I have a bunch of Kale at my house from our CSA, and I figured I'd make some stew with potatoes and beans. I like the way the stew has both sweet and salty flavors. Zeke had a great idea of adding peanuts for some crunchy, which I would definitely do next time.

Moroccan Veggie Stew

Ingredients
1 onion chopped
4 cloved garlic minced
1 sweet potato peeled and cubed
4 potatoes peeled and cubed
1 bunch kale, stems removed cut into 1 inch strips
1 can diced tomato and juice
3 cups veggie broth
1 cup dried lentils
1 can garbonzo beans
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tsp aleppo pepper (or 1/2-1 tsp cayenne pepper)
2 tbsp honey
1/2 cup raisins or chopped dried apricots
2 tbsp butter

in pot melt butter and sautee onion and garlic
sautee kale for 3 min
add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until lentils soften

southwestern butternut squash and sweet potato casserole (aka savory potato kugel)

southwestern butternut squash and sweet potato casserole (aka savory potato kugel)
Originally uploaded by kel h

I have a bunch of sweet potatoes and butternut squash from the CSA farmshare, and I've been looking at some different ideas. One of things that caught my eye was a savory sweet potato kugel. I decided to tweak it a little bit. I like the sweet potatoes with the smokiness of the chipotle peppers, but a little goes a long way.

Ingredients
1 medium butternut squash: peeled, seeded and cubed
3 med to large sweet potatoes: peeled and cubed
2 onions diced
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tbsp butter
2 eggs
1-2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce diced
1 cup shredded cheddar
bread crumbs
salt
pepper
2 tsp adobo seasoning
olive oil 1 tsp

Steam the potatoes and squash until soft
mash
sautee onions and garlic in butter
add to mashed mix
season with salt and pepper
stir in chipotle pepper and sauce
add cheese
beat eggs and stir into mix
pour into a baking dish and top with bread crumbs, sprinkle with adobo seasoning, drizzle with olive oil and bake at 350 for 45 min

Sweet Potato Pie

Sweet Potato Pie
Originally uploaded by kel h

I made sweet potato gnocchi, and figured since I was steaming sweet potatoes, I would make some pie as well. I adapted Emeril's Pie Crust, and used Alton Brown's pie filling recipe

Pie Crust
1 cup flour
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup ice water

combine flour, sugar, salt and fat in a food processor. trickle water in while food processor is running a little at a time just until the dough forms a ball. fold dough in half and squish several times and chill before rolling out. Then chill while making the filling

1 lb sweet potatoes (cubed and steamed)
1 1/4 cup plain yogurt
5 egg yolks
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1-2 tbsp maple syrup

Steam and mash the potatoes
put into a stand mixer and mix until smooth
add eggs, yogurt and seasonings
pour filling into pie shell
toast pecans in a pan. pour maple syrup over and shake for a few minutes to candy the pecans before sprinkling over the pie

bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes until custard sets

homemade sweet potato gnocchi with brown butter and garlic sauce

homemade sweet potato gnocchi with brown butter and garlic sauce
Originally uploaded by kel h

Ingredients

2 (8 ounce) sweet potatoes
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bake sweet potatoes for 30 to 60 minutes, or until soft to the touch ).

Remove from the oven, and set aside to cool.

Once the potatoes are cool enough to work with, remove the peels, and mash them, or press them through a ricer into a large bowl.(if after you bake and peel them you realize they aren't soft to the center, pull the soft part off with forks and then steam the hard centers in the microwave for about five minutes until soft)

Blend in the garlic, salt, nutmeg, and egg. Mix in the flour a little at a time until you have soft dough. Use more or less flour as needed.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. While you wait for the water, make the gnocchi.



On a floured surface, roll the dough out in several long snakes, and cut into 1-inch sections.

Drop the pieces into the boiling water, and allow them to cook until they float to the surface. Remove the floating pieces with a slotted spoon (its like skimming a pool)

keep warm in a serving dish.

Serve with butter or cream sauce.

Also, if you have more than you need you can cut them and freeze them on a cookie sheet. Once frozen toss them in a zip lock bag and save for later

Thanksgiving Menu

Here is what I made for our Thanksgiving meal that we had at 1pm. Keep in mind there were only four of us. I just really like cooking. The menu was:
Turkey and Gravy
Homemade sage stuffing
Apple, Onion, Butternut Squash, and Sweet Potato Gratin
Roasted Veggies (brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes, purple potatoes, and butternut squash)
Stuffed Delecata Squash
Whipped potatoes with celery root, garlic and buttermilk
Homemade cranberry sauce
(not pictured: Apple and Pumpkin Pie)

I don't really feel like going in depth about all of it (gotta rest up for black friday and all), but there are a couple of things I am really pleased with



Roasted Veggies



This is superduper easy and tasty.
Preheat the oven to 400
Cut brussel sprouts in half and then notch the core with a knife
Cube some other root veggies. I like purple potatoes for color, and butternut squash and sweet potatoes
Toss with olive oil, sea salt and cracked pepper and spread out in a layer on a baking sheet
cook 10 min, stir, and then cook another 10
add some more salt and peper to taste and there ya go! If I'm feelin super fancy I will add some chopped garlic in the last 5-10 min

Chickpea and Craisin stuffed Delecata Squash



(taken from Gothamist)
Chickpea-Stuffed Delicata Squash
for the chickpeas
1/2 can chickpeas
4 C water (or, better yet, mushroom broth)
1/2 C dried cranberries
1/2 C tawny port
2 smallish delicata squash
Salt, sugar & olive oil to taste

Preheat your oven to 475 F.

Mix the dried cranberries and port together in a bowl. Microwave 30 seconds, then set aside for 30 minutes.

Slice the squash in half lengthwise. Remove and discard the seeds. Lightly slather the squash with olive oil and salt. Fill a small pan 1/4 inch with broth and place sqash in pan skin up. Bake them for 15 minutes, or until tender.

Add a pinch of salt to the port/cranberries, then transfer them to a small pot and simmer until the port reduces to a syrup.

Drain the chickpeas, then fry in safflower oil on medium-high heat for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden. Drain on paper towels.

When the chickpeas are ready, toss them with the cranberries and port syrup.

Place a squash ring in the center of each plate. Fill each squash ring with the fried chickpea mixture.


The only other thing I have to add about this thanksgiving is that adding one peeled and cubed celery root to the potatoes really added something interesting to the flavor, and I highly recommend it.