Mashed Sweet Potatoes

***I must have been in a holiday sort of mood the other night, because I made sweet potato puree and chicken with a cranberry sauce....it almost felt like Thanksgiving...hah. Anyway, this is one of my favorite ways to prepare sweet potatoes. I found THIS recipe over at 101 Cookbooks, and used it as inspiration...I did change it up a little bit.

And did you know that the sweet potato ranks #1 in nutrition?? I found the following info @ http://www.foodreference.com/:

"The reasons the sweet potato took first place? Dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars, complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium. The sweet potato received a score of 184; the vegetable ranked in second place was more than 100 points behind with a score of 83. The numbers for the nutritional sweet potato speak for themselves: almost twice the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A, 42 percent of the recommendation for vitamin C, four times the RDA for beta carotene, and, when eaten with the skin, sweet potatoes have more fiber than oatmeal. All these benefits with only about 130 to 160 calories!"

How cool is that??***

Ingredients:

3 large sweet potatoes, cleaned and left damp

1/2 - 3/4 cup milk or heavy cream

2 Tbsp. butter or margarine

Salt & Pepper

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup light brown sugar (add more or less to your liking)

1 Tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F. Pierce each potato 2 - 3 times with a fork. Put the potatoes on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until tender to a fork tip, about 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cool until warm enough to handle, 10 to 15 minutes. Peel and discard the skin. Place the peeled potatoes into a medium sized bowl and mash with a potato masher.

Meanwhile, pour the milk (or cream) into a 2-quart pot, add the vanilla and brown sugar; stir and heat over medium heat just until hot. Remove from heat. Slowly pour the mixture over the potatoes (in small increments), stir, and add the butter and cinnamon. Keep adding the milk mixture until you achieve the desired consistency.

Stir well. Enjoy!

Cornflake-Coated Pork Chops

***This is an incredibly easy dinner idea. I found this in the new "Southern Living" Homestyle Cookbook. The prep was quick and the results were very good!***

Ingredients:
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons milk

5 cups cornflake cereal, crushed (about 2 cups crushed)

6 boneless pork chops (about 3/4-inch thick)

2 teaspoons lemon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 large lemon, halved

Garnish: halved lemon slices

Directions:

1. Stir together eggs and milk in a shallow dish. Place cornflake crumbs in a separate shallow dish. Sprinkle pork evenly with lemon pepper, salt, and garlic powder. Dip pork chops in egg mixture, and dredge in cornflake crumbs. Place chops on a lightly greased rack on a baking sheet.

2. Bake at 350° for 30 to 35 minutes or until done. Squeeze lemon juice evenly over chops, and garnish, if desired.

Source: "Southern Living" Homestyle Cookbook

Broiled Mahi Mahi with Parsleyed Tomatoes

***I recently got a great cookbook called "Southern Living Homestyle Cookbook." I highly recommend it...it's wonderful. One of the first recipes that I've tried in the book is this broiled mahi mahi dish. I was very pleased with the results. As I've mentioned before, Brad and I love Greek-style food, and this is certainly in that category. It's packed with flavor...from the tomato/onion mixture on bottom, to the tender fish and cheese sprinkled on top...you'll definitely enjoy this one!***



Ingredients:
2 medium onions, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup white wine
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon pepper, divided
6 (6- to 8-ounce) mahi-mahi fillets
1 (4-ounce) package crumbled feta cheese
Garnish: lemon slices

Directions:
Sauté sliced onions in hot olive oil over medium-high heat 8 minutes or until tender. Add chopped tomatoes, next 4 ingredients, and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Set onion-and-tomato mixture aside. Place fish in a single layer on a lightly greased rack in an aluminum foil-lined broiler pan; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.

Broil 5 inches from heat 8 minutes or until fish flakes with a fork.

Spoon onion-and-tomato mixture evenly onto a platter; top with fish fillets. Sprinkle evenly with crumbled feta cheese, and garnish, if desired.


Source: "Southern Living Homestyle Cookbook"

A Lil' Bit of Cupcake Fun!

RED, WHITE, and BLUEberry cupcakes!

Brad and I had a fantastic day yesterday, celebrating the Fourth of July. We got to explore a place called "Old Cahaba" in Selma, AL. I've included some info HERE.

The first state capital of Alabama was established at "Old Cahawba" in 1820. Today, only ruins remain, but you can't help but imagine what took place there as you walk through the historic old town. One of the neatest things is that the Cahaba River and Alabama River flow into each other right next to Old Cahaba.

My favorite thing was walking under the huge, beautiful mossy trees. They are massive in size, and look so beautiful with the breeze flowing through their branches. Here's a photo that Brad took in Selma during one of our visits...

Now, on to the cupcakes! I had a batch of the red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles Bakery in my pantry. Sprinkles is a famous bakery out in California, and I adore their mixes...you can find them at Williams-Sonoma. I got to thinking that the RED cupcake mix and WHITE icing would be perfect for the holiday. I added red sprinkles and a cute little blueberry to the top of each cupcake so that they would be red, white, and blue! They were even better with homemade vanilla ice cream. Here's another photo...

STRAWBERRY CUPCAKES WITH SPRINKLES!
Last weekend, my cute-as-a-button niece Dakota got to spend the night with her "Aunt Les" (a.k.a. me)! This was her first time spending the night away from home. She was an angel the entire time, and we had a lot of fun! I always look forward to baking with her. It reminds me of all the time that I spent with my Grandmother when I was little, baking all sorts of cakes, cookies, and other desserts. I think that's one of the main reasons I love cooking so much.

After an entire day playing at the waterpark and riding rides at Alabama Adventure (tons of fun!!!), we made the cutest little pink cupcakes with sprinkles that night. Dakota did a great job helping, didn't she?

Chicken Georgia...My Way!

***A few months ago, I had lunch at this wonderful little cafe in Huntsville, AL. I can't remember the name of it, though. I ordered their "Chicken Georgia." I thought the combination of peaches with chicken sounded different, but really good. They served a chicken breast smothered with a delicious mixture of peaches and pecans.

After Googling "Chicken Georgia" I just couldn't find anything that was like what I had in Huntsville. Paula Deen has a Chicken Georgia recipe on The Food Network's site, but it had mushrooms and just wasn't what I was looking for.

The following recipe comes very close! You would think that the peaches and pecans would make this dish too sweet, but the basil and garlic really keeps it on the savory side. Enjoy!***

***Also, I am so excited to enter this recipe into Joelen's Fruit Frenzy blogging event! Be sure to check out her awesome site at: Joelen's Culinary Adventures.***

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp EVOO
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon seasoned pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup orange juice
3 fresh, sliced peaches
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon dried leaf basil
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup chopped pecans



Directions:
Heat EVOO in a skillet over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet and brown on both sides...until chicken is almost cooked through (it will continue cooking in next step). Remove from skillet and place on a plate.

Next, add a little more EVOO to the skillet if needed; add garlic and saute for 30 seconds...be careful not to burn it! Combine orange juice and peaches with brown sugar, cinnamon, and basil and add to skillet. Return chicken to the mixture. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

Place chicken on a plate, placing the peach mixture over each chicken breast. Top with chopped pecans.

Serve hot!