happy eats healthy

being healthy is finally delicious!

 

Healthy Chicago Cooking Classes

sweet potato

Sweet Potato Scone {gf, v}

I love a good scone. But the flour and butter is challenging for me. Enter these naturally sweetened Sweet Potato Scones. Roasted sweet potato and a touch of coconut sugar keeps these very naturally sweet. Oat and teff flour create lift and vegan butter brings a buttery hold.

Mix and match add-ins like pecans and dark chopped chocolate. I slathered them in additional butter while warm. Oooh yaaa.
Happy Eating
~Monique

Gluten Free, Vegan Sweet Potato Scones

1/2 roasted sweet potato
1/4 cup coconut sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
two pinches of salt
1/2 tbls baking powder
1/2 cup teff flour
1/2 cup oat flour
2 tbls vegan butter Mykonos.
Add-ins: pecans & mini chocolate chips.

Mash the sweet potato with the coconut sugar, cinnamon and salt.
Whisk together the baking powder, teff and oat flour. Chop the butter into little cubes. Use your hands or a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour.

Mix in the sweet potato mash and any add-in’s, kneading the dough until it’s well blended.

Pat the dough about 1 inch thick onto a sheet pan. Cut the dough into 8 triangles, pull them apart so they aren’t touching. Sprinkle with coconut sugar if desired.

Bake 20 minutes @ 350 degrees. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.


Taco Stuffed Sweet Potato

Taco Stuffed Sweet Potato

2 medium sweet potatoes
1 tbls ghee or olive oil
1 lb ground turkey
½ bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoons ground cumin
¼ onion
1 tsp cumin
4 garlic cloves minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Pinch or two of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
Fresh ground pepper
1 (15oz) can crushed tomatoes + ¼ tin of water

Optional add-in:
1 can black, garbanzo or pinto beans or corn

Toppings:
1/4 cup grated cheese
Fresh parsley or cilantro
Dollop with greek yogurt

NOTE: if you like a less ‘tomatoey’ filling, use only ½ can of crushed tomatoes or omit all together.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Slice sweet potatoes lengthwise, spritz with oil, salt & pepper and bake, cut side down, until fork tender, about 20 minutes.

Heat the ghee/oil in a skillet, sauté the onions to soften, about 5 minutes. Add in the ground turkey and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through.

Stir in the peppers, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper. Cook for 1 minute. Stir in the crushed tomatoes and water (and beans/corn if using.) Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. If the sauce seems a little runny, simmer for another 5 minutes with the lid off.

Spoon over the roasted sweet potatoes. Sprinkle on toppings.

Other serving options for the taco filling:
Wrapped into a tortilla.
Spoon into a lettuce wrap.
Stuff into a zucchini or pepper.
Eat it in a bowl like chili.

African Almond Butter Stew

Doesn’t the name alone just draw you in? This African Almond Butter Stew is thick, rich, warming and just plain ole satisfying! Coconut milk, sweet potatoes and almond butter lightly blended together create the luxuriously creamy base. Bonus points because it oil free too!

Serve this alone as a soup, or with black forbidden rice – we really enjoyed it both ways, but the addition of chewy rice was lovely. I adapted my version from this recipe; I wanted a more simplified version, like using almonds butter versus hand-pounding peanuts. Remember to add a little black pepper to help activate the turmeric, making it more bioavailable to you body.

The stew holds well in the crock pot and the leftovers to meld in the fridge for a few days too. This African Almond Butter Stew is as mouth-wateringly delicious as it sounds!
Happy Eating
~Monique

African Almond Butter Stew

2 cans coconut milk
7 garlic cloves
1 serrano pepper
1 bunch cilantro
Fresh ginger, thumb size
8 oz crunchy almond butter
1 large sweet potato ~ about 12 ounces
1 quart veggie broth
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 bunch purple or curly kale
Pink salt and pepper
3 Green onions
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 fresh lime

Finely chop together the garlic, 1/2 the serrano pepper, the cilantro stems and the ginger with a sprinkling of salt.

Chop the sweet potatoes into 1′ cubes. Clean the kale, removing leaves from the stems and tearing into pieces.

In a soup pan over medium heat or in the instapot on simmer: add roughly 3 big spoonfuls from the top of the coconut milk can (don’t shake the can to combine, the top of the can is the the thicker fat). Stir the milk and let simmer for about 2 minutes. Add in the garlic, pepper, cilantro, ginger mash. Simmer for another 3 minutes, stirring often.

Add in the sweet potatoes, turmeric, 1 tsp pink salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Stir to combine. Deglaze the pan with the broth, and add in the remaining coconut from both cans of milk. Simmer until the potatoes are softened, about 15 minutes.

Stir in the almond butter. Blend lightly with an immersion blender (leave some texture to it.) Add in the kale, simmer about 5 minutes to simmer. Serve immediately (or if using an instapot- set to slow cooker to keep warm.)

Squeeze in 1/2 of the lime.

Slice the green onions. Chop the cilantro leaves and 1/2 serrano pepper. Slice remaining lime half into small chucks.

Serve the soup with black forbidden rice. Top with the toasted slivered almonds-cilantro mix and a lime wedge.

Shepherds Pie Stuffed Sweet Potato

Shepherds Pie Stuffed Sweet Potato

2 sweet potatoes
1 tbls avocado oil
1 + 3 tbls ghee/grass-fed butter, melted
1/2 small yellow onion
1 tsp dried thyme
1 lb grass-fed beef
1-2 cups veggies (green beans, carrots, zucchini, etc)
3 garlic cloves
~1/2 cup beef broth
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 tbls Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt (more to taste)
pepper to taste

Bake the potatoes in a 400 degree oven until soft (about 40 minutes.)
Heat the 1 tbls butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add the onions and thyme and cook to begin to soften, just a minute or two.

Add in any veggies that aren’t frozen, cook 3 minutes stirring once in a while. Add in the beef, cooking until no longer pink while breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Add in the salt and pepper.

Stir in the minced garlic. Then add the Worcestershire sauce and broth. Let simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove potatoes from the oven, slice in half lengthwise. Scoop out the middle of the potato to resemble a boat. Mash the middle of the potato using a fork with a pinch of salt and pepper, remaining butter and a spoon or two of broth if needed to get it mashed well. Scoop the Shepherds Pie mixture into the potatoes.

Top with the mashed sweet potato and sprinkle with cheese (if using.) Place under a broiler for 2 minutes to melt the cheese.
Enjoy!

Notes:

  • My sweet potato was purple; you can use classic orange or a white potato if preferred. Purple Sweet Potatoes are more dry than orange so they will need a little more moisture (I would even go back and add a little spoon or two of broth to my mashed toppers to keep them more moist)
  • Substitutions for Worcestershire Sauce: tamari/soy sauce, miso, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, red wine.
  • Beef broth is preferred, but I didn’t have any so I used one of my Roasted Veggie Herb Concentrate cubes + water. (These are my favorite ways to use up veggies and herbs about to go bad.)
  • To bake potatoes faster, cut them in half lengthwise, drizzle cut side with a little oil, place in oven on a baking sheet cut side down.
  • Be sure to season your meat really well.
  • If you don’t have thyme, try rosemary or sage instead.

Join our free Happy Eats Healthy facebook group to see the video recipe.

Apple Sweet Potato Hash with Chipotle Sauce

You can’t beat hash for breakfast, but you can elevate it by adding in fresh apples and whipping up a chipotle tahini sauce.

Get creative with additions- like smokey cheddar cheese or a handful of kale. Add extra eggs or skip them – it’s super easy to modify and make to your liking!
Happy Eating,
~Monique

Apple Sweet Potato Hash with Smokey Chipotle Sauce

1 tbls avocado oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 Sweet potato, chopped (I used 1/2 orange and 1/2 purple)
1/2 cup chopped rutabaga
1/2 can chickpeas
1/2 apple, chopped
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
salt and pepper
2-4 eggs
Toppings: avocado slices

Melt the oil in a cast iron or other skillet, add the onions and cook for minute. Add the sweet potato and rutabaga and about 1/2 tsp salt and smokey paprika. Cook and toss until the veggies become roasted, softened and browned. Add in the chopped apple and chickpeas, toss well.

Push the veggies aside making a couple holes, crack the eggs into that. Top the eggs with a little salt and pepper. Cover the pan and let the eggs cook till desired doneness.

Serve with a few slices of avocado and the chipotle sauce (recipe below)

Chipotle Sauce

spoon of tahini
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 chipotle pepper + a little sauce, minced (or a good squirt of sriracha sauce)
pinch of salt

Whisk together the ingredients. Add more lemon if needed to get a drizzelable sauce. Store in refrigerator for up to 1 week.


See our video recipe at Happy Eats Healthy Facebook page or on our You Tube Channel.

Orange and Swiss Chard stuffed sweet potato

SWISS CHARD and ORANGE STUFFED SWEET POTATO

1 sweet potato
2 tbls coconut oil
1/4 cup sliced onions
1 garlic clove
2 or 3 large Swiss Chard leaves, with stem
1 large orange
2 tbls fresh parsley
2 tbls pepitas (raw pumpkin seeds)
2 tbls walnuts
Salt and pepper to taste

Bake the sweet potato until fork tender. Start the below once the potato is ready.

Toast the pumpkin seeds and walnuts set aside

In the same pan, melt 1 tbls of the coconut oil over medium high heat, add in the onions and saute about 5 minutes or until tender. Mince the garlic, chop the chard stems and tear the leaves into bite-size pieces. Add the garlic and Swiss chard to the pan, tossing well, cooking just a minute or two to wilt the chard.

Cut the orange in half, juice one half, peel and section the other half.  Add the orange sections, juice, walnuts, pumpkins seeds and parsley to the pan. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper. Toss and remove from heat.

Top the sweet potato with the Swiss chard stuffing. Enjoy.

Optional: I like to add another drizzle of coconut oil, this is totally optional. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan and let it melt (the pan should be hot enough to melt the oil but you can place it back over heat for a moment or two if needed) then drizzle the melted oil over the potato; use a rubber spatula to scrape out any good pieces left in the pan.

Join us on Happy Eats Healthy with Monique Facebook Group Page for a video of this recipe.

Join us on Happy Eats Healthy with Monique Facebook Group Page for a video of this recipe.

This site contains affiliate links to our favorite ingredients and products; we may receive a small commission for purchases made through these links.

Fall Vegetable Tian (aka Vegetable Gratin)

A tian and a gratin are similar, yet different. In my world, gratins tend to have a lot of cream and cheese and the sliced vegetables are piled horizontally while the tian is lighter and fanned vertically around a circle making an eye-catching dish.

I avoided making the tian version for a long time. It’s definitely pretty! But I didn’t think there was going to be enough flavor in it, especially if didn’t have any cheese in it. There are times when we are right and times when we are wrong. This was a time I was entirely wrong.

Thanks to the hidden layer of onions and garlic at the bottom, along with a little white wine, that plays so well with the soft roasted veggies. Plus the top edges add texture and get a little crunchy from a quick finish under the broiler. I used a lot of fall vegetables but these could all get easily changed out.

It’s a perfect side dish or simple dinner. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Happy Eats,

~Monique

 

Fall Vegetable Tian

1 tbls olive oil

1/4 cup onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp ground sage

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/2 green apple

1/2 small honey or butternut squash

1 small sweet potato (purple or classic orange)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp smoky paprika

 

Heat 1/2 tablespoon of the olive oil in a 6.5″ cast iron (or similar oven-proof) pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute for about 5 minutes until the onions begin to soften. Add the garlic and sage, continue to cook another 2 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the wine and remove from heat. Allow to cool slightly while you slice the veggies.

Use a mandoline (or a knife), slice the apple on the thinnest setting. Slice the squash and the potato in the same manner but on the 2nd thickest setting.

veggie tian

pre-cooked tian

Arrange the slices in a circle around the pan, alternating between each (apple slice, squash slice, potato slice).

Mix together the salt, pepper and paprika in a small bowl. Spritz or drizzle the remaining olive oil across the top of the tian and sprinkle the seasoning over the top. Cover with tinfoil.

Bake the tian for 15 minutes covered and 15 minutes uncovered. Turn the broiler on for just a couple minutes to crisp the top edges.

When you serve, be sure to scoop up some of the onions at the bottom.

Notes: my recipe is for smaller, 6.5″ pan. If you are using a typical 12″ cast iron, be sure to double the recipe.

Quick Gluten Free Sweet Potato Flatbread (think tortilla!)

Gluten Free Sweet Potato Flatbread: don’t adjust your monitor, that purple color is the real deal. No filters or added colors.

Purple sweet potatoes have been plentiful at the markets lately and I just can’t resist them. It’s not often we get to cook with that much deep, vibrant purple.  But, a classic orange sweet potato is going to look great in these too.

I created these quick, yeast-free homemade flatbreads (aka tortillas) on a whim after bread was requested to go with our soup the other day. I pulled the first two off the pan in the same amount of time as it took to cook the soup. For a complete first try, they are pretty darn good! We even used the extras later that day as the bread for a grilled cheese. Think of these gluten free quick breads as a cross between a flatbread, a tortilla and a cracker- each version just gets cooked slightly longer than the previous.

Give them a try and remember to share them on your social media, tagging #HappyEatsHealthy on FB, IB & Twitter!

Happy Eats,
~Monique

Gluten Free Sweet Potato Flatbread

1 small sweet potato, baked or steamed

1/2 cup gf flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)

1/4 cup arrowroot powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbls oil

~1-3 tbls water

Remove the skin from the sweet potato and smash well with a fork. Add the remaining ingredients, except the water, and mix well using your hands. Keep kneading it into a ball, Adding 1 tablespoon of water at a time if needed just to bring it all together.

Pull the dough into small rounds, about 8 – 12 of them depending on the size of your original potato.

Heat a skillet over medium heat. Roll out one ball between two sheets of parchment paper. Carefully pull the top sheet off from your tortilla. Flip it onto your hand, or directly into the pan, then carefully pull the remaining parchment away.

Cook the flatbread until it becomes lightly browned on one side, them flip to cook the other side. If you want this to be soft, remove it from the skillet. It you want a crunch tortilla, let it cook until deeply browned, then remove and enjoy.

Optional: try adding a few seasonings for different flavors:

  • minced garlic + onion
  • chili powder +  cumin
  • Sesame seeds

Garlicky Hasselback Sweet Potato

Hasselback Sweet Potato is the best thing that’s happened to sweet potatoes since… well, actually, I love sweet potatoes so it’s just another really great way to prepare them. Plan for them to bake a long time, but the reward is a crispy outside and creamy inside. ~monique

Hasselback Sweet Potato

1 sweet potato

1 garlic clove

1 tbls of ghee, olive oil or grassfed buttter

Salt and pepper

Preparing the hasselback potato

Preparing the hasselback potato

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Slice the potato into thin slices, being careful to not slice all the way to the bottom of the potato. Slice the garlic into thin slices. Slide the garlic slices into the slits.

Place the potato on a small pan or pie tin. Spread the ghee over the top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake for 45-60 minutes until the outside of the potato is crisp and the inside is tender.

Top: Try topping with a few fresh chives or try my Cauliflower Cheese Sauce or  Cashew Bechamel Sauce

 

Tips: Place a chopstick on each side of the potato when you are slicing through it, this will help keep from slicing all the way through the potato.  

Dairy Free Sweet Potato Ice Cream

Cooking Time
30 seconds to blend

Ingredients
2/3 cup banana, diced and frozen

2/3 cup cooked sweet potato, diced and frozen

1/2 cup coconut milk

2 tsp chopped ginger

Directions
Place all the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth and creamy. You may need to stop and scrape the sides down, add in a little more milk if needed to blend, but be careful not to add in too much in, or to blend to long, or your ice cream will be soupy.

Enjoy with a sprinkle of cardamom on top.

Serves 2.

Notes
Using frozen banana not only makes this ‘ice cream’ creamy but adds sweetness too. If you want it a little sweeter, add a teaspoon or two of maple syrup.

Curry Soup with Sweet Potato Noodles

Cooking Time
20 minutes

Yields
4 bowls

Ingredients
1 tbls coconut oil

1 leek

1 celery stick

1/2 tsp granulated garlic (or 1 glove minced garlic)

1 tbls minced ginger

1 heaping tsp red curry paste

2 cups spiralized sweet potato

1/2 tsp harissa powder (or a few shakes of cayenne or chili pepper)

2 cups water

2 cup coconut milk

1 cup cooked chickpeas

1 lime, cut into 4 wedges

salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Melt the oil over medium heat, add in the chopped leek and celery. Cook until the leeks begin to get golden brown on the edges, tossing often.

Add in the garlic, ginger and red curry paste- stir and cook for about 1 minute.

Add in the sweet potato, harissa or cayenne, again stirring to coat well. The pan should be quite dry at this stage. Deglaze with 1 cup of water. Add in the remaining water, coconut milk and the chickpeas. Stir until well combined, cover and simmer 5 minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a big squeeze of lime for freshness.

Notes
This is a simple, satisfying soup that offers good fats, carbs and protein. Add in cooked chicken, turkey or shrimp to really up the protein amount.