Mamahood Styled



11/30/2010

Who woulda thought Brussels Sprouts?!

I had never ever tried Brussels Sprouts in mi vida loca. The round little miniature cabbage-looking veggies didn't appeal to me and xenophobia kicked in a bit. But there they were. About a pound of them included in my basket a couple of weeks ago. When we were brainstorming our Thanksgiving meal options I volunteered to give it a whirl. The worst that would happen is that we wouldn't like 'em! I decided to do some research and found out that they can be bitter and raw is a definite don't. However, if seasoned properly and cooked at the right temperature, my oh my. These are a definite healthy & scrumptious treat.

To quote, this was a text I received from Geoff today as he had lunch today: "I never thought I'd be saying this, but I'm dissapointed we didn't have any brussels sprouts leftover!"

Ingredients

1- 1.5 pounds Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed, yellow leaves removed, cut in half

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Place trimmed Brussels sprouts, olive oil, kosher salt, and pepper in a large resealable plastic bag. Seal tightly, and shake to coat.

3. Pour onto a baking sheet, and place on center oven rack. Roast in the preheated oven for 30 to 45 minutes, shaking pan every 5 to 7 minutes for even browning. Reduce heat when necessary to prevent burning.

4. Brussels sprouts should be darkest brown, almost black, when done. Serve immediately.

These are great as a side dish or atop pasta! I'd imagine even on a fresh salad! Enjoy! :)

11/26/2010

Spicy & Sweet [Sweet] Potatoes


For Thanksgiving this year, I had all the veggie side dishes, since well, turning vegetarian doesn't deem me the best turkey cook! I wanted to use all the veggies I had readily available and one was sweet potatoes. I don't like mushy sweet potatoes with marshmallows on top so I did some research and modified what I found to suit our tastes and the spices I can tell go well together. Here's what I came up with. & just to vouch for their amazingness, Geoff's dad despises sweet potatoes- he had seconds and even asked the recipe! Weee, here's to you, Poppa!



Ingredients



  • Enough sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed, to fill your baking sheet.

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil

  • 2 tablespoons of packed brown sugar

  • 1 tablespoons paprika

  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

  • 2-3 cloves of minced garlic

  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon

  • 1 pinch cayenne pepper



You can add more/less depending on your taste!

Directions



  1. Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F

  2. Place the sweet potato chunks into a large mixing bowl. Drizzle with the olive oil, then sprinkle the brown sugar, paprika, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cinnamon and cayenne pepper over them. Toss until the potatoes are evenly coated with the seasoning. They should look dark and seasoned now. Spread onto a baking sheet.

  3. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then turn the potatoes over with a spatula, and continue baking until the sweet potatoes are golden and tender, 10 to 15 minutes more.


11/15/2010

Twice-Baked Potato Scoops

Oh boy! If you have the time, a few potatoes and some veggies, you are in for an absolutely delicious and versatile treat! In my basket this last Saturday (which my future MIL picked up for me- Thanks Momma!), we got another bag of potatoes. I absolutely ADORE potatoes! Baked, fried (a la french, haha), mashed, etc! Ah, amazing vegetable! Hearty & a total comfort food of mine!

I wanted to make something new, that incorporated mashed potatoes (since they're my fave and I've been making them from scratch for my family every holiday since I was little)! I remembered the last time we went to a sit-down restaurant they had what appeared to be little potato "boats" with mashed potatoes inside topped with bacon, cheddar cheese and sour cream..Mmmmmm! Now, although that looked amazing, I'm sure I went for a veggie dish instead. So tonight, I bring you a very versatile recipe that is healthier and can accommodate any taste buds. I literally just looked in my fridge and pantry for whatever I had available and went with that. The possibilities for this recipe are endless! It's almost like deviled eggs, but with potatoes! & with Thanksgiving around the corner, this may be a good side dish to change things up a bit!




Ingredients- basically, however you like mashed potatoes!



  • As many large baking potatoes as you want to make- I made 6 because ours were small and I always make extra for lunch or in case we get company

  • Any veggies you want to add: I added small chops of the following: broccoli florets, red and yellow peppers, and carrots.

  • I didn't have any cheese and my beau is a cheeser so I added a teaspoon of cream cheese

  • soy milk (or regular) until desired consistency

  • 1 tablespoon of butter

  • 2 minced garlic cloves

  • salt and pepper to taste




Directions



  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

  2. Bake potatoes for 1 hour or until soft. You can wrap them in aluminum foil, spray a tiny bit of EVOO and sprinkle sea salt and pepper for crispier skin You can also take a fork and poke each potato a few times to allow heat to get in and cook a bit faster (thoroughly).

  3. Cut each potato in half. If yours are small, cut only enough to be able to scoop out the inside.

  4. Let potatoes cool because you'll be handling them (haha)! I am not patient and used a clean kitchen towel to get going on them.

  5. Scoop out the potato from the skin leaving about 1/4 of the potato so you have a sturdy base. I cupped each potato in my palm and used a tablespoon starting from the center out. Put all the potatoes in a mixing bowl or food processor.

  6. Add all of your ingredients. Pulse or mash until desired consistency/taste.

  7. Fill the potato skins/scoops with your mashed potatoes (I sprinkled a bit of nutritional yeast on each since I didn't have cheese).

  8. Bake for 10-20 minutes (depending on how crunchy you want your toppings). Broil the last minute.

  9. VOILA! Enjoy! :)


11/08/2010

Banana Nut [sometimes Chocolate Chip] Bread/Muffins!


Tonight Geoff went into the kitchen and said "I'm craving banana nut muffins!" Music to a girl's ears! I immediately went to the kitchen and starting pulling ingredients for our pantry! This is my go-to banana bread/muffin recipe! Only the starred items are needed to achieve this but I love to add the extra good stuff. As you can see, there's no sugar, oil or unnecessary negatives. You can be sinfully healthy and impress everyone around you with your mad baking skillz! haha! :) & since they're good for you, you can have more than one....or two! I'm on 2.5 right now, haha!


 





Ingredients



  • *1/3 cup applesauce

  • *1/2 cup honey

  • *1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • *2 eggs

  • *1 cup mashed bananas (2-3 bananas)

  • *1 3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

  • *1/2 teaspoon salt

  • *1 teaspoon baking soda

  • *1/4 cup hot water

  • 1 teaspoon of cinnamon

  • 2 teaspoons of ground Flax Seed

  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

  • 1/4 cup granola (optional)




Directions



  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F

  2. In a bowl, mix applesauce and honey together.

  3. Add eggs, and mix well. I haven't tried this without eggs but I've heard you can add extra banana or applesauce, who knows though!

  4. Stir in bananas and vanilla. Enjoy mashing with your [clean] hands!

  5. Stir in flour, cinnamon, flax seed and salt.

  6. Add baking soda to hot water, stir to mix, and then add to batter.

  7. Blend in chopped nuts.

  8. OPTIONAL: I use half of my batter regular, as described, and then add half a cup of mini chocolate chips to the other half! Sprinkle granola on regular banana nut bread/muffin!

  9. Spread batter into a greased  loaf pan for 55 minutes OR you can make muffins (about 12) for 35 minutes!

  10. ENJOY! :)


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