Savory Sweet Potato Mash, Gluten-free, Dairy-free

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I’m not gonna lie, I don’t much care for sweet potatoes.
I know, I know, everyone has told me I should eat them because they are good for me, but my experience with them has been cloyingly sweet, or chili-pepper hot, deep-fried with heavy dipping sauces, neither are my favorite.
To be honest, once in awhile I’ll bake one and stuff it with chorizo, butter, cotija and cilantro, but with the dairy-intolerant in the crowd I have to save that option for days they are not visiting.

It was family dinner nite and I was racking my brain on what to do with my 6 Jersey Sweets on hand. (They are the ONLY ‘sweet’ potato I tolerate, primarily because they are not that sweet.)
As I rolled things around the savory/dairy-free conundrum in my head, it dawned on me: instead of butter (or fake butters) what if I used an infused oil instead?

Ah HA! (pat myself on the back!)

This is what I came up with: Herbs de Provence & garlic scented, sage infused olive oil (a good tasting one), along with bacon, chives and garnished with parsley. For those who feel the need to ‘brighten’ up the flavors you could add a squeeze of lime, but I LOVED the way they turned out. So did the rest of the family!

***Note: I do not recommend any other ‘sweet’ potato for this recipe. Jersey Sweets (they are light brown in color and can vary in shape and size) are ideal because of their lower sugar content and earthy flavor.

Savory Sweet Potato Mash, Gluten-free Dairy-free
(serves 6)

6 medium sized Jersey Sweet Potatoes (approx 6-8 inches long), peeled and cut into equal sized chunks
2 cloves Garlic, peeled & whole
1 generous palmful of Herbs de Provence
1/3 C Olive Oil, good tasting-like an EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
Sage, leaves from 2 sprigs
2 Green Chives, white & light green part only
6 slices Bacon, cooked and crumbled, 1-2 slices reserved for garnish
Parsley, minced for garnish
Kosher Salt & Pepper

Peel and chunk the potatoes, adding them to a pot of cold water to cover by a couple of inches. Add the garlic cloves and Herbs de Provence, and a good generous palmful of kosher salt  then bring to a simmer. Cook potatoes until a fork can easily pierce them.

While the potatoes are cooking, in a small saute pan add the oil and sage leaves. Turn on low heat and allow to come to a simmer.  Simmer the leaves (it looks like they are frying) for a minute. You are aiming to get them to release their oils, not brown them, but they will change color and texture.
Turn off heat and let leaves continue to perfume the oil while the potatoes cook. Reserve a generous tablespoon or two of the oil for garnish.

When the potatoes are tender, drain.
Put hot potatoes (including the boiled garlic cloves) back into the pot on the – now turned off but still hot – burner to let the excess water in the potatoes steam off and dry out a bit.
Using a potato masher or a fork, mash the potatoes and garlic in the still hot pot. You really want to render some of that excess water out. You can turn the burner on very very low for a few minutes to assist, adding some of the sage infused olive oil to keep from sticking.
Add 3/4 of the olive oil to the potatoes, reserving some to spoon over the top at serving.
Mix in the chives, bacon and stir to combine.

Pile potatoes into a warmed bowl, garnish with bacon bits, parsley and drizzle the extra oil over the top.

I hope you enjoy this as much as my family did, its a real keeper! You could add a DF/Vegan cheese if you wanted, or change up the herb to infuse in the olive oil.
Personally, I think they were perfect the way they were, and paired extremely well with a roasted pork tenderloin but they will go well with roasted chicken or steak.
If you are vegan or vegetarian, this would work without the bacon.

ENJOY and let me know what you think!
(Check out the photo below, glistening with that drizzled sage-y flavorful olive oil!!)

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Delish Dairy Free Half-n-Half

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Ripple is non-dairy product that came out not long ago.
When my daughter was for sure diagnosed dairy intolerant, we were thinking she might have nut issues also. Other than soy, coconut and rice, there were few options. Even fewer she was crazy about consuming. I wasn’t crazy about having my girls consuming large amounts of soy. Soy mimics estrogen and I have no desire to mess around with natural hormone levels. So that limits the amount of soy we choose to consume. My daughter doesn’t much care for coconut milk, rice milk is watery, and oat milk is oddly sweet. Fine for cereal, not great for savory applications.

I then noticed Ripple appear on my local grocery refrigerator shelf. This is a plant based ‘milk’ that is extremely good and very creamy, mimicking whole fat dairy milk. (FYI: their chocolate milk is delish)

Being aware of (finally) a good tasting milk brand that fit all the parameters, helped me to notice when they released a Half n Half.
Finally.
I’ve struggled with the texture of dishes that require the richer and thicker taste/texture of a cream. You know, like a good french toast, Christmas quiche, and really amazing (GF) bread puddings.  When it comes to replicating half and half, this comes pretty dang close. In fact, with the exception of uses that are exclusive to cream, this is a bang up excellent substitute.

I can tell you that there are many non-dairy creamers out there that are quite suitable for coffee and such, but they are all have a sweet note to them. Not a natural ‘sweet’ cream note, but a ‘sweet creamer’ note. Even the ones not labeled as ‘sweet’ have a sweet taste to them. One Christmas, I thought I was doing my daughters a favor by making a quiche with a traditional non-dairy creamer that claimed to be just ‘creamer’. Trust me, it was not good. The girls graciously ate it, but an oddly sweet ‘ham quiche’ was not what they were expecting for Christmas brunch.

Enter: Ripple Half-n-Half. They have 2 formulas as of today. Vanilla and plain.
I love this stuff.
Seriously…I’m using it every weekend!
I use it to make my GF/DF christmas quiche, french toast, egg bakes (both savory AND sweet), pancake mixes, and more. I adjust which one to use based on the application. French toast? Vanilla. Quiche? Plain. Savory Egg Bake? Plain. Pancakes? Vanilla!
My new sunday morning default is an egg bake I’ve prepped the night before, ready to bake off when we get home from church! Oh…this stuff has changed my life!

This product is amazing. I’m constantly encouraged by the great products that keep coming out to appeal to the dietary demands we have.
Whether you are vegan or dairy intolerant, the market is driving some great innovations in products, and this is one.
Love it.
And I highly recommend it if you can find it.

Note: when mixed in coffee as creamer substitute, there appears to be some sort of a strange reaction that causes the solids to precipitate out of the milk. We notice a slightly gritty sludge at the bottom of the mug. The drink tastes perfectly fine, but be aware of that small drawback. My daughters have only noticed it happening with coffee. Not sure if it happens with other hot drinks.

 

 

Perfectly ‘Creamy’ Perfect Dairy Free, Gluten Free Pea Salad

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My daughter and I recently attended an IF Table Event. If you have never heard of IF, you are not alone. I hadn’t either. Well, correction, I had HEARD of it, I’d just never thought of going. My daughter however, wanted to go and it was a perfect opportunity to not only do something together, but do it together in faith. IF Table is where women gather to share food, fellowship and faith. An introductory story or theme sets the stage, with questions posed for the group to share personal perspective on. It may sound corny but it can actually be quite cool. If (yes, a little pun intended) you have the opportunity to attend one, I recommend it.

With that ‘table set’ (yes, I did it again, LOL) I wanted to bring a couple of dishes that my daughter could eat, if there was nothing else available. (Watch for my super simple asian glass noodle shrimp salad recipe to be posted next)
I decided, with the blush of spring finally upon us, to make a perfectly creamy pea salad w/o the dairy. This was such a hit with the ladies, I’m sharing it here. I’m really glad I chose this because surprisingly, in the group of 18 women, sitting at my table were 2 others who were not only gluten free, but dairy free also! What are the odds? Well, there are no coincidences in the life of a christian, so there you go!
This salad is a snap (I just cant seem to get enough of wordplays!) to put together, and is easy to make to feed a crowd, or just your family. (If its just 1 or 2 of you, make just 1 bag of peas and adjust the other ingredients to taste)
Its also flexible. If you have fresh basil, parsley or even cilantro on hand, use that. If you want to make it more hearty, add a chopped hard boiled egg, ham or bacon. Fresh farmers market tomato, diced, would be yummy too.
Since we are flush into spring greens here in MN, this is a great way to take advantage of all the fresh produce, and get your healthy veggies in!
Enjoy!

Perfectly Creamy Pea Salad (dairy free & gluten free)

*Serves 4 generously as a side
*double this to make for a potluck or larger gathering.

2 bags Stringless SugarSnap Peas (or approx 1 lb total)
1 medium shallot (about 1.5 tsp) diced fine
1/4 c *Silk Plain Almond Yogurt (see notes below)
1 tbsp Mayonaise
2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
8-10 Leaves fresh Mint, chopped fine (I julienned)
1/2 Lemon, zested and juiced.
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a 4qt saucepan, set 2 quarts of water on the stove to boil. Prepare an ice bath: large bowl with ice and a small amount of water next to the stove.
Salt the boiling water, and add 1 bag at a time to the water. Allow to cook 1-2 minutes, just long enough to set the color. You are not cooking, but merely blanching the peas. They will retain their textural crunchiness, but take on a vivid green color.
Immediately remove, using a spider ladle (see example here) and dump the peas into the ice water bath to stop the cooking. Repeat with the second bag of peas.
Remove the peas to a dry, clean tea towel and pat dry.
In a medium bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients, and then toss with the peas.
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Transfer to decorative serving container if desired. (I prefer lightweight plastic when I take to potlucks. Its easier to carry something light.

Note:
Because you shock the peas in ice cold water, this dish is ready to serve right away, awfully convenient when the opportunity to a last minute potluck invitation arises!
*I just started using DF plain yogurts. I know there are a growing number of brands of plain yogurts now on the market, just be sure there is no added sugar. You do not have to use Silk brand, that is what I used.