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I make sweet potato pie two ways- with and without roasted bananas. This is the version with roasted bananas. Putting bananas in sweet potato pie may seem weird but both bananas and sweet potatoes are Caribbean staples and the bananas are sweet and cuts down the amount of refined sugar necessary for the recipe.
Ingredients • 4 large sweet potatoes • 4 bananas • 2 sticks of butter softened (salted or unsalted) • salt • 2 teaspoons nutmeg • 3 tablespoons cinnamon +/- to taste • 1/2 cup brown sugar • 1 pack frozen pie crust * you will need aluminum foil and cookie sheets Take the pie crusts out of the freezer, separate and allow them to defrost. Boil water and pre-heat the oven to 375 (temperature varies by region). Skin and boil potatoes. I like to cut them in halves or fourths so they will boil quicker. Put the potatoes in the boiling water with a couple pinches of salt. Boil the potatoes until they are soft. I like to poke them with a fork to check. When the sweet potatoes are almost soft, place the bananas in the oven to roast for about 10 minutes (time varies by region). When the peels of the bananas are all dark brown, they are ready to remove. Carefully remove the bananas from the oven; they will open and fall apart easily and the juices are very hot. Set the bananas to the side. When the sweet potatoes are completely soft, drain the water from the pot and put the potatoes in a large bowl. Use a fork to break the potatoes apart. At this point, I put the cookie sheets in the oven. Use a cake mixer to whip the potatoes until creamy. Start the mixer on low then increase the speed as the potatoes soften. Whip on high for at least a minute or two. Use a fork to check for lumps; continue to mix as necessary. Add the roasted banana, softened butter, and a couple pinches of salt. Use the mixer to combine. Add the nutmeg, 2 tablespoons of cinnamon and 1/4 cup of brown sugar. Use the mixer to thoroughly combine and then taste. Add more cinnamon and sugar to taste. Pour the mixture into the pie crusts. Tear or cut one inch strips of aluminum foil. Use the strips of aluminum foil to wrap the edges of the pie crusts; this stops the edges from browning too quickly. Place the pies on the cookie sheets. The purpose of doing this is that the preheated sheets brown the bottom of the pie crust while the pie cooks. Bake for 15-20 minutes (time varies by region). After baking the pies, I like to turn the broiler on and let the pies broil for about 2 minutes (or until the top of the pies brown slightly). This creates a film on the top of the pie. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool. Bag any left over pie filling in a freezer bag and freeze. Be sure to label the bag before you fill it with what it is and the date you are bagging it. Enjoy!
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I make sweet potato pie two ways- with and without roasted bananas. This is the version without bananas. (Putting bananas in the pie adds sweetness with less refined sugar).
Ingredients • 4 large sweet potatoes • 2 sticks of butter (salted or unsalted) • salt • 2 teaspoons nutmeg • 3 tablespoons cinnamon +/- to taste • 1 cup brown sugar • 1 pack frozen pie crust * you will need aluminum foil and cookie sheets Take the pie crusts out of the freezer, separate and allow them to defrost. Boil water and pre-heat the oven to 375 (temperature varies by region). Skin and boil potatoes. I like to cut them in halves or fourths so they will boil quicker. Put the potatoes in the boiling water with a couple pinches of salt. Boil the potatoes until they are soft. I like to poke them with a fork to check. When the sweet potatoes are completely soft, drain the water from the pot and put the potatoes in a large bowl. Use a fork to break the potatoes apart. At this point, I put the cookie sheets in the oven. Use a cake mixer to whip the potatoes until creamy. Start the mixer on low then increase the speed as the potatoes soften. Whip on high for at least a minute or two. Use a fork to check for lumps; continue to mix as necessary. Add the softened butter, and a couple pinches of salt. Use the mixer to combine. Add the nutmeg, 2 tablespoons of cinnamon and 1/2 cup of brown sugar. Use the mixer to thoroughly combine and then taste. Add more cinnamon and sugar to taste. Pour the mixture into the pie crusts. Tear or cut one inch strips of aluminum foil. Use the strips of aluminum foil to wrap the edges of the pie crusts; this stops the edges from browning too quickly. Place the pies on the cookie sheets. The purpose of doing this is that the preheated sheets brown the bottom of the pie crust while the pie cooks. Bake for 15-20 minutes (time varies by region). After baking the pies, I like to turn the broiler on and let the pies broil for about 2 minutes (or until the top of the pies brown slightly). This creates a film on the top of the pie. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool. Bag any left over pie filling in a freezer bag and freeze. Be sure to label the bag before you fill it with what it is and the date you are bagging it. Enjoy! I make this broccoli and rice recipe once every couple weeks or so; it’s one of my favorites. It’s super easy and tastes awesome! I have always cooked it in the oven but yesterday; I decided to make it last minute so I did it on the stovetop. This, like most of my recipes, this can be frozen and reheated.
Ingredients
Enjoy! [Oprah voice] I love bread!
I love making bread. With chronic illness, I don’t have the hand and arm strength to knead the dough and I can’t spend too much time standing. Because of this, I’ve had to adapt my bread recipes so that I can make them and not over exert myself. I use an inexpensive stand mixer so that I don’t have to mix by hand. *before you ask, no, I’ve never used a bread maker. I have no idea how that works. To make quick bread, you will need: 5 1/4 cups flour 2 – 4 Tbsp. sugar (add depending on how sweet you’d like it) 1 1/2 tsp. salt 1 1/2 Tbsp. instant yeast (I like Fleischmann’s and I buy the jar because I use so much) 1 1/2 Tbsp. vegetable oil 2 cups warm water Before you begin, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and butter a large baking sheet. Put dry ingredients into a stand mixer on low. The low setting is important so that the dry ingredients don’t end up all over the place. Add the oil and water. Mix on medium for about a 1 minute. The dough should be very sticky. If it isn’t you may need to add more water. Continue mixing for 5 minutes. The dough should be a smooth even consistency. But very important: Don't mix too long. Rub a little flour on the counter and your fingers so that the dough doesn’t stick. Remove the dough from the mixer and place it on the counter. Separate the dough into at least two pieces by tearing or cutting. Now shape the dough and place them on buttered baking sheets. Cover them with a large dishtowel and let them rise for 25 minutes. After the 25 minutes, use a sharp buttered or oiled knife to make 1/4-inch deep cuts in the top. You can make one long one down the center or diagonal slashes. Bake the bread for 25 minutes, or golden brown. I let them sit and cool for a bit but I can’t help myself because I love warm, buttered bread. Remember that this bread does not have all of the preservatives that store bought bread does and it needs to be eaten quickly. The good news is it’s so good, I don’t think that will be a problem.I have no problem freezing fresh bread. I let it cool then put it in a freezer bag. Be sure to label the bag before you fill it with what it is and the date you are bagging it. Enjoy! Each Friday or Saturday we make pizza. We have made pizzas many different ways with many different ingredients, steps and procedures. I'm going to give you some suggestions for quick, easy, inexpensive pizza that are a great alternative to frozen pizzas. It takes me about 30 minutes or less start to finish.
First, we need to chat about crust choices. I have made my own dough in the past but I just don't have the energy anymore. Here is a quick and easy pizza dough recipe if you feel like tackling it. In the past, we have also bought pre-made pizza crusts. These are usually in the same aisle as spaghetti sauce. We discovered pre-made pizza dough about two years ago and we love it! They are a few dollars cheaper than the pizza crusts and not too much more expensive than getting the ingredients to make our own and the convenience is worth the difference. We find the best price at that huge discount store slash grocery store super center that most people consider the devil; it's only $1 there. We also find them at the local grocery chain but they are a little over $3 there. In both places, the dough is in the deli section. I don't have to rank these as to how much energy they require, I'm sure you've done that already. The ingredients will vary based on which dough/ crust choice you make and what toppings you want on your pizza so I'll explain what we do. My kids are all old enough now to prepare their own pizzas so I make my own as well; sometimes my husband does it for me. My pizza: Ingredients • ½ pre-made dough (I like thin crust. Use a full dough for thick) • flour • pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce* (Italians don't judge me; look away) • cheese (I use mozzarella and Italian) • olive oil • butter • Italian seasoning • garlic • toppings * you likely have spaghetti sauce already and will use it for other dishes. This is just easier than dedicated pizza sauce and it tastes fine. I'd stick with traditional flavored/style sauce. Preheat your oven to 425 or so. I gather all of my ingredients before beginning because my hands get very messy. I take a ramekin and I mix 2 parts butter to on part olive oil and melt it in the microwave. Then I add Italian seasoning and garlic to the mixture and set it aside. I put about a half cup of flour on a clean counter and spread it around bigger than my pizza will be. Then I rub the flour all over the front and back of my hands and between my fingers then pile the remaining flour out of my way. I take half of the dough from the package and begin to flatten it out with my fingers, adding flour as needed. I shape the dough as desired. (generally make a rectangular thin crust, my daughter usually makes a perfect circle with edges like at a pizza parlor, my husband and sons aren't pretty but are utilitarian.) when my pizza is almost the size I want it, I grab my baking sheet and smear my butter/ olive oil mixture on the pan so the crust doesn't stick then put the crust on the pan. Then I smear the butter/ olive oil mixture over the top of the crust; this adds flavor and makes it easier to finish spreading. I continue to spread my crust out on the baking sheet; it's much easier to spread with the oil on top and bottom. Then I wash my icky hands. I place the crust in the oven until it is very lightly browned. I do this because I want the crust cooked and it may not cook as quickly as the cheese will melt. After removing it from the oven, I add sauce and desired ingredients and put the pizza back into the oven until the cheese is melted. I don't over brown my cheese because this makes enough for two meals. I cut the pizza in half, eat half and let the other half cool. I place the remaining pizza into a bag, label it and put it into the refrigerator. When I reheat the pizza in the oven, my cheese won't burn because I didn't overcook it the first time. Enjoy! I make my pot pie using my easy stew. I make them after the stew cools and freeze them or eat them immediately. This is how.
Ingredients
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Pour the stew into your frozen pie crusts until the filling is slightly below the rim. If you choose, add a top crust by laying it over the pie and pressing the dough into the bottom dough. If you add a top crust, slice about a 1 inch long slice in the top crust or poke holes with a fork. This will allow heat to escape and prevent a mess. Whether you add a top crust or not, rip foil into half inch or so strips and wrap around the edges of the crust so that it doesn't burn. Bake for 25-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Enjoy! *If you choose to freeze these for later, be sure to label the pies beforehand with what it is and the date. I use my chili recipe to make this recipe I'll share soon. You can assemble this, cook it and freeze it or eat it immediately.
Ingredients • cooked chili • about 3 cans of corn (may need more or less) • about 4 boxes of corn muffin mix • milk (amount required by muffin recipe) • eggs (amount required by muffin recipe) Mix the corn muffin mix. Pour enough chili to cover about ½ inch into a dish. (I use these pie dishes for several recipes like this because they're easy to clean.) Then pour enough corn to cover the chili. Finally, pour about ½ inch of corn muffin mix on top; do not over fill. Bake following corn muffin instructions. Reduce bake time by about 10 minutes if you plan to freeze it to eat it later. Partially cooking it makes for better freezing and will ensure the cornbread doesn't burn when reheating. Cover the food with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze. Be sure to label what it is and the date before freezing it. Whenever you fully cook it, I enjoy rubbing butter over the top of the cornbread as soon as I pull it out of the oven. Enjoy! |
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