Soul Sweet 'Taters

Ingredients
    •    4 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 3/4 pounds)
    •    1 cup granulated sugar
    •    1 cup milk
    •    2 large eggs
    •    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    •    1 teaspoon salt
    •    1 cup packed dark brown sugar
    •    1 cup nuts of your choice, chopped
    •    1/2 cup all-purpose flour
    •    6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Put the sweet potatoes on the oven rack and bake until fork-tender, about 45 minutes. When the potatoes are finished cooking, let cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Slice them open lengthwise and scrape out the flesh with a fork into a large bowl. Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees F.
Add the granulated sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla and salt to the bowl with the sweet potatoes. Mash the mixture with a potato masher until combined and slightly lumpy-you don't want it to be perfectly smooth.
Now, in a separate bowl, mash the brown sugar, pecans, flour and butter with a pastry cutter or fork until thoroughly combined. The mixture should resemble a crumble.
Spread the sweet potato mixture in a 14-cup oval-shaped baking dish and sprinkle the crumb mixture all over the top. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Sweet Potatoes in Coconut Milk

    •    3 large sweet potatoes or yams
    •    5 tablespoons real maple syrup
    •    cinnamon to taste
    •    1 can of coconut milk 13.5oz
    •    sprinkle of cinnamon sugar mixture if you have it. (or make your own).
Directions
    1.    Spray a small casserole dish or 10 inch pie plate with cooking spray. Pre-heat your oven to 350f.
    2.    Prepare the sweet potatoes. Wash the skin and cook them each separately for 5 minutes on high in the microwave on a small plate. (You may need slightly more than 5 minutes depending on the size of the individual potato.) Once the potatoes are cooked, remove the flesh from the skins with a spoon into either a mixing bowl or the bowl of a standing mixer.
    3.    Add the rest of the ingredients a little at a time and tasted it in between until I liked what I had. I think by the end I had used about 5 tablespoons of syrup, a couple of hearty shakes of cinnamon and I know I used the whole can of coconut milk. (You may need to stir the coconut milk if the fat is laying on the top.)
    4.    Then pour the mixture in your casserole dish and sprinkle the top with cinnamon sugar if you have some. Bake about 20 minutes. You could go longer if you want. Everything is cooked already so you just want to cook this long enough to fluff up and re-heat through.
   

Quick Green Beans

I got this idea from a friend in France who told me she cooked her delicious green beans in chicken bouillon. I typically use the Better Than Bouillon paste you can find in most large grocery stores because it has the best balance of meaty flavor and salt. The exact amounts in this recipe aren't too important, so long as the broth tastes good, because the beans are just taking on the flavors anyway. The same technique should work for fresh green beans; they'll just take longer to cook.

1 can or bottle canned green beans
Chicken, pork, or beef bouillon concentrate
Minced onion and/or garlic
Chili flakes
Pepper

Pour the green beans (along with their liquid) into a saucepan and put on medium to medium high heat. Add bouillon concentrate to taste until the green beans are steeping in a broth that is slightly more concentrated than for a soup. Add onion and/or garlic, pepper, and a small amount of chili flakes for a little zing. Let the beans come to a boil and serve.

Glazed Carrots

This is just an approximation. :)

1-2 lb. carrots (either baby carrots or cut into bite-size pieces)
1-2 T. butter or margarine (maybe a little more)
2-3 T. honey or brown sugar

Put the carrots in a saucepan and cover them with water. Add 1/2-1 tsp. salt to the water and set the carrots to cook over medium heat.

When the carrots are tender when poked with a fork, drain off the water. Add the butter and honey or brown sugar. (If you'd like a little more or less glaze, the proportion of butter and sugar should be about the same. The glaze should not, ideally, be very watery.)