This Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash is a full meal – flavorful, balanced, and nutritious. A family favorite!
This Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash is a great family favorite – all the popularity of a great comfort food yet it’s packed with nutrition! And it has just the right amount of heat with a hint of Southwestern flair from the green chiles and cumin. It’s very easy to make. Not quick, but definitely easy and failproof.
For this version, I used a mild pork sausage that comes in a chub (Tennessee Pride), and I used 505 Green Chiles (so convenient out of the jar). So this was mild sausage and hot green chiles – you can get creative with the combination. Maybe use hot sausage and mild green chiles, or adjust the heat however you want. Jalapenos work, too, but I particularly like the green chile flavor; you might not notice it here with all the ingredients, but there still is a subtle difference.
This recipe makes a robust meal for four, but you can also store leftovers to heat up later (except for the egg….). To make it for the whole family, you need a big skillet. The egg on top is optional, of course – you need to add some water and steam it to get that over easy result. Or time it in the cooking cycle just right. All in all, this is a pretty bombproof recipe that you can’t screw up! Try it when you have a special family get together. Hope you like it!
Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash is a full meal, especially when you top it with an egg – packed with nutrition and flavor
1 large sweet potato, peeled & diced into ½-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
½ cup chopped fresh parsley
½ cup diced green chiles (I used 505)
½ teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper, to taste
4 eggs, optional
1 green onion, sliced
Instructions
Heat a large saute pan on medium heat. Add the sausage and lightly brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove the sausage to a small bowl.
Add the diced onion and bell pepper to the pan and saute for one minute to soften.
Add the diced sweet potato and spices to the pan. Cover and cook the sweet potato for 10-12 minutes, stirring often and adding a few tablespoons water as needed to avoid sticking. Place a lid on the pan for the last 5 minutes to soften the sweet potato until fork tender.
Add the sausage back into the pan along with the parsley and green chiles and stir for an additional 1-2 minutes or until the parsley is wilted.
Use a spatula to create 4 wells in the hash. Crack an egg into each well and cook, covered, until the eggs are done to your liking. You can add a lid to the pan and a few tablespoons of water (to help steam them) to cook the eggs faster.
Remove the breakfast hash from the heat. Season with salt and pepper and top with sliced green onion. Serve immediately.
Simple Cilantro Jalapeño Sauce is quick and easy to make and is a wonderful accent on many dishes from eggs to Mexican to meats, soups, and casseroles. A bit of heat & distinctive flavor.
This Simple Cilantro Jalapeño Sauce was inspired by a visit to a cute little breakfast place in Sacramento called Caffe Latte. I had a basic ham and cheese omelet that was topped with a simple sauce that added a very nice, distinctive flavor … so I asked the owner what was in it. With only 3 ingredients it was a piece of cake to create my own version of it.
It has the distinctive flavor of cilantro and some heat, but not too much. It’s so easy you can tweak it to be hotter or milder or very cilantro-y if you want. I now have a tub of it in the fridge. The flavors do blend a bit more as they sit, and this will keep well in the fridge for several weeks.
Personally, I would also serve this on just about any Mexican dish, like tacos, enchiladas, tostadas, taco salads, fajitas, whatever. It sooo easy and very versatile. Hope you like it!
Grand Marnier Jalapeno Cranberry Sauce is a spicy, tart, flavorful condiment – a great complement to ham, turkey, and appetizers
Grand Marnier Jalapeño Cranberry Sauce makes a great complement to that special holiday feast … or it’s wonderful in appetizers. In the photo, we have a very simple and popular treat – Ritz crackers smeared with cream cheese, a dollop of Grand Marnier Jalapeño Cranberry Sauce, and topped with a thin slice of fresh jalapeño. They disappear very quickly at a party.
This recipe is very simple and quick to make. It uses fresh cranberries. When you boil them with sugar and water and then stir, it turns into cranberry sauce, which is actually a jam. Cranberries naturally contain pectin, so it thickens as it cools.
Jalapeños add a nice heat that makes it stand out and the Grand Marnier adds an interesting complexity and sweetness to the flavor. Cointreau is also very good in this. With respect to heat, as you cook jalapeños, the capsaicin dissipates and simmering them for 15-20 minutes will cause loss of about half the capsaicin (and hence reduces heat by about half). So I specify adding them for just the last 5 minutes of cooking. You can add them earlier, but be aware that heat level will be reduced.
About buying jalapeños – they vary dramatically in size. I used a medium size, which weighs about 1 ounce per jalapeño. The largest tend to be as much as 3 ounces. The smallest might be 1/2 ounce. You might want to adjust the heat by adding more diced jalapeño toward the end of cooking.
So you gotta try this! And it’s great for experimenting in various appetizers. Hope you enjoy it!
In a large saucepan combine orange juice, water, salt, sugars, and orange zest. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and add the cranberries.
Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring periodically (cranberries will pop while cooking). Stir in jalapeños and simmer on lowest heat 5 more minutes, stirring once or twice. Cranberries will break down, turning mixture into jam.
Remove from heat and cool to room temperature; the sauce will thicken as it cools. Stir in the Grand Marnier; adjust amount to taste if desired.
Sloppy Joses is basically an easy, very yummy seasoned meat mixture cooked up in a skillet with a bit of sauce that you can serve on a bun, in a pita, in a quesadilla, whatever!
Sloppy Jose is essentially a very yummy Southwestern version of Sloppy Joes, but the main recipe here is the seasoned meat mixture. This one is exceptionally easy to make and is a guaranteed hit with the whole gang. I took this one to a party last night and it got rave reviews.
My plans on how to serve this morphed and then morphed again after I took this photo. Why? Very simply, ease of serving and eating at a party. I was planning to make these classic Sloppy Joe style, namely just served hot on a bun with shredded cheese. That’s what you see in the picture. I was making mini-versions using dinner rolls (like in the photo). The rolls were too fat which made them hard to eat. Sooooo…. after cutting them in half (like hamburger buns), I squashed them so they’re easier to eat. Then I toasted the buns (in a skillet with a coating of oil) and assembled them. It worked pretty well, but we still had a problem with meat falling out when we ate it. It’s harder to keep them together with mini-buns; but actually it’s not that easy with full-sized buns either.
Next attempt was using mini-pitas. You just cut them in half and put the hot meat mixture and shredded cheese in each half-pita. Works great, much easier for a party.
My third attempt is my favorite and it’s how I served them at the party. I made them into quesadillas with a quesadilla maker. I just use 8-inch tortillas, take a flexible cutting board and cut them with a pizza cutter. I can whip out piping hot quesadillas in no time flat. I use a layer of shredded cheese, a thick layer of meat mixture (1/4 to 1/2 inch thick) and another layer of cheese. I cook them until tortilla is starting to brown and cheese is melting. Yum! Smaller tortillas produce smaller wedges that are easier to serve as appetizers. Plus it’s easy to take quesadilla makers with me to a party and serve them hot and made fresh.
This was a huge hit at the party. Not only is it easy to serve and quick to make – they are the perfect size and easy to eat. The taste is exceptional. A few people said they’d never had quesadillas like this. Bottom line – you gotta try it!
Note that in the recipe I specified that I used Johnsonville chorizo. They make very good chorizo, and I found that various brands can be hit or miss. I also specified that I used Cacique salsa verde. Nowadays I find that there are many exceptional brands of salsa verde – so feel free to use whatever salsa you like, and even whatever heat you like. This recipe is hard to mess up, so enjoy!
Separate the beef and chorizo into chunks and place in a large skillet with the salsa verde. Use a large spoon or fork to break the meat into large crumbles and blend them together while browning.
When fully browned, stir in the ketchup and pepper.
Stir in diced green chiles to taste, if desired.
Serve on buns, pitas, or cook into quesadillas with shredded cheese.
Curried Turkey Soup is the ideal dish for using leftover Thanksgiving turkey – fairly easy to make, works great with broth from the turkey carcass, and result is fabulous!
This Curried Turkey Soup has already become one of my favorites, especially when it comes to using leftover Thanksgiving turkey. It’s no-fail, pretty easy, and the taste is really special. Plus it’s great for using the little bits and pieces of dark turkey meat from that mostly demolished turkey carcass. I expect it will also freeze well, but I’m pretty sure it won’t last long enough to have anything to freeze.
In this case, I made the turkey broth myself from the carcass – just putting it in 6 qt slow cooker with 8 cups water & cooking it on low for 8 hours overnight. Plus I added 2 cups each of finely chopped (via food processor) onion, celery, and carrot (mirepoix). I also add a few tablespoons of chicken bouillon. I ended up with a really flavorful broth. So now I have leftover turkey broth, leftover mirepoix, and leftover turkey. That should be good for 3 or 4 more recipes!
Curry is a favorite for me. I love all kinds of curry – Indian, Thai, whatever. This one is straightforward and easy. You might want to add water if you like it more liquid. You might also tweak the sour cream for more richness, green chiles for more heat, and salt or pepper. This is really a very forgiving recipe.
I am going to stash it in the fridge for a day and possibly freeze it. But I expect it will disappear by then. This recipe has already been filed among my favorites . I hope you try it and enjoy it as much as I did!
Melt butter on medium high heat in a large (6 to 8 quart) thick-bottomed pot. Add the onions, celery, carrots and sweet potatoes. Lower the heat and cook until softened, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Add the curry powder and cook for a minute or two more.
Add the bay leaves and stock, increase the heat to high and bring the stock to a simmer:
Lower the heat to maintain a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the chopped apples, salt, and pepper. Simmer for 10 more minutes
Add the chopped cooked turkey and green chiles to the soup. Return to a simmer and stir in the sour cream:
Slow Cooker Creamed Corn takes 5 minutes prep and is killer good, everybody loves it and can’t get enough of it – real comfort food
Slow Cooker Hatch Creamed Corn is a fabulous, simple side dish for Thanksgiving. It takes 5 minutes prep and is super yummy. Plus it’s just as easy to make a double batch, and if you’re serving more than 6 people you definitely want to double it. It keeps well and is good as a leftover, it’s ideal for a big family get together or pot luck.
If you’re having lots of people over, make a big batch of this creamed corn and just keep most of it in the slow cooker on warm. Note that it takes the same amount of time to make a double or triple batch as it does for a single batch.
Cream Cheese White Chicken Chili is very rich, creamy, and full of flavor with some heat. It thickens as it rests after cooking. Very popular!
This Cream Cheese White Chicken Chili is killer – rich, creamy and bursting with flavor and moderate heat. It’s addictive … hard to stop chowing down on this! It is also a very easy recipe and makes a good sized batch -perfect for a party.
Four cups of chicken stock sounds like a lot, and while it’s cooking there’s more than enough liquid – much more than you see in the photo. But this keeps and freezes very well, and I discovered that when you store it in the fridge the ingredients blend more and it naturally thickens. The photo is what it looked like the next day after spending the night in the fridge. I actually liked it better the next day.
The white cheddar cheese may not be noticeable because the flavor is already robust, but I do think it adds to the already special character. In the photo, you can see side dishes of fresh cilantro, shredded white cheddar, and the additional half cup of diced green chiles for garnish. These add a lot, not just for appearance, but also by letting you tailor how cheesy it is or how much green chile heat you want. This is already a memorable dish, but being able to fix it up yourself makes it more fun.
All in all, this one’s a real keeper – I hope you all try this and get lots of mileage out of it!
Cabbage with Bacon & Green Chiles is really easy to make, nutritious, and very flavorful and satisfying. A great combination & balance of flavors.
This Cabbage with Bacon & Green Chiles is possibly my very favorite cabbage dish – after I made this I had it as my entire meal a couple times. It just has a great, gotta have more flavor to it. Plus it’s so simple to make.
It only has 5 main ingredients, but each one is essential and together they make a complete robust dish. I’ve published some other cabbages dishes, mainly with Southwestern seasonings and flavor. There are no seasonings beyond salt and pepper in this, so the green chiles just add another dimension and heat level to the cabbage and bacon flavor. Could you make this same dish with sausage instead of bacon? Probably … I often cook with Italian sausage, the kind that comes in a chub. That would work very well in this dish.
This makes a great side dish for just about anything and is quick and easy to make. Hope you enjoy it!
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar plus additional to taste
Instructions
Cut the cabbage in half through its core. Place the cut-side down on your cutting board, then slice it as thinly as possible into fine ribbons. Discard the core.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the bacon until cooked but not quite crisp. Remove and set aside on a plate to drain. Drain off all but 1-2 tbsp bacon fat.
Add olive oil and cabbage, salt, and pepper. Sauté for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is tender and begins to brown. You can cover it and let it cook over medium heat for a couple minutes at a time. You want to get some browned, caramelized edges to develop the flavor.
While cabbage is cooking, chop bacon into ¼" to ½" pieces.
Add the green chiles, bacon, and vinegar and sauté another minute or two, stirring.
Remove from heat, add salt, pepper, and vinegar to taste as needed and serve.
Jalapeño Popper Mummies are spicy, tasty, a blast to make, incredibly cute … and great for Halloween parties. Guaranteed to be a hit!
I took these Jalapeño Popper Mummies to a party this week, and they were a real hit! Obviously, they’ve got some significant heat with the fresh jalapeños, and the cream cheese filling has a nice balance of flavors. The crescent rolls not only make the mummy wrapping, but also add the right flavor and texture touch to make this an awesome party appetizer.
This is a great project for kids – they are so much fun to make. But here’s a warning: if you’re cutting and handling the jalapeños with your bare hands, the capsaicin in them will cause a burning sensation … and if you touch your eyes it can be very painful. Washing your hands with soap is not enough to get rid of the capsaicin; washing reduces it but it’s actually absorbed into your pores. Soaking hands in milk helps as the casein in milk helps neutralize the chile oils. It still takes an hour or so for the burning to go away. The best way to avoid the burning sensation is to wear plastic or rubber disposable gloves (available at Costco or Walgreens). If kids are making these, an adult should cut the jalapeños and remove the seeds and ribs.
So where do you get these candy eyeballs? I bought mine at Walmart in their Halloween section in groceries.
All in all, this is fun, easy and tasty. And these little Jalapeño Popper Mummies are so dang cute! You gotta try them!
10 jalapeños, sliced in half lengthwise, seeds removed
12 oz Pillsbury crescent rolls
1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 Tbsp of water (for egg wash)
40 small candy eyeballs or sliced olives
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a large baking tray with foil and lightly spray with cooking spray.
Slice the jalapeños lengthwise and remove the seeds. Remove the pith/ribs of the jalapenos.
Add the cream cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper to a large bowl and stir to combine.
Spoon the cheese mixture into the jalapeño halves.
Unroll the crescent rolls. Divide them into 4 rectangles; you will need to push together 2 triangles, sealing them at the perforations. You'll end up with 4 rectangles total. Slice each rectangle lengthwise into 10 strips.
Wrap each cheese-stuffed jalapeño half with 2 strips of dough. Leave a gap near the stem for where the eyes will be.
Arrange the dough-wrapped, cheese-stuffed jalapeno halves on the prepared baking tray. Lightly brush the dough with egg wash.
Bake until they’re golden, about 12-14 minutes.
As soon as they’re out of the oven, carefully press 2 candy eyeballs into each mummy. Or, use black olive slices.
Spicy Butternut Squash Soup is creamy & flavorful with a moderate Southwestern flair from green chiles and cumin. Nutritious and satisfying!
This is the season for winter squash, and this recipe makes a vegan version that is satisfying enough to be a main dish. This balances a moderate amount of green chiles, salsa, coconut cream and spices with a whole lotta butternut squash.
I also tried adding balsamic vinegar (1 tbsp), which adds a more complex flavor – I do recommend it but it does change the character of the dish, so I chose to publish it without. It did make a good variation, so you might want to try it. The most time consuming part of this recipe is peeling & cutting up the butternut squash. It’s simple to make.
I chose to use Big Jim chiles – a medium heat. It definitely has chile heat but I only used a half cup to keep it noticeable without letting the heat dominate. Note I chose a mild tomato salsa. If anyone in your family can’t take too much heat, start with less green chile in the blender and add to taste.
It’s great having a quart of this sitting in the fridge – it makes a great lunch that just takes pouring into a bowl and popping in the microwave. Hope you like this one!
Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, salt, and several grinds of fresh pepper and sauté until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the squash and cook until it begins to soften, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes.
Add the garlic, sage, rosemary, and ginger. Stir and cook 30 seconds to 1 minute, until fragrant, then add the broth. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until the squash is tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in chiles, salsa, and coconut milk.
Let cool slightly and pour the soup into a blender, working in batches if necessary, and blend until smooth. If desired, add more chiles and/or coconut cream. Season to taste and serve with parsley, pepitas, and crusty bread.
