Tag Archives: sweet potatoes

Warm Dandelion & Sweet Potato Salad

warmdandelionsweetpotatosalad

It seems my 9-month old puts everything in his mouth lately. As we wrapped up his appointment recently, the physician assistant handed me a Poison Control magnet for our fridge. She must know him! In response, I told her how my daughter had nibbled on an oleander leaf at a similar age, when we were living in Tucson. After a hysterical run to the ER, we ended up calling Poison Control, which we clearly should have done first. Despite oleander’s deadly reputation the one’s grown in Tucson are apparently more benign.

The physician assistant in turn told me the only time she had to call poison control, for her now grown children, was because of Bill Nye. After watching the Science Guy explain that dandelion greens are in fact edible, her son munched on a few that had been recently sprayed with weed killer by his father. Hmm… delicious. I didn’t ask, but was curious as to whether the consequence was to not use weed killer’s in the future? My hunch is that the child was told to never do it again as Bill Nye was clearly being blamed for the Poison Control call.

At our home, we are not necessarily enthusiastic lawn owners. I certainly love to picnic and watch my children play on the patch of grass that is still recovering from years of neglect from the previous owners. However, watering, weeding and tending that big outdoor carpet is not as joyful as gardening flowers and fresh vegetables for me. Especially, since we live in an area that has drought restrictions, but also bans rain water harvesting. I won’t dive into my frustrations with this paradox today.

Also, in our yard, dandelions have been mostly choked out by the gnarlier, deep rooted thistle weed, which we pulled and yanked out of the ground throughout the whole  summer. A tedious job, that we made more joyful in short bursts of time on cozy blankets with hot cups of coffee on dewy mornings before the sun made the task unbearable. We had piles and piles of thistle, morning glories and other culprits. I would have been so happy to have turned them into dinner! But, my pregnant and subsequently postpartum body was too exhausted to go beyond dumping them in the trash.

Now, I hope that I am not the first to point out the edible nature of dandelions to you. But, if I am… welcome to a beautiful blossoming world of scavenging. I hope I do not need to tell you to make sure no one has sprayed them with weed killer, but please do take care! If you are like me and have less dandelions than other pesky plants, you can also purchase long beautiful leaves of dandelions from green markets, health food stores and farmer’s markets, too.

So preparing the infamous weed is another task that requires a bit of attention. It is a strong, bitter, nutrient packed leaf of goodness. All those bitter leaves are so often, so good for you it seems! Especially for salads, if I am starting with bitterness, the best course of action is to add a serious dose of sweetness.

For me, an earthy orange-glazed sweet potato cooked until warm and tossed with bitter dandelion greens turns a salad into comfort food. A bit of your favorite strong cheese such as a crumble of feta or strips of manchego would be a perfect addition for any cheese lovers. Remember, before you run off and dip your leaves in sugar, the goal is to balance your dish. Start with the recipe below and then share your discoveries of the dandelion possibilities below in the comments!

Warm Dandelion & Sweet Potato Salad

1½ pound sweet potato
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 inch piece ginger, peel and finely mince
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¼ cup water
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon maple syrup, optional
1 bunch dandelion greens, washed well
salt and pepper, to taste

Scrub the sweet potatoes and peel if desired.

Cut down the middle and lay flat. Slice on a diagonal in 1/4 inch thick pieces. This will create an angled half moon shape as seen in the photo.

Warm a splash of the olive oil over medium heat in a medium sized skillet. Spread the sweet potatoes out evenly spacing to avoid overlap. Sear on one side for about 4-6 minutes until golden, flip and sear on the other side.

Add the minced garlic and ginger. Pour in half of the orange juice and all of the water & salt. Bring up to a simmer. Once the juice is reduced down the sweet potatoes should be cooked through. If you would like them to be a bit more tender, simply add more water and continue to simmer until they are your desired tenderness.

Remove the sweet potatoes and add the remaining orange juice, dijon mustard, maple syrup if using, and the remaining olive oil to the hot pan. Whisk to combine and bring up to a slight simmer. As soon as it is hot, it is ready.

Tear the clean dandelion leaves in pieces into a large bowl. Add the sliced sweet potatoes and drizzle on the warm dressing. Toss to combine.

Finish with a dash of salt and black pepper, to taste. Crumble on your favorite strong cheese for an extra element of flavor and protein boost.

 

Naked or MarshmallowsMy senior year of college, we found out a few of our friends were not going home for Thanksgiving. It seemed a crime for them to not enjoy a turkey feast, so we decided to have a pre-holiday meal altogether. There were about 20+ of us in our circle of friends and I went to task finding out everyone’s must-have T-day dishes.

Since I was a vegetarian at the time, I had no interest in cooking the turkey, but a couple of friends signed up for that job. So, other than the mashers, which arrived fluffy with beautiful red skins throughout, I made the rest of the meal.

I remember a few items being requested that I had never actually made before such as Green Bean Casserole, Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows and Creamed Corn, but they were requested and thus I worked on figuring out how to make them. Please note, this was long enough ago that the internet was not swarming with information, so many phone calls later I figured it all out.

While the college crowd was thrilled, I found myself pleased and grateful for my incredible friends, but not completely satisfied with the canned food-centric feast I had prepared. The years of Thanksgivings that followed became an unraveling of that meal.

Thanksgiving can be as simple or as complicated as you like, but I also see no excuse to eat processed food. Not just because I prefer the flavor of real food, but most sides are easier to prepare than most of us believe.

Here are a few ways to create an unprocessed, easy as pumpkin pie, Thanksgiving:

1. Fresh not Canned Sweet Potatoes (aka Yams)

The last time I opened a can of sweet potatoes (possibly that day back in college), I was amazed by the slightly syrupy, super starchy, lacking in flavor nuggets that were inside. No wonder you need marshmallows! Oh, and yes, they were called yams, (except they are not actually yams unless they are white, not sweet and all starch) but that is another story for another day.

The can-free, tastier, easier method: Scrub your sweet potato, prick all over with a paring knife, and toss in the oven alongside whatever is cooking. A temperature between 325-425 will be sufficient to roast them. Once you can squeeze the sweet potato and it feels soft, about 25-60 minutes depending on a number of factors such as the sweet potato’s size and the oven temperature, then it is ready. Chill it outside or in the fridge until it is cool enough to handle them and then peel off the skin. They will be crazy sweet from roasting and can be chopped or smashed from this point forward to be used with your favorite flavors or toppings.

What is your favorite sweet potato topping? We do this Streusel Topped Sweet Potato at home, but do you prefer Marshmallows?

2. Green Bean possibilities beyond the tins

Since the Green Bean Casserole is such a classic, try this simple enough version including my own homemade creamy mushroom sauce and crispy, oven baked onion strips. While I love dairy, I found myself wanting to explore the vegan possibility and recently created this Creamy Cauliflower Green Bean Casserole.

Typically though, I keep it simple with steamed green beans, maybe a squirt of lemon, a generous dollop of butter and toasty almonds, aka Green Bean Almandine.

3. Veggie Time

Turkey’s don’t make people sleepy. Turkey’s starchy buddies exhaust us.

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Chopped Kale & Pomegranate Salad
Creamy Roasted Potato & Apple Salad
Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Florets

But, you can also make it crazy simple with your favorite salad mix, a crumble of dry cheese (maybe blue or feta?), pecans or other toasted nuts, and generous splash of a good quality balsamic and olive oil. This Balsamic Dressing recipe is what I use when my balsamic is not rich and aged. Follow the season’s abundance- it will not let you down!

IMG_18884. Skip the Pre-made Gravy

Here is the deal. If you are already making a turkey, the gravy is simple to make delicious and amazing. You have all of the ingredients, most likely. Flour (all-purpose or gluten-free rice flour both work) and butter (or your fat of choice- ghee? bacon? olive oil?) are critical. A box of good quality chicken broth is about as ‘processed’ as I would go if you want to cut corners. We make homemade broth at our house after roasting chicken or turkey wings and I try to always have some available before Turkey day. Here is my gravy recipe and I will keep it up and available to you until after T-day this year. If you have never made it before, this is your year. Grab a whisk and let’s make a delicious gravy.

If you have vegetarian guests, this vegan Mushroom Gravy will satisfy your entire crowd. I say this as a non-mushroom eater. They are pretty much my least favorite veg, but this gravy surprisingly makes me happy.

5. Stuffing? 

I know Pepperidge Farm and Stove Top sold us all a long time ago with their ‘easy’ take on stuffing. But, your favorite bakery fresh bread chopped into pieces and dried out will give you all that love without the processed ingredients. You can also go crazy with any combination of carb-rich bread: whole-grain, studded with dried fruits, pumpernickel, gingerbread, cornbread, panettone, and more! Here is my recipe for drying out the cubes yourself, but really it is quite simple. If you do it a few days before you won’t even need an oven. 😉

Gluten-free? There are certainly lots of possibilities these days for that, but last year I did this Herb Polenta Stuffing and it kind of rocked. This year the Roasted Root + Polenta Stuffing is rocking my world.

Your turn! How do you un-process Thanksgiving? Or are there a few dishes you prefer to have out of a box or can, otherwise it just doesn’t taste like turkey day.

Comment below and let me know!

Cook seasonally. Eat consciously. Live well!

In gratitude,

Lilly