Black Bean & Sweet Potato Burritos

Christina posted a version of these burritos a year ago but this version involves no slow cooker. Besides, I always like to see variations on recipes, so I thought I'd share my version here, too. I calculated the cost of this meal while we were eating it and I was so pleased to discover that (excepting spices, which I always have on hand) I fed the four of us with plenty of leftovers (2 lunches worth) for $5.50 and that's including good cheddar and canned beans. Plus it's fast... you can't beat that!

Ingredients:
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled & diced (about 3 cups)
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2c black beans cooked (or one can, rinsed)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chili powder
salt to taste

8 flour tortillas, warmed
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar

Directions:
In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, melt butter and saute onions til clear. Add sweet potatoes, garlic, cumin, oregano and chili powder. Cook til sweet potatoes are soft, using apple juice or water to keep them from sticking to pan. When sweet potatoes are done, add beans and salt to taste. Cook til beans are heated through. Serve with warmed tortillas and cheese. You can add sour cream, salsa, avocado and/or cilantro as garnish if you wish! Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Pancakes

These were so good with maple syrup and chopped nuts on top! The kids ate them, too! I put some cinnamon in mine, too, and didn't sift anything.

Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
* 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1 1/4 cups mashed cooked sweet potatoes
* 2 eggs, beaten
* 1 1/2 cups milk
* 1/4 cup butter, melted

Preparation:
Sift dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. Combine remaining ingredients; add to flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Drop by tablespoons onto hot greased griddle or skillet and fry, turning once, until browned on both sides.
Makes about 24 pancakes.

German Pot Roast

We had this Sunday and it quickly became Ava's favorite food! I've never seen her eat like that before! The tender meat and small chunks of potatoes make it very baby-friendly. This is from "Fix-It and Forget It Lightly", which I've been relying on a lot lately. This makes a hearty, satisfying meal that's also pretty healthy. 

Makes 12 servings/Ideal slow-cooker size: 5 quart

2 lbs boneless, lean pork roast (I used a smaller one)

1 tsp. garlic salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

4 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

2 medium-sized onions, sliced

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

14 1/2-oz. can low-sodium tomatoes

1. Place pork roast in slow cooker. (I did not trim the fat off mine. It made the meat juicier and more flavorful. Some larger pieces of fat came off during cooking and I discarded them.)

2. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper.

3. Add remaining ingredients.

4. Cover. Cook on high 4-5 hours or on low 7-8 hours.

Sweet potato corn muffins

The whole vegetables in disguise thing. Which I have to do not only for Maxine, but for Jason. Someone tell me why they won't eat a cooked sweet potato, but they'll gobble up like 4 of these muffins. Anyway! I made these with sweet potato puree, and they turned out great. I've had the same bag of dried dulse for this recipe for 4 years, good thing it never goes bad.
squash and corn muffins - FTWF

Bean & Yam Burritos

I came across this when looking for this week's menu. We made them once before and they were fantastic! Most of it is done in the  slow-cooker.

2 med. yams or sweet potatoes

1 large yellow onion

1 green bell pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large green chile

1 T. olive oil

1 T. chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 c. frozen corn kernels

1 can kidney beans, drained

4 10-inch flour tortillas

1 c. cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese

1. Cut the yams into 1/2 inch cubes. Thinly slice the onion. Stem, seed, and finely chop the bell pepper. Stem, seed, and dice the greed chile. Set aside with the garlic.

2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, and green chile and saute for 3-4 minutes. Stir in the chili powder, cumin, and oregano and cook for 1 minute more.

3. In a slow cooker, layer half the yams, and then top with half each of the onion mixture, corn, and beans. Repeat the layers. Cover and cook on the Low setting until the yams are tender, 5-6 hours.

4. Preheat the oven to 350. Divide the mixture evenly among the tortillas and scatter with the cheese. Fold to enclose the filling and place in a greased baking pan. Cover with foil and bake the burritos for 25-30 minutes. Serve hot.