Sweet Potato Pie

My sweet potato pie recipe includes fresh sweet potatoes roasted in the oven, which gives the pie an extra rich and yummy taste ;o)

Yield: 8-12 servings

• 1 9-inch pie crust (see Pie Crust 101 for recipe)
• 1 pound cooked and mashed sweet potatoes (about 2 cups)
• 1 1/2 cup half and half
• 3/4 cup coconut palm sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake sweet potatoes in the preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until soft. Reduce heat to 350 degrees.
2. Put cooled sweet potatoes in a large mixing bowl and beat on medium speed until smooth; add cream, sugar, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt; and continue beating until fully incorporated. 
3. Pour sweet potato mixture in pie crust and bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, or when tooth pick comes out clean. 

Perfect Apple Pie

There aren't many recipes that I've continued using since I started baking many many years ago ;o) but this is definitely one of them. I adapted it from my very first McCall's cookbook. Although I've tried several different apple pie recipes throughout the years, I always come back to this one. For a tasty apple pie, make sure you choose apples appropriate for baking. I usually use Granny Smith apples because the sugar counteracts their tartness, and they mix well with the cinnamon and nutmeg. Let the fall begin...

Ingredients:

• Pie crust for 2-crust pie (see Pie Crust 101 recipe for homemade crust)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6-7 cups thinly sliced, pared tart cooking apples, such as Granny Smith  
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In small bowl, mix sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In large bowl, toss the apples with lemon juice. Add sugar mixture to sliced apples; toss lightly to combine. (If you prefer softer apples ~ like me ~ place apple mixture in microwave for 5 minutes.) Set aside.
3. Fold bottom pastry in half; carefully transfer to pie plate, making sure fold is in the center of plate. Unfold pastry, fit carefully into pie plate, pressing gently with fingers, so pastry fits snugly all around, trying not to stretch. 
4. Turn apple mixture into pastry-lined pie plate, mounting up in center. Trim overhanging pastry to measure 1/2" from rim of plate.
5. Fold top crust in half; using a sharp knife, make some cuts near center for steam vents. Center and place top pastry over apples. Trim overhanging pastry to measure about 1" from edge, all around. Fold top pastry under edge of bottom pastry. With fingers, press edge together to seal, so juices won't run out. Press upright to form a standing rim. Crimp edges. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, if desired.
6. Bake 45 minutes to 50 minutes, or until crust is golden. 

~adapted from The McCall Publishing Company

Vegetable Lasagna

The weather is getting colder so I'm ready for some comfort food ~ yep, lasagna!  When I make lasagna, I like to make my own sauce... it just doesn't seem homemade using spaghetti sauce. This sauce is super easy to prepare too ~ just throw the ingredients in a large saucepan and let it cook while you work on the rest of the recipe. You love mushrooms and sweet peppers on your mozzarella pizza, right ~ so you're sure to like them in your vegetarian lasagna... enjoy!

Serves 6

Tomato Sauce Ingredients:

• 1 28-ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
• 1 6-ounce can no-salt tomato paste 
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil 
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Lasagna Ingredients:

• 3/4 package (1 pound size) lasagna noodles
• 16-ounce package frozen cut green beans (or fresh)
• 2 cups red, yellow and/or orange sweet peppers, thinly sliced
• 8 ounces mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 15-ounce carton reduced fat ricotta cheese
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
• 1 pound part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:

1. Sauce: Add all sauce ingredients to large saucepan over medium-high heat; stir to mix. Bring to boiling; reduce heat; simmer 1 - 1 1/2  hours, stirring occasionally.
2. Cook lasagna as label directs. Drain; rinse in cold water. Set aside.
3. Clean and cut vegetables. Set aside.
4. In a small bowl, mix ricotta cheese, egg and parsley flakes until well combined.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. lightly spray 13-by-9 inch baking dish with cooking oil.
6. In prepared baking dish, spread 3/4 cup of sauce. Layer half the noodles, ricotta mixture, green beans,  sweet peppers, mushrooms, sauce and mozzarella cheese. Repeat. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Bake uncovered in preheated oven 30-35 minutes, or until bubbly around edges. Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving. 

Mexican Salad in a Butter Lettuce Bowl

Have you had your salad today? If not, try this one... although it's not just a salad, it's a meal! The beans, rice and veggies provide plenty of fiber and nutrients and the avocado, olive oil and pine nuts provide some smart fats ~ and to top it off, you're surely to feel satisfied. Go ahead, and indulge ;o)

Yield: 2 salads

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cooked brown rice
• 1/2 tablespoon of butter
• 1/8 - 1/4 cup red onion, finely sliced
• 1/4 cup sweet peppers, finely sliced
• 2 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
• 5-6 ounces butter lettuce
• 1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
• Handful of grape tomatoes (or cherry, halved)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Guacamole Ingredients:

• 1 ripe avocado
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Dash of red pepper flakes

Dressing Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon honey
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Rice: Cook rice, per package directions. Stir in butter, salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
2. Guacamole: Pulse all guacamole ingredients in mini food processor (or mash avocado with fork and stir all ingredients) until smooth. 
3. Dressing: Whisk all dressing ingredients together until thoroughly combined. Set aside.
4. Wash and finely slice red onion and sweet peppers. 
5. Place pine nuts in dry skillet on medium heat and cook about 4 minutes, or until nuts start to brown.
6. Assemble salads: Line two salad bowls with whole butter lettuce leaves. Tear or cut the balance of lettuce into bite-sized pieces and place in bowl; add dressing and toss until combined. Gently place half the dressed lettuce in the center of each bowl, ensuring whole leaves stay in place. Divide the onion, peppers, beans, and tomatoes evenly among the two bowls. Drop dollops of guacamole over salads and top each salad with a half-cup of rice. Sprinkle each salad with 1 tablespoon of pine nuts. 

Almond Butter and Cacao Granola Breakfast Cookies

I usually work at home where my go-to-breakfast is a hot bowl of oatmeal. However, when I have to head to the office, I don't always have time to prepare a hot breakfast. On these days, I grab something to go... like one of these Almond Butter and Cacao Granola Breakfast Cookies. The base for these chewy cookies is oatmeal; and they're loaded with toasted coconut flakes, toasted sliced almonds and cacao nibs. Raw cacao nibs is the purest form of chocolate that you can consume and a good source of antioxidants and fiber. They have a rich chocolatey flavor, but less sweetness than traditional chocolate chips. If you like a sweeter granola (or don't care for the taste of cacao), use chocolate chips instead of cacao nibs ;o)

Yield: 9 large cookies

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, softened
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups rolled old-fashioned oats
• 2/3 cup coconut flakes, toasted
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
• 1/3 cups cacao nibs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, mix together almond butter, honey, coconut oil, egg and vanilla; add rolled  old-fashioned oats and mix until thoroughly combined. Fold in toasted coconut flakes, toasted sliced almonds and cacao nibs.
3. Drop 1/3 cup ball of mixture onto baking sheet; flatten slightly. 
4. Place in preheated oven and bake about 30 minutes, or until firm.