Guilty Pleasure

Ok, confession time.

For as long as I can remember I have HATED sweet potatoes and no, I don't think in this case that hate is too strong a word. I've tried, really I tried...and my taste buds just tell me to spit them out.

When I moved to Hawaii I even tried the famous Okinawa purple sweet potatoes - Yuck!

Two Thanksgivings ago I made a Rachel Ray recipe that used fingerling potatoes, including tiny sweet potatoes (recipe I've posted before). I thought with all the cream and cheese I might be able to get them down, but sadly I was mistaken.

Known on the mainland as Black Angus

A while back, Roger and I enjoyed lunch at The Cattle Company. They had something new on the menu - sweet potato fries with maple dipping sauce.

(side note - Sweet Potato fried seem to be popping up all over the place. You can even get them in the freezer section of the grocery store)

Roger put in his order

Our meals were served PDQ (pretty darn quick). The sauce looked interesting and Roger jumped right in and said that they were good, but the sauce was a bit sweet.

I think it was the sauce.

It was calling me.

Taunting me.

"I know you want to try me, I dare you. Try me!"

Of course I did and I liked them...really really liked them. The dipping sauce - Although at first I thought it was too sweet, I am now addicted to it.  

So addicted I have got to figure out how to make it.

I found this recipe today...will have to try it:

Ingredients:
All you need:

1 (22-oz) pkg frozen sweet potato fries (Seem to be very popular right now - you see them everywhere)
¼ cup plain Greek yogurt OR light sour cream
¼ cup Hy-Vee low-fat plain yogurt
2 tsp Grand Selections maple syrup
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
Directions:
All you do:

1. Cook sweet potato fries according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, for sauce, in a small bowl combine sour cream, yogurt, maple syrup and cinnamon.
3. Serve fries with dipping sauce.

Nutrition facts per serving:
205 calories, 8g fat, 1g saturated fat, 5mg cholesterol, 200mg sodium, 33g carbohydrate, 4g fiber, 3g protein

Source: Hy-Vee recipe of month

Bon Appetite and Aloha a Hui Hou!

Banana Bread

We love bananas, we just can't eat them fast enough. We buy them about as green as they can get. We bring them home from the controlled temps of the store and a daw or two later they are yellow and on the third day they already have brown spots. By day four I have to start thinking of things to do with them.

We have tried those green food bags that are supposed to extend the shelf life of your fruits and veggies - if you haven't tried them - DON'T!  They made the bananas taste horrible, totally artificial.

We have frozen them too and Roger will enjoy them as a cold treat, but his favorite thing to do with them is for me to bake Banana Bread.

So today, since it's cold and rainy I thought i'd bake and share our favorite, easy banana bread recipe with you.

This is what you will need:

3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed (or more, I'll explain that later)
1/3 c melted butter
1 c sugar (can easily be reduced to 3/4 cup)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1 1/2 c flour

if you like you can also add 1/2 c of chopped nuts -walnuts or macadamia nuts and/or 1/2 or raisins or dried cranberries .

Preheat your oven to 350℉ (175℃)
First mash your bananas in a large mixing bowl, add butter. Mix in the sugar, egg and vanilla. Next sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix them in. Last but not least, add the flour. If you want to add nuts and/or dried fruit fold in now.

Pour mixture into a buttered 4x8 inch loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour. Cool on rack. Remove from pan and slice to serve.

Sometimes I have 5 bananas (or 6 - Hey, we're in the tropics! We have lots of bananas!) and I'll just use them all. The more bananas, the more moist the bread will be. Roger loves it moist. For every extra banana you can add an extra tablespoon of flour. This might also change the baking time so check with a toothpick before you take your bread out of the oven.

Enjoy! and Aloha a Hui Hou!

Autumn Potato Gratin

This week I made a crown pork roast that Roger and I saw on TV a couple of weeks ago. The meat was seasoned with sage and rosemary. I immediately thought of a recipe for potatoes with sage, rosemary and thyme that I made a couple of years ago for Thanksgiving, after seeing a Rachel Ray special - we love them!

Here is the link to the recipe:

Autumn Potato Gratin

Try it.....You'll like it!........ No, you'll love it!

Aloha Hui Hou!

First batch of Christmas cookies

I thought with no Christmas tree this year it would be kinda hard to get into the spirit - but I guess it's a part of me. The urge to bake Christmas cookies and purge my pantry hit me on Saturday and Sunday was the day I scratched myself together and started with Butterscotchies.

Butterscotchies are one of my sisters favorite and Claire's (my daughter).

The recipe is simple enough - all you have to dois read the package of Nestles Butterscotchies:

Preheat your oven to 375

In one bowl sift together (I like sifting - makes things more - FLUFFY)
1 1/4c flour 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Set aside.



In a second bowl mix beat the following together:

2 sticks of Butter
3/4c Sugar
3/4c packed Brown Sugar

Next add:

2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or grated peel of 1 orange

Then fold in: 


3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats 
1 2/3 cups (11-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Butterscotch Flavored Morsels

The recipe says using two tablespoons, drop  your dough on an un-greased cookie sheet. I've always been a bit doubtful about not greasing so I use either parchment paper (and use that over and over again) or use the new/not so new Reynolds non stick aluminum foil. 

The cookies will spread to almost twice the size, so take this into consideration when you fill your cookie sheet. I have a small oven, which = small sheets. I put 6-8 cookies on a sheet.

 Now if you like your cookies chewy they say bake them for 7-8 minutes. If you like them crispy, 9-10 minutes. I found some of the "thicker cookies needed a bit more time for chewy and 9 minutes worked good for me. If there are butterscotchies on the edges of the cookie they will melt and turn a bit more brown than the rest of the cookie  and that's ok!

Enjoy!

Always say thank you

Back when I was in the hospital as a patient in Germany and I felt like I was well taken care of, I thanked the staff by donating some coffee, dropping off some pastries or cake.When I told the nurses that I want to drop off some cake for them and they were totally shocked . You know me, that's not going to stop me from doing it :o)

I've decided to make a cheese cake stuffed carrot cake today and I'll share the recipe with you:

The Better Homes and Gardens' recipe contest winner in the desserts category is Carrot Cheesecake.

Category Winner: Desserts

Casey Warrington of North East, Md.


1 2-layer-size carrot cake mix
1 cup water
½ cup cooking oil
6 eggs
½ cup Sun Maid Raisins
3 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar (recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups- but it's too sweet for our taste)
2 tsp. vanilla
Nonstick cooking spray
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup powdered sugar
3 to 4 tsp. milk
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch spring form pan; set aside. In a large bowl combine carrot cake mix, water, oil, and 3 of the eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Fold in raisins. Pour into prepared spring form pan.
In another large bowl beat cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in granulated sugar and vanilla until smooth. Beat in remaining 3 eggs just until combined. Slowly pour over carrot cake layer. Use a thin metal spatula to gently swirl the batters. Place cheesecake on a baking sheet.
Bake for 70 to 90 minutes or until top is set except for a 1-inch circle in the center. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Using a small sharp knife, loosen the cake from the sides of the pan. Cool for 30 minutes. Remove sides of pan; cool cheesecake completely on rack. Cover and chill at least 4 hours before serving.
Line a small baking pan with foil; lightly coat foil with nonstick spray. In a small bowl combine 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, the water, and cinnamon. Stir in walnuts. Spread in an even layer in the prepared baking pan. Bake in a 325 degrees oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until nuts are lightly toasted, stirring once. Cool completely.
In a medium bowl combine 1 cup powdered sugar and enough of the milk to make drizzling consistency. Cut cheesecake into wedges and place each wedges on a serving plate. Drizzle each serving with some of the powdered sugar icing. Break up walnuts and place atop cheesecake wedges.

Makes 16 servings

If you only have a 9inch spring form 2/3's of the cheese recipe will be enough.

Aloha Hui Hou!