Chorizo and Sweet Potato Hash

Occasionally, I hit the jackpot by making something that I’m willing to eat on a regular basis (reasonably healthy and easy to make on a weeknight) and something that is equally appealing to Joe. Without getting too much into gender essentialism as it relates to food, Joe does tend to prefer heartier meals. Arguably, this is about as meat-and-potatoes as you can get with vegetarian food.

Soy chorizo is perhaps not the most “natural” food that I eat, but it is so gosh-darn tasty that I try not to give that too much mind. I’m a big fan of sweet potatoes, but the mix of sweet and regular moderates the flavor. And while there isn’t a lot of green in this meal, I could see serving it with a side or bed of kale chips. Lord knows I’ll be making this one again and again so I’ll have plenty of opportunity to experiment.

Chorizo and Sweet Potato Hash
source: Cate’s World Kitchen
2 servings

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
2 small sweet potatoes, peeled
1 medium potato, peeled
1 red onion, chopped
4 ounces soy chorizo
2 eggs
queso fresco and fresh cilantro, for garnish

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Cut the sweet potatoes and potato into small cubes (you should have about 3 cups).

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-low. Add the potato and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes. If anything begins to brown excessively, turn down the heat. Add more oil if things are sticking.

Once the potatoes are tender, stir in the chorizo. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Crack 2 eggs over the hash, then put the pan in the oven. Cook in the oven for about 5-10 minutes, or until the whites are set.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle with cilantro and queso fresco.

Pumpkin-White Bean Shepherd’s Pie

I seem to be about a season behind in the kitchen. Somehow, I made it through a relatively warm fall with a stash of pumpkin with which I kept meaning to bake and cook. Now that winter has reared its freezing cold head, I’m finally digging into it, particularly since quite a few of the recipes I had bookmarked call for pumpkin. All of this to explain why I’m using pumpkin in December.

After completely OD’ing on meat on vacation, I’m rediscovering my desire to take very seriously my move to pescetarianism. Though this recipe originally called for ground turkey, I subbed Morningstar Crumbles. With everything else in there, you hardly notice them anyway. Of course, when Joe asked me what I had added, and I responded, “Textured vegetable protein!”, he didn’t seem quite as excited. If you avoid fake meats, eggplant or additional mushrooms would be a good substitution.

As you might remember, I am a big fan of comforting winter meals that aren’t crazy heavy and loaded with starch and butter. Using the pumpkin-white bean puree really lightens up the typical mashed potato topping of Shepherd’s Pie. For a seemingly heavy meal, this was surprisingly light, while still being creamy and delicious.

Pumpkin-White Bean Shepherd’s Pie
source: Cara’s Cravings 
Yields 4 servings

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 10 oz package baby portobello mushrooms, chopped
2 cloves minced garlic
1 package Morningstar Crumbles or 1 lb ground turkey
freshly ground salt and pepper
1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
14 oz can diced tomatoes
10 oz baby spinach
1 15oz can pure pumpkin puree
1 cup cooked cannellini beans
1 oz grated pecorino romano cheese

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Heat a olive oil in a 9-10" cast iron or other oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for two minutes, until starting to soften. Add the mushrooms and cook for 3-5 minutes more, until they have released their moisture. Add the minced garlic and veggie crumbles. Season the mixture with salt and pepper. Cook for several minutes, until crumbles are no longer frozen. Mix in the Herbs de Provence, tomato and paste, and flour; mix to coat well. Raise the heat to high, and add the diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Add the spinach, a few handfuls at a time, letting it wilt down.Simmer the mixture for about 10 minutes, until thickened. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Meanwhile, puree the pumpkin or squash together with the white beans. Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Spread the mixture over the filling in the skillet. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for about 10-15 minutes, until hot and bubbling around the edges. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and bake for 5-10 minutes more, until lightly browned.

He Thinks My Cornbread's Sexy

When I asked Joe yesterday if he wanted rice or cornbread with dinner, he immediately sprung for the cornbread. As I was preparing the cornbread and my cast iron frying pan, Joe was on the phone on the other side of the house. Somehow I got the Kenny Chesney song "She thinks my tractor's sexy" stuck in my head, but I changed the words to be "He thinks my cast iron frying pan's sexy" which doesn't scan correctly at all. Sure enough, when I took this gorgeous cornbread out of the oven, Joe walked in the room and said, "Now that is some sexy cornbread."

This cornbread was perfectly moist with that brown crust on the bottom and sides from the frying pan and not too sweet. It was absolutely delicious, so much so that Joe and I ate half the pan between us. I couldn't stop going back for more! I may see if I can reduce the butter a bit next time, as the idea of eating that much of a stick of butter makes me a little nervous. There's also always the option of throwing some cheese, green chiles, or chopped up jalapenos in.

All-Purpose Cornbread
source: Cooks Illustrated via Reading, 'Riting, and Recipes

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal (this dish was tested using Quaker yellow cornmeal)

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon table salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed

1 cup buttermilk

2 large eggs

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 8-inch square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Note: To make this in a cast iron skillet, place approx 1 Tbs of butter in the skillet and place it in the oven while preheating. Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl until combined; set aside.

2. In food processor or blender, process sugar, thawed corn kernels, and buttermilk until combined, about 5 seconds. Add eggs and process until well combined (corn lumps will remain), about 5 seconds longer.

3. Using rubber spatula, make well in center of dry ingredients; pour wet ingredients into well. Begin folding dry ingredients into wet, giving mixture only a few turns to barely combine; add melted butter and continue folding until dry ingredients are just moistened.

4. Pour batter into prepared baking dish; smooth surface with rubber spatula. Note: If using cast iron skillet, remove from oven and turn pan to coat all surfaces with the melted butter. Pour the batter into the hot pan. Bake until deep golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 35 minutes. (I just kept an eye on it until it looked done.) Cool on wire rack in the pan for 10 minutes; invert cornbread onto wire rack, then turn right side up and continue to cool.