Roasted Red & Sweet Potatoes with Onion

The chilly air has arrived and i'm craving warm, earthy comfort food.  I love roasting potatoes, especially in the fall and winter, because it's so simple, yet incredibly comforting.  Roasting in the oven helps the potatoes get those brown, crispy edges we all love, and brings out the natural sweetness in the onion.  These potatoes are the perfect accompaniment to any fall or wintry entree, and are actually perfect for brunch too.  I'm always making roasted red potatoes and onions, but in honor of fall I thought i'd add in a sweet potato for good measure, a whole new level! You can always mix it up by adding different types of onions or potatoes, carrots, mushrooms or your favorite veggies.

Ingredients: (serves 4)
* 1 large sweet potato, peeled
* 1 red onion, peeled
* 5 medium to large red potatoes
* 1/4. c. olive oil
* 1 tbsp. herbs de provence (a blend of rosemary, thyme, and other goodness)
* Salt/Pepper
Preheat oven to 425.  Roughly chop the sweet potato, onion, and red potatoes into chunks.  Arrange in a casserole dish and drizzle with olive oil (start with half the olive oil and add as needed to evenly coat all potatoes).  Season with herbs de provence, salt, and pepper.  Transfer to oven and cook for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes or so.  Enjoy!

Sugared Pecans

I love Sundays when there's nothing on the agenda.  Today I was able to sleep in, catch up on the DVR, and do some leisurely cooking- the best kind of cooking!

For some reason, i've got Christmas time on my mind today (I blame the Pottery Barn catalogue) and I wanted to start brainstorming some homemade gifts.  I keep pecans in the freezer and they last for ages, so I already had all the ingredients on hand for sugared pecans.  I've made these before, but today I switched up a few ingredients and they turned out better than ever.  These pecans are sweet, a little bit chewy, and best of all- very easy to make in large batches.

Ingredients:
* 1 c. pecan halves
* 1 c. sugar
* 1/2 c. light brown sugar, lightly packed
* 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
* 1/2 tsp. salt
* 2 egg whites

Preheat oven to 250.  Grease a cookie sheet, set aside (or use cooking spray).  Combine sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.  Place egg whites in a separate bowl and add two tbs. water.  Whisk egg whites until they're frothy, then add pecans (work in batches if necessary).  Remove the pecans with a slotted spoon and add to the sugar mixture, tossing well to coat.  Transfer the pecans to the cookie sheet and bake for 40 minutes until crunchy, stirring every 10 or 15 minutes.  Enjoy!

Asian Sticky Wings

Mike can (sadly) attest to the fact that I am not a football fan.  I've tried to get in to the sport, and also tried to be better at pretending I like it, but somehow I still don't get it.  Fortunately, if there's one thing I love about getting together with friends to watch football (I mean, who am I to be antisocial), it's the food. I love wings, dips, chips, beer, the whole package!

These wings are my favorite go-to football season snack, though i've made them many times just for parties or potlucks.  They're super flavorful and brown up really nicely in the oven thanks to the brown sugar in the marinade.  Don't be intimidated by the long list of ingredients, they all have a fairly long shelf life so you can make these many times- and trust me, you will!

Ingredients:
* 2 dozen chicken drumettes
* 2 tsp. sesame seeds, for garnish
Marinade:
* 1/2 c. teriyaki sauce
* 1/2 c. soy sauce
* dash of Worsteshire sauce
* 1/4 c. light brown sugar, packed
* 2 tbsp. honey
* 1 tbsp. sesame oil
* 1 tbsp. ginger spice blend (in the refrigerator section by the fresh herbs)
* 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
* 1/4 tsp. black pepper

Whisk together all marinade ingredients.  Add chicken to marinade and stir well to make sure all chicken is coated with sauce.  Refrigerate at least 1 hour.  Meanwhile, preheat oven to 450.  Line a cookie sheet with tin foil and arrange the chicken on the pan, reserving any extra marinade. Transfer the cookie sheet to the oven and bake 20 minutes.  While wings are cooking, add marinade to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil (watch it carefully and whisk often- the sugars in the marinade will burn easily).   Let the marinade boil for 2 minutes, then reduce heat to low. After 20 minutes, turn the wings, baste with the reserved marinade, and return to the oven.  Repeat this process every 10 minutes until wings are cooked through (about 45 minutes total).  Enjoy!

Crispy Kale Chips

Now, I know some of you may be wary of trying a crispy kale chip, but rest assured- this healthful snack is worth trying! I too was skeptical when I tried my first kale chip, but what's surprising is that these leafy greens crisp up almost like a potato chip when they're baked.  Kale has a very mild flavor, so there's plenty of room to get creative with your seasonings. Not only do these chips make a nice snack, but they're also PACKED with nutritional value (calcium, vitamin C, even sulforaphane, which is said to have anti-cancer properties [thanks wiki!]).

Here's how I made them:

Preheat the oven to 350.  Rinse the kale and remove the leaves from the stem (in the pic, you can see I left a few stems on- but they turned out bitter so it is best to remove them).  Drizzle lightly with olive oil and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes until crisp, but not brown.  Remove chips and sprinkle with kosher salt or other seasoning and serve.  **Note- the kale will shrink down significantly in the oven, so you'll want to buy a large bunch.

Treat Yourself Tuesday - Coastal Cupcakes Edition

Treat yourself Tuesday has reached a whole new level!  I recently discovered that Tuesday's flavor of the day at my favorite cupcakery, Coastal Cupcakes, is Cheesecake.  Mike is a cheesecake connoisseur of sorts, so last Tuesday I scurried down to the Wrightsville Beach location right after work and just my luck, picked up the last two!  The cupcake was just as I expected: phenomenal.  The creamy cheesecake filling and fluffy vanilla frosting left me wishing I had picked up two more!  So this Tuesday, treat yourself to your favorite cupcake (check out the daily Coastal Cupcake specials here ).   After all, you deserve it!