Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

Happy Hump Day!!

So, I am having a little problem. I am starting to get myself psyched up and ready to start the 21 day cleanse this weekend, but instead of weaning off caffeine, sweets and processed foods, that seems to be all I am craving. I think my subconscious is trying to tell me to eat as much of the "bad" stuff as I can before I start the cleanse, but my logical sensible voice is saying that I am really going to regret it when I have my first sugar and caffeine withdrawal!!

Derek is not helping matters. Today he bought me a Cadbury Cream Egg. I love cream eggs. I spied them in the store a few weeks ago and they have been on my mind since, but I have held strong and kept them out of my cart....until today. Derek has good intentions, but really he is becoming my "enabler".

In order to be able to eat my cream egg, I have made a deal with myself. I have to have a healthy dinner first and no other snacking. So, the question is...what am I going to eat that will be satisfying yet very healthy?? I've got it!!

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad w/ Cranberries & Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
2 c sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
1 tsp sea salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp rosemary (I used dried, but I think fresh would be even better)
1/4 c raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 c dried cranberries

Dressing:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp dijon mustard
pinch of pepper
additional pinch of rosemary (if you love it as much as I do)

Mix cubed sweet potatoes, coconut oil, sea salt, garlic and rosemary.

Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 25 - 30 minutes (make sure you flip halfway through). I like my sweet taters dark and crispy, so I left them the entire 30 minutes.

Those look so amazing; why they look good enough to eat .... hehe

Meanwhile, toast your pumpkin seeds. Place them in a dry frying pan over medium heat. Stir constantly for approximately 3 minutes until the seeds are golden brown. Do not let them burn!

Also, you can whip up your dressing while the potatoes are cooking. Add all ingredients and whisk together.

Once the potatoes are cooked, place them in a large bowl and let cool for approximately 10 minutes. Add pumpkin seeds and cranberries.

Toss with dressing and serve.

This salad is really delish!!  I enjoyed it warm, but I think it would also be really good when chilled.

It is pretty and festive and would be a nice side to serve your guests. I think you could really spruce it up and make it look fantastic if you had fresh rosemary for garnish.

Hope you have a wonderful evening ~ I am off to watch Survivor (I am team Rob all the way!!)

Andrea

Note: I drizzled just 1 1/2 tbsp of the dressing over the entire salad. I was afraid it would be too overpowering and take away from the taste of the salad ingredients. Next time I might add a splash of honey to the dressing to mellow out the taste of the vinegar.

Veggie Burger & Sweet Potato Fries

We all have some nights when we are either too busy, too tired or just don't feel like spending alot of time in the kitchen after a long day at work. I had one of those nights recently, so I decided to splurge and treat myself to my favourite ready- made veggie burger. Let me introduce you to the President's Choice Thick & Juicy Portbello Swiss Vegetarian Burger.

Ohhhh Yeahhhh....

I think these burgers are only available to us Canadians, but man are they good! They aren't as low fat & low calorie as I typically like, but once in a while a girl has got to go crazy and let loose...so what if you have to undo the button on your pants after dinner....we'll make it up with a good workout tomorrow right ;-)??

These burgers are great on the barbecue, but since our barbie is covered in 3 feet of snow, I decided to throw it under the broiler - it still tasted great!

When I have a good veggie burger, I don't like to overpower it with all sorts of toppings. I am not very exciting when it comes to topping a burger: I like carmelized onions (doesn't everyone??)...I actually put an entire onion on my burger ... I just couldn't help myself :-) I also like a little mayonaise (you can use your favourite vegan version if you'd like)  and a handful of baby spinach.

Doesn't this burger look amazing ~ I know my mouth's watering  :-)

As a side, I whipped up some baked sweet potato fries. These are so easy to make!

Sweet Potato Fries

serves 1

1 sweet potato

1 tbsp coconut oil, melted (or oil of your choice)

1 tsp of sea salt

Preheat oven to 375. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or non-stick spray.

Chop your sweet potato up into wedges or fries - I was watching Hawaii 5-0 while I did this, so mine are cut a little funky, but they still tasted great.



Add the oil and salt and mix thoroughly.

Place fries onto cookie sheet. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes making sure to flip the fries halfway through. You may find that they take a little longer depending on your oven and how crispy you like the fries to get, so keep an eye on them.

I am a lover of the salt shaker, so I do add more salt once they are cooked ~ it really depends upon your taste ~ personally I think everything tastes better with salt.

If you realy want to get crazy, you could make a larger batch of fries and mix sweet potatoes and regular potatoes - this is quite a hit at my house because it satisfies my sweet tooth and love of sweet potato fries and Derek still gets his normal, "not fancy" taters.  

Voila! An easy and delicious meal without much effort or clean up.

Wishing you all a wonderful Tuesday evening!

Andrea