Chipotle Maple Sweet Potato Burgers

These are my new favorite burgers.

They are absolutely amazing. Perfect texture? Check. Sweet and spicy? Check. Super healthy? Check. I know there are a scrillion-bajillion sweet potato burger recipes out there, however, with buddies like maple, chipotle, pecans, and oats these guys are truly unique. An epic fall flavor combination, if I do say so myself. 

You'll see a departure from my usual photography in future posts. During Alaskan winters it gets dark at about 4 pm. Thus, dusty artificial lights and lamps are summoned from the closet, hiding from the midnight sun of the summer.

It's kind of fun to play around with lighting. I'm not terribly experienced with lights, but luckily Todd is very fluent in these things. He helped me capture the spotlight effect for these photographs. I hope you enjoy the seasonal style! 

“It is better to walk alone, than with a crowd going in the wrong direction.”

— Diane Grant

These perfectly textured vegan, sweet potato burgers have a hint of maple sweetness and a smoky chipotle kick.

Taking advantage of the last bit of sun!

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Chipotle Maple Sweet Potato Burgers

by Katie @ Produce On Parade October-15-2014

These perfectly textured vegan, sweet potato burgers have a hint of maple sweetness and a smoky chipotle kick.

Ingredients

• 2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1lb. 10 oz.), diced small
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced small
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 ½ cups quick cooking oats, dry
• ¼ cup pecans, minced
• 2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
• 2 Tbsp. ground flax seed
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• ½ tsp. chipotle chili powder
• ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
• 3 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 8 hamburger buns

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, add the diced sweet potatoes and cover with water. Add a dash of salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Then, reduce to low and simmer for about 15 minutes until very tender. Drain and set aside for later.In a medium frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium-low. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for about 10 minutes, until the onions are brown and fragrant. In a large bowl, add the oats, through and including the pepper. Whisk well to combine. Add the boiled sweet potatoes and the onion mixture as well as the maple syrup. Using a wooden spoon, mash the sweet potatoes and mix everything together very well. Preheat oven to 400 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Coat your hands with a nonstick cooking spray and form the burger mix into eight large patties. Arrange on the baking sheet in a single layer. Bake at 400 F for about 45 minutes, turning the patties over halfway through. Once done, remove from oven and allow to rest for about 5-10 minutes. This will set the patties. Serve hot, with BBQ sauce! Freeze the leftovers for a quick meal later.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 1 hour Total time: 1 hour 10 mins Yield: 8 burgers

Dutch Word of The Day

Maple --> esdoorn (es-doren)

Good Deed of The Day

Perdue has been forced to remove "humanely raised" labels from it's packaged chicken flesh. "..undercover investigations have shown that Perdue's chickens are raised in a space the size of a sheet of paper, crammed with others so tightly that they suffer broken bones that go untreated, and are placed in sheds that reek of ammonia." Who would support such atrocities? It's really mind-boggling. Read more about it here. 

Sweet Potato & Blueberry Forest Bowl

I can hear my father-in-law laughing right now. Fanciful titles aren't his thing. Dishes should have one word really (spaghetti), two if need be (jelly sandwiches), and only in extreme cases do they ever need three (chicken noodle soup). But definitely not five.

However, I like descriptive recipe titles. 

Whimsical descriptives inject wonder into dishes. I could have titled this dish, Sweet Potato, Blueberry & Kale Bowl...erm...not as fun (and still long). There's greens, nuts, seeds, berries...sounds like a forest forage to me! And so it is. The playful titles stay.

“A man’s mind stretched by a new idea can never go back to its original dimensions.”

— Oliver Wendell Holmes

This is such a refreshing and wholesome meal. I had whipped up a blueberry vinaigrette in a frenzy several days ago for a surprise dinner and I knew I needed to make something to use it up. Our fridge is practically empty, no greens to speak of except for a few stalks of kale so a green salad was out to the question. That's when my idea for this forest bowl popped into my mind! Perfect!

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Sweet Potato & Blueberry Forest Bowl

by Katie @ Produce on Parade August-29-2014

An easy and incredibly healthy dinner. Nuts, seeds, and dried berries adorn sweet potato, quinoa, and kale that's drizzled with a homemade blueberry vinaigrette. NOTES: Feel free to use your favorite greens, nuts, and berries for this. If you don't feel like making the dressing, any fruity vinaigrette will do.

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, dry
• 2 cups water
• 2 large sweet potatoes, diced
• 4 large kale leaves, de-stemmed and torn
• ¼ cup dried blueberries
• 2 Tbsp. hazelnuts, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. pumpkin seeds
• drizzle of homemade (recipe below) or store-bought blueberry vinaigrette
• dash of kosher salt
• dash of ground black pepper

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, bring the quinoa and water to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15-20 minutes. Drain any excess water with the lid and continue to heat over low until all the water has been absorbed. Meanwhile, steam the diced sweet potatoes for about 15 minutes, until fork tender.In a microwave safe bowl, microwave the torn kale for about 1-3 minutes. It should be wilted, but develop a bright green color and still have a bit of chew to it. To serve, divide the warm ingredients evenly into four bowls. Start with a serving of quinoa into a shallow bowl and add a side of a sweet potatoes and kale. Sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. dried blueberries, and 1/2 Tbsp. hazelnuts and pumpkin seeds. Drizzle with the vinaigrette and sprinkle with a dash of salt and pepper.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 30 mins Yield: 4

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Wild Blueberry Vinaigrette

by Katie @ Produce on Parade August-29-2014

A sweet and tart wild blueberry vinaigrette, the perfect compliment to a big green salad.

Ingredients

• ½ cup fresh or frozen wild blueberries
• ½ lemon, juiced
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. agave nectar or maple syrup
• pinch of kosher salt

Instructions

Combine everything in a blender and blend on high for several minutes. Serve over green salad and store in fridge

Details

Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: Total time: 5 mins Yield: about 3/4 cup

German Word of The Day

Forest --> Wald (vald)

Good Deed of The Day

Read this article from The Huffington Post, Grilling For Labor Day? Don't Burn The Planet.

Sweet Potato Enchilada Casserole or Burritos

I've never been a big casserole person, we never really had them growing up. I hear they're kind of a midwestern/southern type-ah thang. Casseroles just aren't big in Alaska I guess. Whenever I think of them, for some reason I think one thing...church. I have no idea why, it's not like I went to any casserole brunches at any churches. We did have one exception however; green chicken chili casserole. It was one of us kids' favorite dishes growing up and was regularly requested for birthday dinners. My dad though, hated it. He's never liked chicken.  Anyways, I thought it was about time to try my hand at a casserole. No chicken though, ick. I'll take sweet potatoes instead, doesn't that sound better? Yes. This casserole is kind of like enchiladas for the lazy cook. I've only made enchiladas a few times but I'm pretty sure they might be one of those dishes that are always better when someone else makes them, you know? Or maybe I'm just an enchilada making failure? Either way, this casserole is the way to go. 

This enchilada casserole is an easy way to bring healthy, comfort food to the table. Feel free to pour a bit of homemade or store-bought enchilada sauce over the top of the casserole. I am strictly against tortilla sogginess, plus I don't' really like enchilada sauce so I used one chipotle chili in Adobo sauce to give this casserole a bit of an enchilada flavor without having to use a salty sauce. 

Sweet Potato Enchilada Casserole or Burritos

Serves 8

Notes: If you go the burrito route, they will be very juicy. Very good, but messy. I prefer to make the casserole but sometimes life calls for a burrito! Feel free to add more chipolte chilis for a spicier dish! 

• Sweet Potatoes: 
• 1 large sweet potato, scrubbed and diced
• drizzling of olive oil
• sprinkle of kosher salt
• dash of ground black pepper
• Filling:
• 1 15 oz. can of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 15 oz. can of sweet corn, drained and rinsed
• 7 oz. diced fire roasted green chilies 
• 1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced (optional)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella or pepper jack vegan cheese
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 vine-ripened tomato, diced (save half for topping)
• Conclusion:
• 6 large flour tortillas
• 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella or pepper jack vegan cheese
• 1 avocado, diced

Preheat oven to 375 F.

On a baking sheet, scatter the sweet potatoes and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and shake to coat. Bake at 375 F for about 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. 

Meanwhile, combine the filling ingredients in a large bowl. When the potatoes are done roasting, add those to the mixture and combine. 

For the Burritos:

Transfer to a casserole dish and bake for 30 minutes. Brown a tortilla over a low flame and then fill with a portion of the sweet potato mixture along with some diced fresh tomato and avocado. Serve hot and careful, it will be juicy!

For the Casserole: 

In a large (10x14) casserole dish coated with a nonstick cooking spray, arrange two tortillas on the bottom. They should overlap and go up the sides of the dish a bit. 

Evenly distribute half the filling mixture on top. Follow with two more tortillas and then the other half of the mixture. Top with two tortillas. 

Bake at 375 F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and scatter with 1/2 cup of vegan cheese.

Turn the oven to broil and adjust the top rack to the highest placement. Put the casserole on the top rack and broil for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Careful to ensure that the tortillas don't burn. 

Remove from the oven and top with half the diced tomato and one diced avocado.

Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes, then cut into eight slices and serve hot. 

Listening to: Priscilla Ahn – Dear Sweetheart

German Word of The Day: Casserole --> Auflauf (pronounced: ouwf-laouwf) 

Good Deed of The Day: Help forgotten Romanian horses. No horse should be forced to pull excessively heavy loads while being beaten, neglected, and abused, only to end up in a slaughterhouse or starve to death. Please support this petition and help the terribly tortured horses in Romania live a better life. Sign this petition, here. 

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