A dairy free and not so sweet twist on sweet potato casserole

I will first confess that I really love sweet potatoes but have never tried sweet potato casserole.  A couple weeks ago I asked what I could bring to a family Christmas party and I was asked to bring sweet potato casserole.  "Hmm, okay.  Off to Pinterest I go," I thought.  After reading a few recipes and one from my favorite vegan blog I decided to blend a couple recipes together but stick a little truer to the vegan blog recipe.

My first attempt at making the sweet potato casserole was a hit with the family but I wasn't very thrilled.  Even though I used less sugar and maple syrup than called for it was still too sweet and that sweetness overpowered the sweet potatoes.  My second attempt for Christmas dinner was much more to my liking.

So here is the link to the vegan sweet potato casserole I used as a guide This ain't your Grandma's Sweet Potato Casserole .  She calls for vegan butter and while Kai and I limit our dairy we would rather use a small amount of butter than something full of chemicals, soy, or other artificial ingredients.  I will play around with different flours next time but this time we just used all-purpose flour because I didn't think oat flour would have the right taste and texture we were looking for.

I made this with 3lbs of sweet potatoes instead of just 4 large potatoes and thankfully I had my trusty prep cook, Kai to wash and dice all the potatoes for me.  After washed and diced I dumped them in a pan, covered them with water, and cooked them until tender.  I then mashed the potatoes with 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, added 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, a little bit of salt, a teaspoon of nutmeg, and a teaspoon of cinnamon.

After mashing the potatoes and blending all the ingredients I transferred it to a stone casserole dish.  In a small bowl I combined  1/4 cup of unsalted butter, 1/3 cup brown sugar, and 1/3 cup of flour and spread on top of the sweet potato casserole and then baked in the oven for 45 minutes.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Filling

• 3 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cooked
• 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract 
• 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon of fine grain sea salt
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon 

Topping

• 1/4 cup of unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup flour

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Peel and boil the sweet potatoes until tender.  I always chop my potatoes before cooking them. 
3. Mash the sweet potatoes with the butter and then add in vanilla, maple syrup, and spices. 
4. Pour into a casserole dish.
5. Combine the three topping ingredients and then sprinkle on top of the casserole.
6. Bake for approximately 45 minutes. 

Perfect Pancakes and a little bit of R&R

The last month has been absolutely crazy, between the holidays and moving there hasn't been much time to just do nothing.  Then this past Sunday Kai and I decided to just have a lazy morning and make a big breakfast.  He wanted pancakes and I hate how heavy they always feel in my stomach.  I love them but they just sit in my stomach for most of the day and make me feel uncomfortably full.

I wanted to try and find a way to make my pancake recipe become a little "lighter."  I had been playing around with cake flour in some of my cookie recipes and figured why not try it out with pancakes, after all the word cake is already in the title.  What resulted was a wonderfully light, fluffy, delicious but not so heavy pancake and I am in love.  L-O-V-E, love... I LOVE these pancakes.  This French Toast lover might just be converted into a pancake lover after all.

So I took my normal pancake recipe, added a little extra baking powder, and instead of using all all-purpose flour I used half all-purpose flour and half cake flour.  I started to get a little nervous that I might have used too much cake flour because the batter was really fluffy and even pouring it into the pan seemed like it might be a little too "light" but 50-50 on the flours just might be the perfect blend.

Perfect Pancakes (makes 8-9 pancakes)

1 egg

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cake flour

3/4 cup milk

1 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tbs and 1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional... I never add it)

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and let sit for a few minutes.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat with olive oil.  Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto the skillet and cook until bubbles appear on the surface.  Flip with a spatula and cook until browned on the other side. 

** I always double the recipe and freeze the leftovers.  They freeze well and then I have a quick breakfast or snack during the week.  

Overnight Oats

Anyone who has been on Pinterest or social media has probably seen  the oatmeal in mason jars craze.  I really liked the idea since I actually really like eating oatmeal for breakfast or morning snack, have been trying to reduce my sugar intake, and wanted something I could make ahead of time so I could just grab it and go.  I tried 5 different recipes for before I finally blended a few recipes and created my own "perfect" overnight oats.

The first batch was baked and they were okay.  They tasted better if I ate it as soon as it came of the oven and topped it with a huge glob of peanut butter.  Once they sat or were reheated they turned into a substance comparable to paste though.  The second recipe seriously lacked flavor and I don't care how healthy it is for me, if it tastes blah I am not eating it.  The third, forth, and fifth recipes all lacked luster, flavor, and an enjoyable texture.  There were little things I liked about each so after 5 failed attempts I started to experiment with my own recipe.

I start with 2 cups of old-fashioned oats, 1 cup of unsweetened organic applesauce, 1 1/2 cups of water, 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg.  After I mix those ingredients together the recipe changes each week.  This week we added in dried cranberries and dark chocolate chips but some of our other favorites are blueberries and strawberries, blueberries and cranberries, and cranberries and pears.

After the first set of ingredients and add ins have been mixed together I portion it out into 1/2 cup mason jars for me and 1 cup mason jars for him, cover the jars, place in the fridge, and for the rest of the week we have breakfast or our morning snack ready to go.  I like to warm them up for 20-30 seconds in the microwave or in a pan of boiling water but he likes to eat them cold.  Either way though, they taste good, there is no added sugar, and they are quick and easy to make.

Overnight Oats

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 1/2 cups water

1 tablespoon ground flax seed

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Add ins of your preference

Mix all ingredients together and portion into individual cups.  Cover and store in the fridge overnight or until ready to eat. 

I seafood and I eat it

I love tacos and when I say love, I really mean LOVE.  I have been on the hunt for the perfect fish tacos and it hasn't always been pretty. I guess I could be satisfied by eating a basic, lacking flavor fish taco but where is the fun in that?  I wanted to find the perfect blend of flavors and I think I finally found it.  This fish taco recipe didn't just make my taste buds dance but also my boyfriend's happy too.  That is pretty impressive because... well let's just say we don't see eye to eye when it comes to the spiciness factor, hehe.

I started with 2 pieces of white fish (haddock, flounder, any flat white fish would work) and seasoned each with ground cumin, cayenne pepper, and red pepper.  I use about 1/8 of a teaspoon of each spice on each piece of fish but you can use less or more depending on your taste.

While the fish baked in the oven I sliced the peppers and tomatoes as well as prepared the guacamole.  Homemade guacamole is so much better than store bought and it really doesn't take that long to make.  In a bowl I mashed and mixed 1 avocado, cilantro, the juice of more than 1/4 but less than 1/2 of a lime (so bad that we don't measure this but just do it by taste), some chopped red onion, a little sea salt, and 2 cloves of chopped garlic.  I used a fork to mash up the avocado and mix everything together and voila yummy, fresh guacamole.  Next, I prepared a sauce to go on the tacos and I think it really made the tacos pop.  In a small bowl I mixed 2 tablespoons of mayo, 3 tablespoons of sour cream, and 2 tablespoons of hot sauce (use more or less depending on preference).  

After the guacamole, peppers, tomatoes, and sauce was prepped I warmed the tortillas in a frying pan.  Then I plated everything, took the fish out of the oven, and we began building our tacos.  One bite and we were in LOVE with these tacos.  I was even asked not to change a thing about these next time.  

We don't repeat meals often in this house.  Even our favorite meals only get made once every couple of months because there are just so many different recipes to try but I was asked if this meal could be made weekly... weekly! Looks like it is one less recipe I have to search for each week. :)

Perfect Fish Tacos

2 pieces of fish

Cayenne pepper

Ground cumin

Red pepper

1 avocado

1/2 a red onion, diced

1/2 cup cilantro, divided

Juice of more than 1/4 but less than 1/2 a lime 

2 cloves garlic

salt

2 tablespoons mayo

3 tablespoons sour cream

2 tablespoons hot sauce

1 bell pepper

Cherry tomatoes

1. Season fish with the cayenne pepper, ground cumin, and red pepper.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until it flakes with a fork.  

2. Place the scooped avocado pulp, lime juice, diced red onion, chopped garlic, chopped cilantro, and pinch of salt into a bowl and mash with a fork and set aside.

3. In a small bowl blend the mayo, sour cream, and hot sauce and set aside.  

4. Slice the bell pepper and tomatoes and set aside.  Chop extra cilantro and juice another half of a lime to add to the tacos if desired.  Enjoy! 

Life is all about the journey

Life is all about the journey.  The sights, sounds, smells, textures, and tastes you experience along the way all add to and make the adventure.  Some people chose to let life happen to them.  They are content waiting on the sidelines but I say jump in head first, go out looking for adventure, and seek out the things you love no matter what they might be.

Food is energy, you are what you eat, eat for nourishment not for enjoyment.  Blah, blah, blah… food tastes good and can be multipurpose, end of story.  Yes we all know that the food we put into our body provides us with energy, that if we eat junk we are junk, and that we shouldn't emotionally eat but why can't we enjoy all the food we put into our body?  Why not seek out food that excites our tastes buds?  Eating should be a celebration, a way to connect with those around you, and a way to experience the world around you too.  

The only thing I love more than food is to travel.  Who doesn't love to explore the world?  I don't want to just see the world, I want to experience it.  Learn about different cultures, religions, histories, and how the rest of the world lives.  I don’t just want to see the world I want to experience it, taste it, feel it… I want to understand it.

Food and travel allows us to learn about ourselves and experience the people and world around us in a way that is entirely unique.