Sweet Potato Burritos

I finished my 30 day Asylum workout just over a week ago.  It was crazy hard but I guess I should have known that from the title.  I guess that means that I've was committed to the asylum.  (Explains a lot)  This picture of me was taken after my very first asylum workout.  (That shirt was LIGHT grey when I started.)

Even though it was hard, I was in better shape and I felt better than I did when I started.  The workouts were tough and my appetite definitely increased over the last month.  I was constantly trying to find good sources of lean protein to satisify my overactive appetite. 

I found this recipe for sweet potato burritos on allrecipes.com and don't be fooled by the pictures - they're better than they look.  The recipe caught my eye because they're loaded with healthy ingredients.   Sweet potatoes and kidney beans are super foods in my book - nutrient rich and packed with protein.   The best part about these burritos is that they're not only good for you, they also taste delicious!  I even convinced my finicky teenager to eat one as post workout fuel. 

Sweet Potato Burritos

• 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1/8 onion, chopped
• 5/8 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup canned kidney beans, drained
• 1/3 cup water
• 1-1/2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 3/4 teaspoon prepared mustard
• 1/8 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1-1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 2/3 cup cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
• 3 (10 inch) flour tortillas, warmed (I used corn and whole wheat tortillas)
• 1-1/2 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese

Peel sweet potatoes and boil until tender.  Mash.

 

 

Heat oil in skillet and add onion and saute until soft.  Add garlic and cook another 30 seconds.






Add beans and mash.

  








Stir in water.





 

Add spices, mustard and soy sauce.  Spread 1/3 of mixture on top of each tortilla.  

 
Top with mashed sweet potatoes.

 

 





Sprinkle with cheese.  Roll up burritos style.  (Something I clearly didn't know how to do.) 






Place on a baking sheet and bake 12 minutes at 350. 

 

 Don't be fooled by the pictures - these burritos are delicious. 

The author of this recipe claimed that they were addicting but I had no idea HOW addicting.  They were so good - I couldn't stop eating them.  It's a good thing that they're healthy because I couldn't stop eating once I started eating.    

If you are trying to get more protein and vegetables into your diet, you need to make these burritos.  

Ciao!

Anniversary Cake

My blog quite simply is - My Story - in Recipes.  Everyday, I try and give my readers a little more insight into my crazy life.  Things can get pretty hectic around here while we juggle 2 careers and 2 very social kids and an especially wild dog.  I post pictures and write stories about all the little events that happen throughout the week and of course I write about the big events in my life as well.  Believe it or not, it's therapeutic for me to be able to share these "snapshots" of my life with all of you.

As crazy as my life is some days, I couldn't imagine it any other way - or spending it with anybody else.  Today is my 19th wedding anniversary and I'm reminded of just how blessed I am to have this wonderful person beside me.  My husband fills my story with excitement and adventure and love.  I don't often slow down long enough to tell him just how much I love him so I thought in honor of our anniversary, I would bake him a special anniversary cake. (It should come as no surprise to you that baking is the way that I show my love.) 

I found this recipe on the Williams Sonoma website and I cut it in half.  Instead of making a 9" round cake, I used 3" mini springform pans to make personal sized cakes. 

Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Brown Sugar-Pecan Streusel

Ingredients:

For the streusel:

• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
• 1 cup chopped pecans, lightly toasted (see note below)

For the batter:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 8 Tbs. (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup sour cream

For the glaze:

• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp. whole milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan or a 9-inch cake pan with 3-inch sides.







To make the streusel, in a bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt.

 











Toss in the butter and, using 2 table knives or a pastry cutter, cut it into the dry ingredients until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.






Alternatively, whir the ingredients in a food processor. Stir in the pecans. Set aside.

To make the batter, in a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt.












In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat together the butter and brown sugar on medium-high speed until well combined.
















Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.











Add the pumpkin puree and sour cream and mix with the spatula.

Stir in the flour mixture. The batter will be quite thick.

Spread half of the batter in the prepared pan.

Sprinkle half of the streusel over the batter.

Dollop the remaining batter over the streusel and spread the thick batter as best you can.

Top with the remaining streusel.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 50 minutes.

Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for about 15 minutes. Remove the sides from the pan and slide the cake onto the rack.

To make the glaze, in a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk and vanilla. Drizzle over the top of the cake. Cut into thick wedges and serve. Makes one 9-inch coffee cake.

Baker’s note: To toast pecans, preheat an oven to 325°F. Spread the nuts out on a rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring often, until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 10 minutes.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Home Baked Comfort, by Kim Laidlaw (Weldon Owen, 2011).

It hardly seems possible that we've been married for 19 years.  You've given me a wonderful story to tell.  Love you. 










Ciao!

Pork Skewers

I hope that you all had a great weekend.  My sweet thirteen year old daughter and I got to spend lots of "girl time" together this weekend.  It was fabulous - nail salons and movies and doughnuts and shopping and frozen yogurt - what more could a girl ask for?  I also got to watch my favorite soccer team take the field for a game on Saturday afternoon.  Even though they lost the game, it was an absolutely perfect day for a soccer game.

"Girl weekend" also meant that there wasn't a lot of cooking going on in this house.  (We pretty much survived on pizza and sushi and chocolate.)  Since I wasn't doing my normal blogging over the weekend, I pulled out a recipe from several weeks ago to share on today's blog.  It is a great recipe - I just never got around to posting it.  Better late than never.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - everything tastes better on a stick.  I use this spice rub all the time on all kinds of meats - chicken, pork and beef.  It's super quick to put together and everyone really seems to like it.
 
To be honest, I didn't make pork skewers because everyone likes them better than traditional pork roast, it was because I ran out of time to cook a whole roast.  By slicing the meat into thin strips, it cooks much quicker on the grill and I can have dinner on the table sooner.  Quicker dinner = happier family = happy momma.

Spice Rubbed Pork Tenderloin Skewers
1 Tablespoon sugar                        ¼ teaspoon mustard powder
1 Tablespoon chili powder            ¼ teaspoon thyme
2 teaspoons salt                              2 pounds pork tenderloin

Cut pork into thin strips and thread onto skewers.

 
Combine rub ingredients and rub on tenderloin.

 Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes to 24 hours.  Cook on the grill for 10 minutes on each side.

I served my pork skewers with crispy smashed potatoes and homemade applesauce.  It was a big hit.

This is also a great meal to share with friends.   If you're taking someone a meal and can't quite decide what to make for them - this is a great meal that kids and adults will enjoy.  Skip the traditional lasagna and chicken casseroles and make some spice rubbed pork skewers.  I packed half of the skewers in a foil tray and took them to a friend. 

Ciao!