Loaded sweet potatoes

BudgetBites is on a roll lately! I was very pleasantly surprised how easy, healthy, and kid-friendly the chili mac was, so I checked out their other recipes and found this one for loaded sweet potatoes. I gave it a shot tonight and it was surprise hit! Both kids really liked the sweet potatoes.

Loaded Sweet Potatoes with Lime Crema

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes (about 1 lb. each) 
• 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 15oz. can black beans, drained 
• 1/4 tsp cumin 
• 3/4 tsp salt, divided
• 1 lime, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 avocado, chopped 
• 1 jalapeño (optional), sliced thin
• 1 green onion, sliced 

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400ºF. To make the Lime crema, zest and juice the lime. Combine the sour cream with 1 Tbsp lime juice, about 1/2 tsp lime zest, and 1/4 tsp salt. Stir the ingredients together, then refrigerate until ready to use. (I didn't have sour cream so I substituted my other crema substitue, yogurt mixed with a little mayonnaise. I liked it but Kiran said he preferred plain yogurt)
• Wash then dry the sweet potatoes. Use a fork to prick the skins several times all over. Slice the sweet potatoes in half lengthwise, then use 1 Tbsp olive oil to coat the surface of all four pieces.
• Season the cut sides of the sweet potatoes with salt or seasoning salt. Coat the surface of a baking sheet with a thin layer of oil, then place the sweet potatoes cut side down. Bake the sweet potatoes for 30 minutes, or until they are soft, you can see the juices oozing out from underneath, and the skins look a little wrinkly.
• While the sweet potatoes are baking, Mince a clove of garlic, dice the red bell pepper, slice the jalapeño (if desired) and green onion.
• Add the minced garlic to a skillet with the remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil. Sauté over medium heat for one minute, then add the diced bell pepper. Sauté the pepper for 2-3 minutes, or just until it begins to soften, then add the black beans, cumin, salt, and green onion. Stir and cook until the beans are heated through. 
• When the sweet potatoes come out of the oven, use a spatula to flip them over. Mash the flesh of the sweet potatoes with a fork, then pile the bean and pepper mixture over top. Add the sliced jalapeño and a dollop (or drizzle) of the lime crema to each, top with avocado, then serve.

Cheesy Vegetarian Mac

This one is easy, relatively healthy, and makes a whole lot! The kids didn't eat too much but I think I under-salted it, will try again with more salt and report back. I quite liked it.

from budgetbytes

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil 
• 1 yellow onion 
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 2 Tbsp chili powder -- this is supposed to be very mild chili powder, I used 1/2 T of ancho chili powder instead
• 15 oz. can diced tomatoes 
• 15 oz. can tomato sauce
• 15 oz. can kidney beans
• 15 oz. can black beans 
• 15 oz. can pinto beans
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• 2 cups vegetable broth 
• 2 cups uncooked macaroni noodles 
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar 
• salt -- at least 1/2 t. maybe more

Instructions

• Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Sauté the onion and garlic with olive oil in the bottom of a large pot (5 qt) over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, or until the onions are soft and transparent.
• Add the flour and chili powder to the sautéed onions and garlic. Continue to stir and sauté for about two minutes, or just until the flour and chili powder begin to coat the bottom of the pot.
• Drain and rinse the kidney beans, black beans, and pinto beans. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, all three beans, corn, and vegetable broth to the pot. Stir to combine and to dissolve any flour and chili powder off the bottom of the pot.
• Add the uncooked macaroni noodles and stir to combine. Place a lid on the pot, turn the heat up to medium high, and let the pot come up to a boil. Stir every other minute or so to loosen the noodles from the bottom of the pot as it heats up.
• When the pot reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low, or just above low, so it continues to gently simmer. Let the pot gently simmer for 12-15 minutes, or until the pasta is tender and the liquid is thick and saucy. Stir frequently as it simmers to make sure the pasta does not stick to the bottom of the pot.
• Once the pasta is tender, add the shredded cheddar and stir it in until melted. Serve hot.

Chickpea flour crepes with mushroom pea cream sauce filling

OK this is a bit of a crazy conglomeration that adds up to a fast-ish healthy-ish dinner that I am hoping the kids will eat. They already like the chickpea flour crepes, I tried the recipe for Socca, a Nice specialty from David Lebowitz. But it needed some vegetable component that went with them. So I went with another french classic, vegetables with bechamel sauce. Peas are not a classic crepe filling but my kids both eat them so I am using that. This recipe I think will make enough for one meal for our family.

Socca with vegetable cream filling

-- 2 cups chickpea flour
-- 2 cups plus 4 tablespoons water
-- 1 teaspoon salt

-- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

-- 3 tablespoons olive oil 

-- 1 package crimini mushrooms, cubed into 1/2-inch cubes

-- 1 cup peas

-- 2 T. butter

-- 2 T. flour

-- 2 cups milk

-- salt and pepper to taste

-- fresh herb of choice, maybe thyme would be good here? or parsley? or mint?

To make the crepes:

1. Mix together the flour, water, salt, cumin, and olive oil. Let batter rest at least 2 hours, covered, at room temperature. (or in my case, 10 minutes max)

2. Oil a frying pan pan with some olive oil and heat the pan on high heat on your stove.

3. Once the pan is hot, pour enough batter into the pan to cover the bottom, swirl it around. It should bubble up if the pan is hot enough.

4. Cook until the socca is brown on the bottom, then flip and cook more until more brown spots appear on the other side. These are easy to undercook, and if they burn a little are fine, so err on the side of cooking them more. 

5. Put the finished socca on a plate, cover with tin foil to keep warm. You can eat them plain or with filling.

6. Cook the remaining socca batter the same way, adding a touch more oil to the pan between each one.

 To make the filling:

1. In a pan on high, fry the mushrooms in the butter until they are browned on all sides and smelling and tasting good. 

2. Add the peas to the pan, as well as the flour. You want the flour to incorporate with the butter left in the pan if at all possible. If this is hard you can always add in more butter. Let the flour cook at least 60 seconds to eliminate any raw flour taste. 

3. Whisk in the milk. Let it all bubble up and cook until thick, approx. 3-5 minutes or so. If the sauce gets too thick you can always add in more milk. 

4. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

To serve, just fill the center of each crepe with maybe 1/4 cup of the vegetable cream sauce mixture, fold in the sides, and yum!!