roasted sweet potatoes with bacon and scallions

During the school year, I suck at being healthy. So, during the summer, I try to cleanse my body of all the crap food and nourish it with the good stuff. I've especially been attempting to be as Paleo as possible before my New York vacay in July. I was doing really well but, truthfully, I've FAILEOd a few times this week for social purposes. Oops.

Can you believe I only started eating sweet potatoes about a year ago when I did my first Whole30? Crazy right? White potatoes will always be better in my book but, if it's in the potato family, I'll work with it.  Lately, I've been addicted to this one sweet potato side dish. Since sweet potatoes are Paleo-friendly, I don't even feel guilty that I've already made it twice this week. SO good.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Bacon and Scallions

INGREDIENTS
2.5 lbs sweet potatoes
1 1/2 tsp grated fresh garlic (about 3 cloves)
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp coarse sea salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
3 Tbsp bacon fat (or substitute with extra virgin olive oil)
5 slices cooked bacon, roughly chopped
1/4 cup sliced scallions

DIRECTIONS
1. Cook bacon. You can do this stovetop in a skillet or baked in the oven. Cook the bacon to desired texture (I like mine crispy!). Remove bacon from pan and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate to drain excess fat. Also reserve additional bacon fat from skillet/pan to use. 
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
3. Prepare sweet potatoes. Wash the skin of the sweet potatoes by scrubbing with water. Cut raw sweet potatoes into 1-inch rounds, and then into half or quarter pieces. 
4. Place sweet potatoes, garlic, thyme, rosemary, sea salt, and black pepper into a large mixing bowl with 2 Tbsp of pourable bacon fat or extra virgin olive oil. (If the bacon fat has solidified, you can warm it up in the microwave to get back into liquid form.) Stir everything together until ingredients are well distributed onto sweet potatoes. I give the bowl a few tosses, too.
5. Place the seasoned sweet potatoes onto a foil-lined baking rimmed baking sheet. Bake for about 25 minutes or until sweet potatoes are fork tender.
6. Toss the warm sweet potatoes with 1 Tbsp warm bacon fat or olive oil, bacon, and scallions. 
7. Serve hot. 

loaded sweet potato bites

It's a good thing I have no interest in football, or else I might be upset that my Bay Area team came up short. The Niners did not have a great Super Bowl Sunday, but I sure did. Big surprise, my favorite part about Super Bowl Sunday is making cute bite-sized foods.

Since making these, I've had this carton of sour cream chillin in my fridge. Even though it's not Paleo, I just hate wasting ingredients. After work on Saturday, I made a stop at Trader Joe's. I knew I wanted to make little loaded sweet potato bites. It was a little disappointing to come home realizing I did not have the green onion I thought I had. Worst feeling in the world as I scoured every drawer and shelf of the refrigerator. Oh well, I made it work. Try these out. They are delish!

Loaded Sweet Potato Bites

INGREDIENTS

2 medium sweet potatoes

2 Tbsp olive oil

3/4 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp granulated garlic

1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp chili powder

toppings (optional): 

3 slices crispy bacon, chopped

parsley, chopped (can also use green onion or chives)

sour cream

shredded cheese

whatever you put on your loaded baked potato!

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Thoroughly wash sweet potatoes and dry with a paper towel. Cut off and throw away the ends. Then, slice sweet potatoes into about 1/4" thick pieces.

3. Place sweet potatoes in a medium bowl along with all the other ingredients (except toppings). Mix everything together well with a spoon or your hands-- whatever works for you. Make sure all sweet potato slices are coated well with olive oil and seasoning.

4. In an even layer, spread sweet potatoes out onto the lined baking sheet.

5. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Then, flip all potato slices over. Place back into the oven for about 12 more minutes or until they develop a nice golden "crust" color.

6. Let the sweet potatoes cool slightly first before adding toppings (don't want your sour cream to melt!). Top with whatever you like! If you want to add cheese, I would sprinkle a little bit of shredded cheddar or parmesan on top and pop back into the oven to melt before adding other toppings.

To make this recipe Paleo, you would just omit sour cream as a topping option. Honestly, they would still taste good. I just happened to have sour cream I needed to use, and it also helps all the other toppings to stay on top of the sweet potato. My compromise for using the sour cream was not adding any cheese. Although, I do not recommend skipping out on the crispy bacon. Crispy bacon with the seasoned sweet potato is heavenly. But that's just my personal fatty opinion. I believe everything tastes better with bacon.

egg roll up

I eat eggs almost every morning. In order to keep myself from getting bored of the same looking breakfast, I try to come up with new ways to eat my eggs. This morning I made egg roll ups. They look just like a breakfast burrito or wrap minus the heavy flour/corn vessel. Instead, the egg acts as the "wrap" (and, might I add, holds up well). I like to stuff mine with veggies and bacon for breakfast. But you can use this technique for any type of sandwich wrap, too.

 

Egg Roll Up
Yields about 2

INGREDIENTS
4 eggs
1 small zucchini, cut into lengthwise strips (thinner is better)
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 avocado, sliced
4 strips of bacon, cooked
salt and pepper
olive oil

DIRECTIONS
1. Prepare veggies. On medium high heat, saute red bell pepper in a skillet until tender. Simultaneously, lightly dress zucchini strips with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Place a grill pan on the stovetop and preheat to medium heat. Then, grill the zucchini strips. If they are thin, it will only be a couple minutes on each side. I love the grill marks and it also gives the zucchini great flavor. Set aside zucchini and red bell pepper with bacon and avocado.
2. Prepare egg wrap. In a large, liquid measuring cup, beat eggs. This makes for easy pouring. Then, in a preheated skillet with a little olive oil, pour just enough of the eggs to coat the bottom. (Add more egg for a thicker wrap, but I prefer mine to be on the thinner side) Swirl around for an even layer. Allow to cook for a couple minutes, then flip the egg over to cook other side.
3. Assemble. Set your egg wrap on a flat surface. On top of the egg wrap, layer with the bacon and veggies. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top if you like. Then, tuck everything in and roll it up!

 

These egg roll ups are a fun way to shake up your breakfast, while using the same simple ingredients you might see in an omelet or scramble. Especially when I'm eating Paleo, it's also a nice alternative to lettuce wraps. These are substantial but will also keep you feeling lighter and less guilty as you continue your day!

orange balsamic glazed brussels sprouts with bacon

I personally don't know why people dislike/hate/are revolted by brussels sprouts. I assume it's due to a bad experience. I never ate brussels sprout anything growing up, so for a long time I never knew how they tasted or what to do with them. Then, I had a life-changing brussels sprout moment at Motorino in New York a few years ago. Brussels sprout and pancetta pizza.. holy goodness. That pizza is so scrumptious that it hurts to be 3,000 miles away. I literally want to cuddle with that pizza. Okay, I'll keep it G-rated and stop now. It's not even possible to recreate the depth of flavor developed by brussels sprouts roasted in a brick oven. So if you are ever in the East Village, stop by Motorino and know that I am jealous. I don't really miss pizza much, but that pizza.. it doesn't make me feel even a smidge guilty for binging on gluten and cheese.

Okay moving on, back to brussels sprouts. I don't mind them just oven-roasted with EVOO, salt and pepper. But today, I was feeling adventurous and decided to add a twist.

Orange Balsamic Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. brussels sprouts
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp + 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp honey
1 1/2 tsp fresh-squeezed orange juice
2 slices of cooked thick-cut bacon, crispy
orange zest for sprinkling (optional)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Prepare brussels sprouts. For each brussels sprout, cut off and throw away the brown end. Then, cut each brussels sprout lengthwise into thirds. Don't worry about this being perfect. Place onto a rimmed baking sheet. 
3. Add the EVOO, salt and pepper to the brussels sprouts. Gently toss until the brussels sprouts are evenly dressed.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Then, stir the mixture around. Bake for an additional 10 minutes until they are tender and the leaves have browned.
5. Prepare the orange balsamic glaze. This can be done while your brussels sprouts are baking. In a frying pan on medium heat, add the balsamic vinegar, honey, and orange juice. Allow the mixture to cook for about 5 minutes until it looks like it is reduced to about half the amount. It does not look like much but it will be just enough for the shrunken brussels sprouts.
6. Add brussels sprouts to the glaze in the frying pan. Carefully stir together until brussels spouts are lightly coated. 
7. Turn off heat and pour into a separate bowl. Roughly chop or crumble the crispy bacon and use it to top the brussels sprouts. Add a sprinkle of orange zest if desired.
8. Serve, eat, enjoy!

I paired my brussels sprouts with a salmon fillet. I only added lemon pepper to the skin and cooked it in the same frying pan with some EVOO. I've been pan-frying my salmon lately instead of baking it in the oven, mostly because I've been dealing with skinned salmon. I find that by cooking it in the pan, I can get the skin really nice and crispy and it somehow also turns out perfectly moist every time. If I did have a skinless fillet, I would then prefer baking it in a foil packet with herbs, fresh lemon, onion slices, and cherry tomatoes. But that sounds like another recipe for another day..