoroughly combine, probably for about 30 seconds. You can also steady state blend on low or “1” until the mixture is combined

Nutritional Breakdown

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Reader Request: Homemade Salsa in the Ninja Blender

Angela | January 14, 2014

It’s been a while since I’ve done a reader request post, and I’m super excited about this one!

Reader Christina asked how well the Ninja makes salsa, and, I had surprisingly never made salsa (until now) in a Ninja blender. I had, in fact, never made salsa, even though I l-o-v-e salsa. Strange, right?

When it comes to salsa, there are so many varieties, from pico de gallo to picante, and a selection of consistencies and colors in between. For this recipe, I went with a traditional salsa consistency and used the Ninja Mega KS with the 72 ounce jar because most folks have a 72 ounce jar, regardless of model. If you  have a Ninja Pulse, you would simply use the main pitcher for this. You could also use a food processor if you don’t have a Ninja.

The great thing about making this salsa in your Ninja is that it’s FAST! Just quarter everything that needs chopping and off you go. Start to finish, this took me about a minute (not including photographs, of course). This is how I put everything in…

Fresh Salsa | Test Kitchen Tuesday

…and this is how it came out.

Fresh Salsa | Test Kitchen Tuesday

This salsa reminds me of the blend at our local Mexican restaurant. Give it a whirl and see what you think!

Easy Fresh Salsa

Print this Recipe!

Makes: 4 cups

Best Ninja Jar Choice:

  • Ninja Pulse: 64 ounce jar
  • Ninja Professional Blender: 72 ounce jar
  • Ninja Kitchen System: 72 ounce jar
  • Ninja Mega Kitchen System: 72 ounce jar

Ingredients:

  • 4 medium ripe beefsteak tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 bell pepper, quartered
  • 4 sweet baby bell peppers, tops removed (optional)
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, top removed and de-seeded for mild heat (if you want it hotter leave in some or all of the seeds)
  • 1/2 medium onion
  • 1 handful fresh cilantro
  • Juice from one lime
  • Salt to taste (optional)

Fresh Salsa | Test Kitchen Tuesday

Method:

  • Add all ingredients to the jar of your Ninja blender in the order listed
  • Blend on “2” (hold down lid on Pulse) until desired consistency is reached, probably 20-30 seconds

Fresh Salsa | Test Kitchen Tuesday

Nutritional Breakdown:

Per 1/2 cup serving without added salt.

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Ninja Blender, Ninja Mega Kitchen System, Ninja Pulse, Side Dishes, Snacks
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Blender, Ninja Blender, Ninja Blender Recipes, Recipe, Salsa
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Creamy Non-Dairy Mashed Potatoes, and an Easy Way to Store Leftovers

Angela | November 26, 2013

It’s Thanksgiving Week, and, you’re probably either rushing around figuring out menus, or, sitting back and relaxing because someone else is doing that and you just have to show up with a smile and eat.

Today, I have a two-parter for you, no matter which of the two above scenarios apply.

Part 1: How to store mashed potato leftovers so that you can easily have mashed potatoes any day of the week with no prep time. So, when no one wants to take home the potatoes, you can happily snap them up.

Part 2: A creamy mashed potato recipe that needs no dairy and tastes every bit as good as potatoes loaded with butter and cream.

Part 1: Maximize Your Mashed Potatoes

I have a fondness for ice cube trays. But, not those cheesy new-fangled trays that crack to pieces after one or two uses. I’m all about the sturdy ice cube trays from my youth, that were built to last, like these. mashed_potatoes

But of course, I don’t use them for making ice. Ice cube trays are handy for a lot of things, mostly to do with creating convenient smoothies. But, one day, when thinking about storing some left over mashed potatoes, an idea hit me: What if I portioned mashed potatoes into ice cube trays, froze them, and then stored in a freezer bag?

I’ll tell you what happens! You can have mashed potatoes in any portion size any night of the week in about 5 minutes. As Paula Deen would say, BOOM, y’all!

Just take out as many cubes of potatoes as you want, add to a pot, heat over low heat and, voila, your mashed potatoes are back to life with a little bit of stirring. If they turn runny in this process, you’ll want to thicken them back up with a thickening agent, which runs the gamut from arrowroot powder to a roux to cornstarch (just be careful, almost all cornstarch is GMO).

You’ll wan to let your family know that the ice cubes are not indeed ice, or you may get a quizzical question or two, or even just a statement, as I did.

“I presume this is not ice, like the time my orange juice wasn’t juice,” was what my finicky hubby had to say when he spied these cubes in the freezer.

For the record, I told him, no, it wasn’t ice, and, that juice mix-up was an innocent mistake years ago when I put freshly-made vegetable broth in an old orange juice container. Ha!

Part 2: Creamy Non-Dairy Mashed Potatoes

I did a little poll on my Facebook page a while back to see what type of diets you guys favor, and, not surprisingly, vegetarian, Paleo, dairy-free, and gluten-free were all top lifestyle choices. So, for Thanksgiving this year, I thought I’d share with you my non-dairy mashed potatoes that you’d never know are non-dairy, which meet all of the above selections (though I know they are on the fence for Paleo).

The secret to this recipe? My favorite: Avocado.

I know what you’re thinking, “but won’t it turn my potatoes green?!”

The answer is, well, yes, very slightly. But, we’re not talking The Incredible Hulk kind of green. Just a very faint hint of green. And, the result is very much worth it. These potatoes can compete with any mashed potatoes made with dairy any day!Dairy Free Mashed Potatoes | Test Kitchen Tuesday

Non-Dairy Mashed Potatoes

Print this Recipe!

Makes: 4 servings

Suggested Ninja Blender Jar

  • Ninja Pulse: 48 ounce jar with standard blade
  • Ninja Professional Blender: 72 ounce jar with standard blade
  • Ninja Kitchen System: 64 ounce food processor jar with standard blade
  • Ninja Mega Kitchen System: 64 ounce food processor jar with standard blade

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups roughly chopped potatoes of your choice (I prefer Yukon Gold for this), skin on
  • 1/2 Hass avocado
  • 2 TBS to 1/4 cup preferred unflavored non-dairy milk (I use almond milk)
  • Salt to taste

Method:

  • Boil potatoes in a medium pot until soft, about 15 minutes
  • Drain, and add to the jar of your Ninja Blender
  • Add avocado and 2 Tablespoons milk
  • Pulse 3-4 times to combine, and then blend on “1” (hold lid on Pulse) until the desired consistency is reached, probably 45-60 seconds
  • If more milk is needed, add, then pulse 4-5 times to combine
  • Taste, and add salt as needed, probably 1-2 pinches

Nutritional Breakdown

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dairy-free, mashed potatoes, Ninja Blender, Ninja Blender Recipes
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Guest Post: Award-Winning Pumpkin Mac-N-Cheese

Angela | November 16, 2011

Today I have a special treat lined up for you!

A while back, I wrote about how to make your own pumpkin puree, and my friend Amy noted in the comments that she has an award-winning pumpkin mac recipe. Another reader asked for the recipe, and Amy was generous enough to agree to share it.

So, in lieu of a traditional Test Kitchen recap this week and just in time for Thanksgiving meal planning, we have pumpkin mac-n-cheese on tap.

She didn’t provide a bio with this article, so I’m going to tell you a little about Amy in my own words.We have known each other for going on 12 years now, so I feel I can tell you what you need to know! I am also pasting in a photo of her. Editor’s privileges, ya’ see. 41365_10725312_5748_n[1]

Amy is a Wisconsin native who went to undergrad at Boston College, where she met her New Hampshire-native husband, John. They  enjoy scuba diving in exotic locales, Formula One racing, and are both wine connoisseurs. Amy also likes cheese. Heck, John probably does too. But, Amy is a “cheese head” and is still reveling in the joy of the Packers winning the Super Bowl this year. It is only fitting she is bringing us a unique mac-n-cheese recipe!

Take it away, Amy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every fall in New England the leaves on the trees famously change color, signaling the season for the Goffstown, New Hampshire Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off and Regatta. This two-day extravaganza turns this small, quintessential New England town into a festive celebration of everything pumpkin – from the pumpkin catapults to the giant pumpkin drop to the river race of pumpkin “boats.”

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Editor’s note, above: Yes, they are floating ON pumpkins!

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But the most important event for my family is the Pumpkin Cook-Off. Each year, the Peltonen family anchors the Cook-Off competition, and has even been mentioned in the local press.

I’m not sure exactly how the family cook-off mania got started, but it is certainly in full-swing now. Now our second year of participating, John and I fly in from Seattle just for the event!

We join about 20 other family members, traveling from Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, and others, who all descend on the house in Goffstown for the weekend. Fortunately my husband’s parents have a big old farmhouse with lots of beds so it ends up holding most of us.

The weekend is like a giant slumber party for adults accompanied by lots of talk about who is going to make what for the pumpkin festival cook-off.

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Editor’s note, above: Doesn’t this look exactly what a New England farmhouse should look like?

The kitchen at my in-law’s house is what you might expect for a kitchen in an old farmhouse. The cabinets and drawers look original, obviously painted over several times. The appliances were updated back in the 1980s. The oven requires some experience to know that it runs hot and needs some intimate coaxing in order to bake dishes evenly.

I have a hard time finding the right ingredients and cooking utensils, as it is always a challenge to cook in someone else’s kitchen, especially a kitchen that has been lived in for over 40 years!. There are so many cooks that we all usually bring our own ingredients, even down to staples. The kitchen dimensions are probably 10’ x 10’, which makes for a very hectic space with all of us cooking! Fortunately there’s an extra oven and stove in the basement that always gets used.

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For this year’s Cook-Off, I chose to make a pumpkin mac ‘n cheese dish as my entry. I tried the dish several times at home before making the recipe for the Festival, which allowed me to make a few tweaks that really put the flavors over the top.

clip_image002

The first time I made it I used a combination of fancy, sharp cheddar cheeses including Beecher’s from Pike Place Market. What I found is that the cheese actually overpowered the other flavors and was too complex. Can a cheese be too good for pumpkin mac and cheese?

clip_image001

Editor’s note: Seriously, this is amazing cheese. A personal favorite.

The second time I used generic orange sharp cheddar cheese, which fit the combination of flavors much better and also lent a more festive orange hue to the dish.image

Another tweak I made included the beer. The first beer I tried was an amber style, which tasted okay, but when I switched to Guinness stout it gave the dish a sweeter, milder addition.

My final change was using chives instead of parsley for garnish. I realized that I like the taste of chives better than parsley and the chives seemed to bring a nice tang to the taste instead of the more bitter parsley.

And with this final recipe I am proud to boast my selection as the third place winner at the Cook-Off!

Here is a photo before it went under the broiler.

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Note that the sauce can be made ahead of time, frozen and reheated. I transported the frozen sauce in my suitcase from Seattle to New Hampshire (which stayed quite frozen under the plane) so I could minimize the amount of cooking I needed to do in the crowded kitchen!

I appreciate that Test Kitchen Tuesday typically highlights healthy recipes, but this is not one of them. I think every once in a while you deserve a treat and in my opinion this would be a great addition to a Thanksgiving meal. Let yourself live a little and enjoy it!

AMY’S AWARD-WINNING PUMPKIN MAC-N-CHEESE

Printer Friendly (PDF)

Ingredients

  • 1 pound penne
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 3 slightly rounded tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup Guinness
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • A couple of pinches of ground cloves
  • A few shakes of allspice
  • About 1 teaspoon ground mustard
  • A pinch of cayenne pepper
  • A few shakes of ground nutmeg
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 pureed, roasted sugar pumpkin (roasting instructions)
  • 2 1/2 cups shredded sharp orange cheddar cheese
  • Sweet paprika, for sprinkling
  • Chopped chives, for garnish

Method

  • Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt it and cook the pasta to al dente. Drain and reserve.
  • Pre-heat the broiler.
  • Melt the butter in a medium size saucepot over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, cook for 1 minute, then raise heat a bit and add the beer.
  • Reduce until almost evaporated, then whisk in the syrup and milk. Season with cloves, allspice, mustard, cayenne, a little nutmeg and some salt and pepper.
  • Thicken to coat a spoon, a couple of minutes, then taste to adjust the seasonings.
  • Whisk in the pumpkin puree, then stir in about 2 cups grated cheese with a wooden spoon until melted.
  • Combine the pasta with the sauce and arrange in a casserole dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and a light dusting of paprika.
  • Broil to brown and bubble. Garnish with chives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Many thanks to Amy for sharing her recipe as well as a little taste of New England!

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Spiced Apple-Pear Butter

Angela | October 10, 2011

Fall is in the air! Apples are in season! What better time to make some spiced apple-pear butter?

I can’t take any credit for this recipe – it came from Whole Foods. But, it is so good. I mean, so good! And so simple, really, and the perfect item to have simmering on the stove on a Sunday afternoon – it makes the house smell lovely!

I had some homemade apple juice in the freezer that I thawed out, and used fresh ginger instead of ground (I used 1 teaspoon fresh ginger leftover from a different recipe). And, I didn’t have maple syrup, but brown rice syrup worked great, so I’m putting that as an alternative sweetener from the original recipe.

The hardest thing about this recipe is not continuously nipping from the spoon as you stir. Enjoy!

Spiced Apple-Pear Butter

Ingredients:

2 pounds apples, peeled and cored
1 pound pears, peeled and cored
1/2 cup organic apple juice or cider, or water
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon organic ground ginger
2 tablespoons Dark Amber Maple Syrup or Brown Rice Syrup

Method:

  • Cut apples and pears into 1-inch chunks. Place in a medium saucepan with juice, cinnamon and ginger.

image

  • Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
  • Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until fruit is very soft, about 30 minutes.
  • Stir in maple syrup and continue to simmer until very thick, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
  • During the last 15 minutes, stir more frequently to prevent sticking and burning.
  • Puree in a high speed blender or food processor (I used my Ninja and pureed for about 30 seconds on “1”)

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Optional: Continue to simmer to further reduce the butter once you have blended it. You can see it reduced quite a bit more with about 15 more minutes of simmering. Note to self: Bring your tripod to Bend from Seattle. I couldn’t take a photo with the spoon pointing the same way because I am right handed!image

Nutrition:

Per Serving (2 tablespoons): 50 calories (0 from fat), 0g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 0mg sodium, 14g total carbohydrate (2g dietary fiber, 11g sugar), 0g protein

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Sweet Potatoes A-Go-Go: Five Ways to Enjoy The Sweets

Angela | September 29, 2011

Cravings are funny things, aren’t they? Lately, I have been all about sweet potatoes. Perhaps it’s a seasonal thing, but, sweet potatoes have been the “in” thing for me the last couple weeks.

Not that that’s a bad thing.

The sweet potato is a nutritional powerhouse! Just check out these stats for one medium sweet potato:

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Sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber, Vitamin A, and Vitamin C, and, though not listed on this label, also very high in beta carotene.

With that, I thought I’d share a handful of my favorite ways to enjoy the sweets.

1. Baked with almond butter. I dare you to try this! Bake a sweet potato (or, microwave for 5-6 minutes if that’s more your speed), and then top with 1-2 tablespoons of almond butter. Not only is this delicious, it’s filling and packs a great nutritional punch. The almond butter adds some protein and healthy fats, and the two flavors mix very well together. While you’re at it, be sure to eat the skin (be sure you wash it well before cooking).

I have been eating this a lot for breakfast lately to recover from a hard workout – works like a champ and fills me up until lunch.

2. Sweet potato pancakes. You don’t have to be Southern to enjoy these – they are simply phenomenal!

pancakes_thumb

3. Sweet potato and banana mash. I gobble this up like it’s Thanksgiving day whenever I make it. In fact, why don’t you make this for a Thanksgiving side dish this year and ditch the marshmallow cream?

sweet_potato_banana_mash

4. Sweet potato and green pea risotto. This risotto is super easy and doesn’t require all that high maintenance stirring like most risottos. It’s pretty, too!

sweet_potato_risotto2

5. Sweet Potato Oat Muffins. Muffins are such an easy way to sneak in healthy items that you may want to serve folks that are a little…um…resistant to eating healthy items!

sweet-potato-muffin_thumb

Bonus Points:

As it turns out, I write about sweet potatoes a lot. Here are a few other recipes that also feature sweets:

  • Sweet potato white bean hummus
  • Veggie chili with sweet potatoes
  • Sweet potato brownies
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TKT Flashback: Delicata Squash Oven Fries

Angela | September 19, 2011

I love Fall. The air is crisp, the leaves start to turn, the sweaters come out, and, winter squash starts appearing in the store. While it technically is not quite yet Fall, the winter squash has started to appear!

I was thrilled to find Delicata squash on our Whole Foods run over the weekend. Last year, when approximately 2.7 people read this blog, I wrote about my favorite way to prepare the squash: making oven fries. Since it’s highly likely you weren’t one of those 2.7 people, I wanted to repost this idea because I just love it.

The original post is here, but, I highly recommend you try these! If you see a squash that looks like this:

image

 

You can easily turn it into this, and have fries without an ounce of guilt at all.

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Test Kitchen Tuesday Delicata Squash Oven Fries
Downloadable Word Document Recipe

Serves: 2 (One serving = 1/2 of the squash)

Time Required:

  • 5 minutes to prepare squash
  • 40-45 minutes to roast

Ingredients:

  • 1 delicata squash (organic if you prefer, as you can eat the skin)
  • Salt and pepper to taste (optional)

Method:

  • Preheat oven to 350 F
  • Wash squash thoroughly, as you can eat the skin once roasted; Pat dry
  • Microwave squash on high for 2 minutes to soften the skin
  • Cut in half and remove seeds
  • Cut off “tip and tail” of squash
  • Cut into thin strips about .5” wide
  • Lightly salt and pepper if you prefer (I did not)
  • Place on lightly sprayed cookie sheet
  • Roast for 40-45 minutes, until the fries have reached your desired level of brown-ness

Nutrition:

From MyFitnessPal.

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Sweet Potato Banana Mash

Angela | August 29, 2011

So, I’m guessing you’re thinking, “Huh. Odd combo.”

Ah, but not so fast my friend.

This odd combo is delicious, fairly nutritious, and an almost sure-fire way to get someone who does not “like” sweet potatoes to eat them like they’re candy! I can’t take credit for the idea, I stumbled on something like this in the Whole Foods hot bar and thought, “Huh.Odd combo.”

See, we think alike.

But, I gave them a try and wished I had scooped a bigger spoonful into my bowl! I practically ran home to figure out how to recreate them. If you like the “sweets” and you like bananas, this will jazz up your weekday side dish in a big way!

sweet_potato_banana_mash

Sweet Potato Banana Mash

Serves: 4 (about 3/4 cup serving size)

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb sweet potatoes (about 2)
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1-2 tablespoons flour
  • 1/4 cup pecans, optional
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar, optional

Method

  • Wash, peel, and cube sweet potatoes and boil until soft, and then drain potatoes
  • Add ingredients to a high speed blender or food processor, and pulse to combine, then mix to a blended consistency. For my Ninja, this took 30 seconds on “1” – I would recommend adding the bananas, then sweet potatoes, then everything else. I wouldn’t recommend using a standard blender for this.
  • Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon flour and evaluate the consistency. If it is not thick enough for your preference, add the other tablespoon of flour
  • Optional: If you wish, pour the mixture into an 8×8 baking pan, layer the pecans on top, sprinkle with brown sugar, and bake for about 10 minutes at 350 until the pecans are toasty.

Nutrition

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Oven-Roasted Potato Wedges

Angela | August 22, 2011

We have really had a doozie of a weekend, starting in Seattle at 5 a.m. on Friday and resulting in three solid days of go-go-go to get to Bend, acquire necessities, unpack, and get settled. We only brought essentials with us, as our “good” stuff has stayed in Seattle while we try to sell our house. That meant rolling into town and immediately needing a few big things: Bed, TV, and a washer/dryer. Turns out shopping isn’t that fun when you have to have things. (Though it is really debatable if any of those items aside from the bed were essential). bugsy

The  boss around our house, our fussy – but lovable – grey kitty, has issued her stamp of approval on her new digs, and the “yes man,” our agreeable black lab has not missed a beat.

The first thing I “cooked” in our new kitchen was potato wedges, which seems odd when faced with such nice appliances. When you’re exhausted from moving, trying to figure out your random box labeling system that made so much sense when you packed but makes absolutely no sense on the other end of the move, and unpacking, cooking is not exactly top of mind. But, eating is a necessity, so, cooking was done!

I make these oven-baked potato wedges at least once a week. They are a nice side dish to a variety of meals, and provide a comfort-food feeling with no real guilt at all. Most importantly, they let 2Chili have ketchup, his favorite of the condiments. I prefer them with either Yukon Gold or red potatoes, but this day, I used run-of-the-mill Russets, and they were just great.

oven_roasted_potatoes

Oven Roasted Potato Wedges

Makes 3-4 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 lb potatoes – russet, red, or Yukon Gold
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • Salt to taste

Method

  • Preheat oven to 425 F
  • Cut potatoes lengthwise into 1 inch thick slices
  • Pat wedges down with a clean dish towel to remove as much moisture as possible (this important!)
  • Cut potatoes into random wedges and place in a large bowl
  • Pour olive oil over potatoes and toss to coat – add a pinch of salt if you desire
  • Spread potatoes in a flat layer in a 9 x 12 baking dish (do not stack them if you can help it)
  • Bake for 45 minutes until golden brown

Nutrition

Based on 3 servings with no added salt.

image

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Potatoes; Baked Potatoes; Roasted Potatoes; Food; Recipes
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Sweet Potato White Bean Hummus

Angela | June 21, 2011

After a few weeks of not really creating anything terribly exciting or new around here, the Test Kitchen is back in business! I am recovered from my half Ironman and happily have the energy to cook again. 2Chili is getting some variety back in his life, and, our dishwasher is getting a daily workout again (though my workouts have decreased in volume). It’s all good.

I guess it’s “getting real in the Test Kitchen cooking pots,” as this guy might say.  If you haven’t seen the viral video sensation about the Whole Foods Parking Lot, it’s worth clicking that link and using 3 minutes of your life! But warning, you will not be able to stop saying the chorus, no matter how you try.

And, speaking of Whole Foods, I did an experiment for this week’s Project: Food Budget and bought everything we needed only at WFM. You’ll have to tune in Thursday to see how I did!

Anyway, on to today’s recipe. Y’all know I like sweet potatoes, as I’ve made them into pancakes, muffins, and even risotto. They are a very versatile (and affordable) member of our pantry. 

Over the weekend, in one of my mass-cooking extravaganzas, I came across some thawed out white beans in the fridge and for some reason had a light bulb moment that I should mix them with a roasted sweet potato to make hummus.

Typically, I have found I like store-bought hummus better than homemade. I just never seem to get the texture right with homemade chickpea hummus. But, this white bean and sweet potato blend came out just right, and delicious. It’s creamy, tasty, and good for you! I went light on the salt, so unlike store bought, the sodium is pretty low. However, I used prepared white beans, so your sodium will vary if you use canned beans.

I think the secret is in the roasted sweet potato, as the flavor of a roasted sweet is much deeper than just boiling or steaming it. See what you think!

sweet_potato_hummus

Roasted Sweet Potato White Bean Hummus

Note: This recipe makes a lot, so you probably want to freeze half!

Printer Friendly (PDF)

Time Required:

  • 1 hour to roast sweet potato (passive)
  • 5 minutes to blend ingredients

Makes: Roughly 4 cups

Ingredients:

  • 1 large sweet potato
  • 1.75 cups drained white beans (or 1 can)
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice (juice from one lemon)
  • 1/4 cup tahini
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin (optional)
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

Method:

  • Preheat oven to 400 F.
  • Place sweet potato in a medium casserole dish and roast for roughly one hour. When done, let cool for 20-30 minutes and peel the skin (it should just fall off)
  • Place all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor and puree for one minute, scraping down sides if needed
  • Add a bit of water if you need to make the mixture blend better (I didn’t add any)

sweet_potatosweet_potato_hummus2

Nutrition:

For a 2 tablespoon-sized serving.

image

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