Sweet Potato Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients:

For the potatoes:

1-1/2 Pounds Sweet potatoes, peeled, diced
3 Garlic cloves
1/2 C Milk
1/4 C Chicken Broth
2 T Sour Cream
Salt and pepper to taste

For the filling:

1 lb Lean Ground beef (or turkey)
1 t Olive oil
1 Medium onion, diced
1 Celery stalk, chopped
1 Parsnip, diced
2 Cloves garlic, diced
8 oz Mushrooms, diced
10 oz Frozen mixed vegetables
2 T Flour
1 C Chicken broth
2 t Tomato paste
1 t Worcestershire sauce
1 t Freshly chopped rosemary
Salt and pepper, to taste
Paprika, to sprinkle

Directions:

Boil sweet potatoes and garlic in a pot of salted water until cooked and soft. Drain and mash with chicken broth, sour cream, salt and pepper. 

Preheat oven to 400°F.

In a large saute pan brown meat; season with salt and pepper. When cooked, set aside. Add olive oil to the pan, then add the onion and sauté one minute. Add the celery, parsnip, salt and pepper to taste; cook about 12 minutes, until celery is soft.

Add garlic and mushrooms; sauté another 3-4 minutes. Add flour, salt and pepper and mix well. Add frozen vegetables, chicken broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, cooked meat, and mix well. Simmer on low about 5-10 minutes.

Spread meat mixture in a casserole dish. Top with mashed sweet potatoes. Use a fork to scrape the top of the potatoes to make ridges; sprinkle with paprika. Bake 20-30 minutes or until potatoes turn golden. Remove from oven and let it cool 10 minutes before serving.

*Adapted from http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/11/sweet-potato-turkey-shepards-pie.html

Honey Roasted Butternut Squash with Apples and Pecans

Ingredients:

 

1 Pound butternut squash, cubed
1 Medium baking apple, peeled, cored and cubed
3 T butter, melted(or butter substitute)
3 T honey
1/4 C pecans, finely chopped
1/2 t Nutmeg
1/2 t Cinnamon

Directions:
 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place cubed squash and apple in an 8'x8' baking dish. Add 2 tablespoons water and roast uncovered, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes, or until almost cooked through.

 

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine butter, honey, pecans, nutmeg, and cinnamon.
  

Remove squash from oven, and pour honey mixture over squash. Stir lightly to coat.
  

Return to the oven for another 10 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove from oven and serve.

Yield: 5 Servings

*From "Eat Smart: Butternut Squash" package.

Pumpkin Stew

Ingredients:

2 Pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 T cooking oil, divided
1 C Water
3 Large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
4 Medium carrots, sliced
1 C Celery, sliced
1 Large green pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
4 Garlic cloves, minced
1 Medium onion, chopped
2 t Salt
1/2 t Pepper
2 T Instant beef bouillon granules
1 15 oz Can diced tomatoes
1 Pumpkin (10-12 pounds)

 Directions:

In a large pot, brown meat in 2 T oil. Add water, potatoes, carrots, celery, green pepper, garlic, onion, salt, and pepper. Cover and simmer for two hours.

Stir in bouillon and tomatoes.

Wash pumpkin; cut a 6- to 8-inch circle around top stem. Remove top and set aside; discard seeds and loose fibers from inside. Place pumpkin in a shallow sturdy baking pan. Spoon stew into pumpkin and replace the top. Brush outside of pumpkin with remaining oil.

Bake at 325 degrees just until pumpkin is tender (2 hours or less). Do not overbake!

Serve stew from pumpkin, scooping out a little pumpkin with each serving.

Yield: 8-10 servings.

* Adapted from Taste of Home magazine.

Super Easy Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

1 T Oil (your choice)
1 Medium white onion, diced
1 Poblano pepper, diced (optional)
1 15 oz Can cream-style corn
1 15 oz Can corn kernels
1 15 oz Can diced tomatoes
2 10 oz can rotel
1 15 oz can chicken broth (more as needed)
4 chicken breasts, boiled and diced
1 t Cumin
1/4 Bunch cilantro, chopped fine
2 15 oz Can black beans
Salt and pepper, to taste
Tortilla chips

Directions:

Cook onion (and poblano) in oil until onion is translucent.

Put remaining ingredients (except chips) together and simmer for 20 minutes.

Top with tortilla chips.

 

* Adapted from http://www.yummly.com/recipe/external/Super-Easy-Tortilla-Soup-Food_com-109294

Homemade Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

3 C Pumpkin puree
1 C Sugar
1 1/2 t Ground cinnamon
1 t Ground cloves
1 t Ground allspice
1/2 t Ground ginger
1/2 t Salt (optional)
3-4 Large eggs (Use less for denser pie)
1/2 t Vanilla extract (optional)
12-18 oz Evaporated milk (or non-dairy substitute)(use less for denser pie)

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well. Pour into pie crust of your choice (fill to just below 1/4 inch from top of crust).

Bake at 425 degrees for first 15 minutes. Lower temperature to 350 degrees and bake another 45-60 minutes (until a blunt table knife inserted into the center comes out clean).

Allow pie to cool to your desired temperature. Serve with whipped topping of your choice if desired.

Note: Pie freezes well. Thaw for 24 hours in refrigerator then bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes to reheat.

* Adapted from http://www.pickyourown.org/pumpkinpie.php

Pumpkin Puree

Ingredients:

1 Fresh pie pumpkin (firm and bright orange, a 6-inch pumpkin should be enough for 1 pie)

Directions:

Wash the exterior of the pumpkin with cool or warm water (no soap). Cut the pumpkin in half. Scoop out the seeds and scrape the insides (you can save the seeds for planting or for roasting!).

Steam Method:

Use a steamer basket inside a large pot to steam the pumpkin. Cook until the insides are soft and easily pull away from the skin (this will probably take 20-30 minutes).

Roasting Method:

Place pumpkin halves face-down in a 9x13 casserole with about 1/2-inch of water at the bottom. Bake at 400 degrees until pumpkin meat is soft.

Scoop out the pumpkin.

Add the pumpkin to a food processor or blender to puree!

This puree made be used in recipes in place of canned pumpkin. Freezes well.

* From http://www.pickyourown.org/pumpkinpie.php

Garlic Sauteed Artichokes

Ingredients:

2 Large artichokes (about 1 pound each)
3 Cloves garlic, chopped
2 T Olive oil

Directions:

Rinse artichokes under cold water, and use a sharp knife to cut the top 1/3 off of each one. Trim the stems to about 1 inch, and remove the smaller leaves from around the base. Use scissors to remove any remaining leaf tips. Cut each artichoke in half from the bottom to the top, then use a spoon to scrape out the hairy choke. Rinse again to remove any residual hairs.

Add the olive oil to a large skillet on medium heat. Add the garlic, and saute for about 1 minute to flavor the oil. Arrange artichoke halves cut-side down in the skillet.

Saute for about 5 or 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Reduce heat to low, and pour in about 1/4 cup of water, cover, and let steam for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the artichokes are tender. A fork should easily pierce the stem.

Yield: 4 Servings

* Adapted from http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/48464/recipegarlic-sauteed-artichokes