Creole Shrimp with Sweet Potato & Smoked Gouda Grits

I cannot take credit for this delicious recipe, it was borrowed from one of my tried and true cooking sources, Southern Living. This recipe was featured in the October edition of their magazine and I just had to try it. I would have never thought to put sweet potatoes in my grits and now I may never cook them without them again! Delicious! This recipe was quick and easy. Click the link below for the original recipe, see my changes highlighted.

Southern Living Creole Shrimp & Sweet Potato Grits

Ingredients

2 cups hazelnut milk (I used hazelnut milk instead of regular milk)

1 cup uncooked regular grits

1 tablespoon Creole or Cajun seasoning

1.5 lbs large raw shrimp, peeled

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup of onion, chopped

1 tbs olive oil

3/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro  (didn't use, didn't have on hand, was great without)

1 tablespoon lemon zest (didn't have lemon zest, just used a little lemon juice)

2 teaspoons Asian Sriracha hot chili sauce

1 cup cooked, mashed sweet potatoes (equivalent to 2 small sweet potatoes)

1 cup (4 oz.) shredded smoked Gouda cheese

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

 

Directions

-Peel and chop sweet potatoes, boil for about 20 minutes until tender. Mash in a bowl.

-Bring milk and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat; gradually whisk in grits. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes or until thickened.

- Meanwhile, sprinkle Creole seasoning over shrimp. Sauté garlic and onion in olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat about 2 minutes. Add shrimp, and sauté 3 minutes or until shrimp are almost pink. Add green onions, lemon and sriracha, and sauté 3 minutes.

-Stir potatoes and next 4 ingredients into grits. Serve shrimp mixture over sweet potato grits. Enjoy!

Homemade Olive Bread - No Bread Machine Needed!

I have taken in a stray toddler recently, Nick's niece Natalie :) A couple nights a week I pick her up from school and watch her for a few hours. You know what this little princess says to me every time I pick her up? "I am hungry Gabby, can I have some olives?" Olives??! A 4 year old that is addicted to olives, no kidding on the addiction, she eats like 15 a day. She almost breaks out into a song as she is about to put the olive in her mouth, sucking all the salty brine out before eating them.

I have always despised olives, my entire life. That salty bitter taste when you bite into one would make me cringe! I purchased many varieties of olives, just to ensure I don't run out when she is in my presence, the world could potentially end if Aunt Gabby didn't have any olives. I have never seen that side of the sweet little princess but I believe it could be there if the olives are not. After several weeks of making little snack plates with olives, carrots and crackers for Natalie, I started sampling the olives myself, just to ensure they were still as terrible as I remember. Slowly, the more I ate them, the more I started to actually enjoy eating them. This little toddler was turning her ways on me! Then I started buying even more olives, because now I had to feed both of us! I found myself sneaking them in the middle of the night, craving just a salty bitter bite. Her favorite, the black olives kalamata style, are now my favorite too.

One day, by chance, I happened to see a recipe for Olive Bread. I thought to myself, perfect! She will love this! I researched through a few recipes and found two different ones I really liked. I took pieces of each and combined them into my own. I liked the addition of Rosemary in this one and the addition of sugar in this one. I omitted ingredients like molasses and cornmeal that I felt I didn't need nor have on hand. I also added some sauteed onions and garlic which were a great compliment to the bread. The bread was a hit - crispy outside and soft and moist inside. Great flavor!

 

Prep Time: 20 Min
Cook Time: 30 Min
 
Ingredients

- 2 1/2 cups of warm water
- 2 tablespoons of active dry yeast (your bread flour should come with one packet)
- 1/4 cup of onions, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 tbs of olive oil
- 1 tbs of evaporated cane sugar (or white sugar)
- 7 1/2 cups of bread flour (I used Pamela's Gluten Free, but you will need 2 bags for this much)
- 2 tbs of Rosemary
- 1 1/2 cups of pitted olives (I used 1 can of low sodium organic black olives and then 1/4 a cup of briny kalamata style black olives.)

Directions

- In a large mixing bowl, combine water and dry yeast. Allow to stand for a few minutes until milky.
- Meanwhile, sautee onions and garlic with a little olive oil until tender. Add to yeast mix.
- Add olive oil and sugar too
- Add flour, 1 cup at a time until dough is stiffened

 

- Chop olives then add to bowl along with Rosemary

 

- Dough will be sticky, you can continue to sprinkle more flour on it as you knead it
- Knead on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes until well mixed
- Coat a large bowl with olive oil or cooking spray
- Place the dough in the bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Allow to sit and rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes. I placed it in the oven, turned off, to keep it slightly warmer than room temperature.

 

- Once dough has risen in size, remove from bowl and punch down. Cut (don't tear) it into two pieces.
- Form each piece into a round loaf.
- Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray
- Place the loaves on the sheet and allow to rise for another 25 minutes
- Preheat oven to 425 F.
- Bake loaves for 25-30 minutes until golden and hollow when tapped on the bottom.
- Allow to cool for a few minutes, then slice. Eat warm or toast and top with a little butter and chopped olives. Enjoy!

*NOTE* I used the low sodium olives that came in a can because I was worried that the briny ones from a jar might add to much salt to the bread. I had about 1 cup of low sodium olives and than about 8-10 briny kalamata style ones and the bread was perfect. I recommend using a mixture of both.

 

Apple Pecan Macaroni with Smoked Gouda and Fig Sauce

 

Apple Pecan Macaroni with Smoked Gouda and Fig Sauce.

Served with Maple Chicken & Apple Sausage

This is the kind of recipe that I love! Entirely my own, inspired and re-invented from something completely different, something whimsical from my imagination that was absolute creamy savory perfection!

I got the idea for this macaroni after a long weekend in Chicago. I was downtown, across from the John Hancock building, having lunch with a friend at The Oak Tree. By the way, that place is fabulous. I would definitely recommend a stop there for brunch or lunch. I had a delicious and refreshing Cucumber Lime Cooler and for lunch, the sandwich that inspired this entire dish, the Apple & Brie, Havarti & Fig Epicurean Cheese Sandwich. Yum! After our delicious meal we stopped by the bread counter to sample their Artisan Breads and took a couple loaves home. Can you say Raisin Pumpernickle and Onion Foccacia?!

 I had made plenty of baked macaroni with various cheese like havarti, gouda and fontina but never had I thought to add fig or preserves to the dish. So when we got home, that is exactly what I did. I highly recommend this dish, it was creamy, sweet and savory all at the same time. One of my new favorites!

Prep: 15 Min
Cook: 20 Min

Ingredients

- 1/2 lb of Conchiglie Pasta or Shells

- 4 tbs of fig preserves

- 1 large apple, peeled and diced

- 1/4 onion, chopped

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- olive oil

- 3/4 cup Hazelnut Milk (you could substitute regular milk or cream or a combination of both)

- 1 package of Smoked Gouda cheese

- 1/2 package of Sharp Cheddar (you could substitute Havarti or Fontina)

- 1/4 cup of pecans, crushed

- Salt/pepper to taste

- Grated parmesan, topping

-1 package of Chicken Apple Sausages ( I like Al Fresco or Applegate Organics) - OPTIONAL SIDE

- 1 tbs of maple syrup

Directions

- Preheat oven to 350 F
- Grease a medium casserole dish
- Cook pasta according to directions
- Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, saute onion and garlic with a little olive oil, about 5 minutes on medium
- Add salt, pepper, fig preserves and hazelnut milk
- Chop the gouda and cheddar, add to the pan

- Saute on medium low heat until cheese and preserves are melted. Stir periodically

- Add the apple to the pan and continue to stir periodically for about another 3-4 minutes
- Once pasta is cooked, drain and pour in casserole dish
- Pour cheese sauce over top and stir a little to coat all of the noodles
- Top with pecans and parmesan cheese

- Cover with aluminum foil or lid and bake for 15 minutes.
- To create a golden topping, you can broil for 1 minute on high. Just be sure to watch it so you don't burn the top.

- Meanwhile, slice chicken sausages on an angle. In the same saute pan as the cheese sauce, saute sausage with 1 tbs of olive oil and 1 tbs of maple syrup. For about 7 minutes on medium heat, turning occasionally until golden brown.

- Serve sausage with macaroni. Enjoy!

Coconut-Crusted Tempeh with Pineapple Sticky Rice and Mango Chili Cream

 I used to do a lot of fishing several years ago and I would love to cook coconut-crusted snapper fingers with my little grunt catches. I would bread them in some coconut and serve them with a little orange marmalade/horseradish dipping sauce. Yum! I decided to make a Vegetarian/Vegan version using Flaxseed and Soy Tempeh and the result was crunchy, coconut-y goodness!

 

Tempeh is also a great fish substitute because is it doesn't fall apart when you bite into it like the normal snapper fingers would. I used egg for the breading since it holds better but you could easily substitute to make this dish Vegan. And for those of you non-aspiring vegetarians like myself, you could make this recipe with Tilapia or Snapper and it would be just as delish!

 

 

Coconut-Crusted Tempeh with Pineapple Sticky Rice and Mango Chili Cream

  

 

 

Prep Time: 15 Min

Cook Time: 50 Min (Brown Rice takes 50 Min)

 

Ingredients

 

- 1 package of Tempeh, sliced into 1/2 in wide pieces. I used half Flaxseed Tempeh, half Soy Tempeh

 

For Marinade

- 1/4 cup of soy sauce

- 1 lime

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- 2 tsp ginger

 

For Mango Chili Cream

- 1 can of pineapple or 1/2 of a whole pineapple (if you buy canned, be sure to save some for the rice)

- 1 mango, chopped

- 1 plain yogurt cup. I used soy yogurt.

- 3 tbs Thai Sweet Red Chili Sauce (found in ethnic/oriental food aisle at grocery)

 

For Pineapple Sticky Rice

- 1 cup of Sweet Brown Rice (if you can't find sweet rice, regular brown rice will work)

- 1/2 cups of coconut milk

- 1/2 cup of water

- 1 tsp of olive oil

- 1/4 cup of chopped pineapple

 

For Breading

- Coconut. I used dried unsweetened, however sweetened coconut would also be good

- Panko breadcrumbs

- Flour

- 1 Egg. I used egg but you can substitute a mix of flour and water to form a paste to make Vegan

- Salt/Pepper to taste

 

Directions

 

- In a sauce pan, bring the rice, coconut milk, water and oil to a boil. Cover with a tight fitting lid. Once boiling, reduce to low and allow to cook for 50 minutes until tender. If you substitute white rice you should be able to reduce your cooking time down to 20 minutes.

- Slice Tempeh and place in a large mixing bowl. Add the marinade ingredients and then add just enough water to cover the Tempeh. Place in the fridge to marinate while you prep.

 

 

- When the rice is about 20 minutes from completion start the rest of the cooking.

- Make the Mango Chili Cream by combining all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor. Place in a small bowl in the fridge until dinner is ready.

 

 



- Remove the Tempeh from the fridge and drain the marinade. Place Tempeh on paper towels and pat dry.

 



- Setup your breading station with flour on one plate, your egg in a bowl and then the coconut and breadcrumbs combined on another plate. Dip the Tempeh in the flour, then egg, then the coconut/panko mixture.

 

 

- In a large pan, saute the Tempeh in a little olive oil until golden brown, turning at least once. About 5 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and set on paper towels to drain some of the oil.

 

 

 

 

- When the rice is done, add the remaining pineapple and stir.

- Serve the Tempeh over the rice and place the Mango Chili Cream in a small bowl for dipping. I would season with a little salt and pepper. Enjoy!

 

 



Summer Squash Conchiglie (Pasta)

Love Love Love this pasta! It was light and hearty at the same time, creamy and slightly salty from the parmesan cheese and the best part, it was super easy to make! This is a vegetarian version with mascarpone and parmesan cheeses, however, you could easily make it vegan. I would suggest adding a little coconut milk or a couple tablespoons of maple syrup to give the sauce a little sweetness if you are going to remove the cheese. The salty parmesan cheese on top was a definite must so if you are going to do without, sprinkle a little garlic salt on top to help balance the flavors.

 

Summer Squash Conchiglie

  

 

 

 

Prep Time: 10 Min

Cook Time: 40 Min

 

Ingredients

 

- 2 yellow squash, chopped

- 3 zucchini (2 chopped, 1 peeled into ribbons)

- 3 carrots (2 chopped, 1 peeled into ribbons)

- 1/2 onion, chopped

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- 1 cup of vegetable broth

- 3/4 package of Conchiglie (or you can substitute penne or pappardelle)

- 3 tablespoons of mascarpone cheese

- 3/4 cup of parmesan cheese, and additional for topping

- 2 cups of spinach

- 1/4 cup of pumpkin (optional)

- garlic salt

- olive oil

- basil

- salt/pepper to taste

 

Directions

 

- In a large pan, saute the squash, chopped zucchini, chopped carrots, onion, garlic and 3/4 cup of vegetable broth on medium heat for about 15-20 minutes until tender. I added the pumpkin because I had some left in the fridge but it is optional.

 

 

- In a blender, process the vegetable mixture with the remaining 1/4 cup of vegetable broth

- Put vegetable sauce back in large pan and add mascarpone, parmesan cheese and a pinch of basil. Simmer on low.

 

 

- In a pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta according to directions

- In a small pan, saute the carrot and zucchini ribbons with a little olive oil and a dash of garlic salt. Saute for about 5 minutes until almost tender on medium heat.

 

 

- When pasta is almost done, add the spinach to the water to wilt

 

 

- Drain pasta and spinach.

- Serve pasta and spinach with vegetable sauce and top with parmesan cheese. Garnish with vegetable ribbons. Enjoy!

 

 

I highly recommend this parmesan cheese from Whole Foods. It was delicious and salty.

 

Pan Seared Tempeh with Lime, Coconut Milk and Avocado Dressing

I am becoming a Tempeh Aficionado. A few weeks ago I barely knew what it was and now it is one of my favorite things to cook with. Not only is the taste and texture great, I also love how easy it is to whip up a quick meal. I had some leftover Soy Tempeh in the fridge from the Tempeh Bacon I made last week. I sliced it into filets, marinated it with a little lime and soy sauce, pan seared it with some coconut milk and then served it over black beans with an avocado dressing. Delicious and ready in no time at all. I had (or at least I thought I had) a can of black beans in the pantry and I also had two ripe avocados. It turned out, I had some Amy's Organic Black Bean Vegetable Soup not black beans, but it worked out just the same!

 

 

 

Prep Time: 10 Min

Cook Time: 15 Min

 

Ingredients

 

- 1 package of Organic Tempeh (be sure to buy organic because soy is one of the top GMO foods!)

- Lime Juice

- 1/4 cup Soy Sauce

- 1 cup of water

- 2 avocados

- 1/4 cup cider vinegar

- 1 can of coconut milk

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- 1/4 cup of onions, chopped

- 1 can of black beans

- salt/pepper to taste

 

Directions

 

- Slice your Tempeh in half, then slice in half again, cutting lengthwise from the side, so that you have 4 filets about 1/2 inch thick.

- In a bowl or pan, marinate the tempeh with a squeeze of lime juice, soy sauce and water. For about 5 minutes.

- Scoop out the flesh of one avocado into a bowl. Slice the other and set aside for topping.

- In the bowl with avocado, add cider vinegar, a squeeze of lime juice, salt/pepper and 1/4 cup of coconut milk. Mash and then whisk together until you reach a slightly thick dressing consistency. You can also put all ingredients in a blender and puree if you prefer. If the avocado mixture is too thick you can add more coconut milk. Set aside.

- In a small pan, heat up black beans, let simmer on low.

- Meanwhile, in a saute pan, saute garlic and onions with a little olive oil until tender. Add half of the coconut milk and bring to a low boil then reduce.

- Add the tempeh to the pan with the coconut milk. Saute for about ten minutes on medium heat, turning at least once, until slightly golden and coconut milk is reduced.

 

 

- Once tempeh is seared, plate it over black beans and top with the onions, sliced avocado and drizzle with avocado dressing. Enjoy!



 

Chicken and Brie Frittata with Honey Walnuts and Spinach

Tonight I strayed a little from my aspiring vegetarian/vegan diet because I had some leftover hormone-free chicken and brie cheese in the fridge. I made a Grilled Chicken Marsala Pasta the other night and went ahead and grilled the extra chicken for a future use. I didn't want to be wasteful with the half slice of brie cheese I had leftover in my fridge either. More often than not by the time I make use of the cheese I have again, it is already starting to mold. I hate throwing away cheese because it is so pricey to begin with!

I googled "chicken and brie recipes" to see what ideas I could stir up and the first one on the list was from Williams-Sonoma, so you know it's good! I changed several things based on what I had on hand and the end result was a savory and sweet frittata. Yum!

Prep Time: 10 Min

Cook Time: 20 Min

Ingredients

- Olive Oil

- 1/4 onion, chopped

- 1 garlic clove, minced

- 7 eggs, lightly beaten

- 1 cup of cooked chicken (I used grilled but roasted would be good too) optional*

- 1/2 slice of Brie Cheese, cut into pieces

- 1/4 cup almond coconut milk (you could easily substitute any milk here)

- Salt/Pepper to taste

- 1 1/2 cups spinach

- 1/4 cup walnuts

- 2 tbs honey

- Strawberry garnish, optional

- Parmesan, optional topping

*NOTE* The chicken is optional, I actually prefer the frittata without meat because the brie, honey and walnuts are SO good on their own. I did half with chicken and half without for variety.

Directions

- In a deep saute pan, saute garlic and onion on medium heat with a little olive oil until tender about 6 minutes

- Once sauteed, add the spinach to the pan and stir for about 2 minutes until slightly wilted

- In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Add the brie cheese, milk and salt/pepper. Add the spinach and onion mixture.

- In the same saute pan, pour the egg mixture and cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes. Using a rubber spatula to lift the cooked edges and allow the uncooked eggs to flow underneath.

- Meanwhile, in a larger or of same size pan, saute the walnuts with some olive oil and honey on medium heat until toasted. Stir occasionally to toss. Remove and set aside.

- When the eggs are almost set, loosen the edges and underneath a little with a thin spatula. Place the other pan, upside down, over top of it and flip the frittata into it. Continue to cook on the other side on medium heat for about 6 minutes.

- Slice the frittata and serve. Top with walnuts, parmesan, strawberry and drizzle with a little honey. Enjoy!

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I am one of the many that was in love with Panera's Broccoli Cheddar soup until it turned out that yummy, creamy, salty soup they were marketing as Vegetarian wasn't really Vegetarian at all. The day I walked into Panera and looked up at the list of soups and saw that the small "V" was no longer next to my favorite soup, was a sad day. After having lunch at Panera the other day and settling with the good-but-not-as-good Black Bean soup, I decided there must be a way to recreate that yummy, creamy, salty soup without the chicken stock. This is my take on Panera's signature soup and my dinner guests thought it was pretty darn good too!

 

 

Prep Time: 10 Min

Cook Time: 30 Min

 

Ingredients

 

- 1 cup of broccoli soup (I used Imagine Soups)

- 3 cups of vegetable broth

- 1 1/2 cups almond milk (you can substitute cream if you like)

- 1/4 cup flour

- 1 block of raw sharp cheddar cheese

- 2 cups chopped broccoli

- 1/2 cup shredded carrots

- 1/2 cup chopped onion

- 2 tsp nutmeg

- salt/pepper to taste

- 2 tbs butter

- Parmesan (optional topping)

 

Directions

 

- In a sauce pan, saute onions and butter on medium heat for about 5-7 minutes

- In a large pot, on medium heat, whisk together the flour and almond milk. Continue to whisk until smooth about 5 minutes

- Add the vegetable broth and continue to whisk

- Add the broccoli, carrots, sauteed onions, nutmeg, salt and pepper

- Bring to a boil and then reduce and allow to simmer for 20 minutes

- Add the sharp cheddar cheese and simmer for another 10 minutes

- If soup needs additional salt, add some parmesan cheese instead of adding more salt

- Serve and enjoy!

 



Homemade Chocolate Raviolis

Pasta and Chocolate?! End of story!

 

When I found out how easy it would be to take the pasta I have been making, add some cocoa powder and voila! Chocolate pasta! I knew I had to make some. I highly recommend using a pasta attachment on your KitchenAid in order to make this because the dough needs to be very thin.

 

 

 

Prep Time: 45 Min

Cook Time: 10-15 Min

 

Ingredients

 

- 1 1/2 cup flour

- 1/4 cup cocoa powder

- 3 tbs sugar (I used evaporated cane juice)

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 3 eggs

- additional flour for rolling/shaping

- Filling: I used bananas with brown sugar and cinnamon. I also filled some with peanut butter.

- Chocolate sauce: You could just melt chocolate and drizzle. I mixed chocolate with a little coconut milk and shredded coconut and then whisked over low heat on the stove top.

- Powdered sugar

 

Directions

 

- Combine the flour, cocoa, sugar, salt and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Knead and then allow to rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes

- Using your pasta attachment, run the dough through multiple times to get very thin. You can break the dough into 4 small balls to make it easier to run through the machine.

 

 

- Lay the dough on a floured surface and cut out circles or squares to shape raviolis

- Place the filling inside the shapes and top with another

 

 

- Press the edges together with a fork to seal

- When ready, boil in some water with sugar for about 10 minutes until tender

- Top with chocolate sauce and powdered sugar

- If you are saving the ravioli for another day and plan on freezing it, be sure to freeze the pieces individually on a baking sheet before combining them or they will be become mush. I know from experience!

 

 

*NOTE* To make the banana filling, in a small pan, saute 2 bananas sliced with some brown sugar and cinnamon for about 5 minutes until tender. Place in a bowl in the fridge until ready to use.

 

With my leftover dough, I put it through the fettuccine attachment and made some chocolate fettuccine for future use!

 

 

 



Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers with Tempeh Bacon

I stumbled upon this amazing recipe on Pinterest, Sweet Potato Veggie Burgers. These burgers are full of nutritious veggies and fiber and were SO filling! I loved the crispy outside from the panko and the creamy-fall-apart inside from the sweet potatoes. I made a couple changes to the original recipe. I used 2 medium sweet potatoes instead of one large, organic black beans instead of white and I skipped the tahini because I didn't have any on hand. I also decided to skip the buns (and the carbs!) and turned them more into a pattie or crab cake and served them over some homemade broccoli cheddar rice. Yum!

 

I have been experimenting with tempeh lately and saw that Publix sold some Tempeh Bacon. I ALMOST bought some...then I looked at the ingredients on the back and saw apple cider vinegar and maple syrup and decided I would attempt to make it myself. The bacon was crispy and sweet and super easy to make. Save your self (and the poor animals!) some fat and sodium and try tempeh bacon over the traditional.

 

Top the patties with avocado, tempeh bacon and a drizzle of dijon and honey! Delicious!

 

 

 

Prep Time: 60 Min (includes 50 Min baking the sweet potatoes)

Cook Time: 10 Min

 

Ingredients

 

Sweet Potato Black Bean Burgers

- 2 medium/large sweet potatoes

- 2 cans of organic black beans, drained

- 2 tsp maple syrup

- 1 tsp cajun seasoning

- 1/4 cup wheat flour

- 1 egg ( recipe did not include because it is vegan, however it does help hold the patties together)

- panko breadcrumbs

- 1 large avocado, sliced

- dijon mustard

- honey

- buns, lettuce, onion (optional if you are making into actual burgers)

 

Tempeh Bacon

- 1 package of Tempeh (I only used half of the cake,) sliced thin

- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

- 3 tbs maple syrup

- 1 tbs hot sauce

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/4 cup water

- additional maple syrup for flavor

 

*NOTE* If you want to make the Broccoli Cheddar Rice, cook rice according to directions. Substitute 1 cup of water for 1 cup of creamy broccoli soup and add some chopped broccoli. When rice is cooked add 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese.

 

Directions

 

- Preheat oven or toaster oven to 400 F

- Pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork and bake them for about 50 minutes until tender

- Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine the vinegar, syrup, hot sauce, salt and water. Add the tempeh and allow to marinate in the fridge.

 

Tempeh, sliced thin

 

- Scoop the insides of the sweet potatoes into a large mixing bowl. Add the beans, maple syrup, cajun seasoning, flour and egg. Mash together to combine. Batter will be very wet and sticky.

- Shape into patties and coat with panko breadcrumbs

 

 

- Pan fry patties in a small amount of olive or safflower oil. Allow to drain on a paper towel

 

 

- Remove tempeh from marinade and drain on paper towels

- Pan fry tempeh in a small amount of oil and 2 tbs of maple syrup, turning once or twice until browned and crispy. Drain on paper towels

 

 

- Top patties with avocado, dijon mustard, honey and tempeh bacon. Enjoy!



 

 

 This was Nick's contribution :) I think it is a tribute to our dog Remi.