Roasted Yam Halves

From Martha Stewart Living
Prep Time: 5 min. Total Time: 55 min.
Serves 4

This is a quick and delicious way to prepare yams or sweet potatoes.*

2 yams or sweet potatoes (about 1 pound each)
2 Tbls extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbls finely chopped fresh thume
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Halve yams and place, cut side up, in a shallow baking dish just large enough to hold them in a single layer. Drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Bake until golden brown and very tender, 35 to 45 minutes.

*A word about ingredients: Yams and sweet potatoes both have a much lower glycemic index than regular potatoes. Translation: they do not cause your blood sugar to spike as much as regular potatoes. Glycemic index of potatoes. Yams - 37; Sweet Potatoes - 59; white mashed potatoes - 70; baked potatoes - 85; french fries - 75. For comparison, sucrose is 64. So yes, America, potatoes have a higher glycemic index than table sugar!!

Tarragon Potato Salad with Sugar Snap Peas

Serves 4-6

This is my absolute favorite potato salad, and I am a huge fan of potato salad! I discovered this salad because I am allergic to eggs and cannot eat mayonnaise. This potato salad has no eggs. (But it does have dairy.)

Dressing:
2 tsp. dijon mustard*
1 tsp. salt (or more to taste)
1/4 tsp. white or black pepper
2 Tbls. tarragon vinegar*
1/4 cup olive oil*
1/4 cup sour cream*
2 Tbls. fresh tarragon, chopped (or more to taste)

Salad ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. red potatoes
1 package sugar snap peas, strings removed
1 small red onion, cut into thin slices

1. Cut potatoes into bite-sized chunks and boil until just fork tender. Do not overcook! Remove immediate from heat, drain, and rinse in cold water. Let cool in fridge or by placing bowl of potatoes in a bowl of ice water.
2. Bring a small pot of water to boil for the peas. When water boils, blanch peas in the water until they all turn bright green, 1 to 3 minutes. Do not overcook! Remove from heat, rinse in cold water, and place in ice water bath until cool. Drain peas and pat try with paper toweling.
3. Meanwhile, prepare dressing by whisking together mustard, salt, pepper, and vinegar in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in olive oil with a wire whisk or a fork until the oil is emulsified into the other ingredients (the mixture should be thickened). Whisk in sour cream and tarragon.
4. When all ingredients are cool, place in a large bowl and pour dressing over top. Gently combine all ingredients. You may need more salt; I find potatoes usually need generous amounts of salt. Chill for 2 to 24 hours before serving.

Chicken Salad Variation: This recipe makes a fantastic tarragon chicken salad. Simply replace 1 1/2 lbs. cooked potatoes with 1 1/2 lbs. cooked chicken. Absolutely delicious!

*A word about ingredients: Use a high-quality dijon mustard made with white wine. Makes a huge difference! I like Grey Poupon. You must use tarragon vinegar; it really adds that tarragon flavor to this dish. It's pretty easy to find. Use a high-quality, extra-virgin, first-cold-pressed, unfiltered, organic olive oil if you can find it. I buy Trader Joe's First Lady Reserve. It isn't organic, but it has all the other qualities for a great price. Unfiltered olive oil has lauric acid, a natural anti-viral. For the sour cream, use an organic, whole milk sour cream with live active cultures. I like Horizon Organic. None of this low-fat dairy stuff! Whole-fat dairy WILL NOT make you fat. Low-fat dairy usually contains dry milk, which is full of chemicals. Enjoy the fat!!

Green Rice

Serves 6

1 cup long-grain brown rice
2 cups organic or homemade chicken broth*
2 tbls chopped parsley
1 thinly sliced green onion
2 tbls butter
salt to taste

1. Put rice and broth into small pot. Heat on high until boiling; lower heat to the lowest setting and gently simmer for 1 hour or until rice has absorbed all the liquid and is tender.
2. Put cooked, hot rice into a bowl. Add remaining ingredients and gently combine.

Herbed Corn

Serves 10-12
According to my mother-in-law, Kay Shipe, this is the best corn side-dish on earth. The recipe is from my sister, Jayme Metzgar. (I imagine this would also be delicious with fresh corn, cut off the cob and blanched quickly in boiling water.)

12 cups frozen corn
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter, cubed
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

In a large saucepan, combine corn and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 4-6 minutes or until corn is tender. Drain; stir in the remaining ingredients.

Cornbread-Sausage Stuffing with Apples

From The Silver Palate
Serves 12

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) sweet butter
2 1/2 cups finely chopped yellow onions
3 tart apples, cored and chunked; do not peel
1 pound lightly seasoned bulk sausage (breakfast sausage with sage is best)
9 cups gluten-free cornbread cut into small cubes and dried on the counter overnight (regular cornbread works, too)
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried sage
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley
1 1/2 cup shelled pecan halves

1. Melt half of the butter in a skillet. Add chopped onions and cook over medium heat, partially covered, until tender and lightly colored, about 25 minutes. Transfer onions and butter to a large mixing bowl.
2. Melt remaining butter in the same skillet. Add apple chunks and cook over high heat until lightly colored but not mushy. Transfer apples and butter to the mixing bowl.
3. Crumble the sausage into the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring, until lightly browned. With a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to the mixing bowl and reserve the rendered fat.
4. Add remaining ingredients to the ingredients in the mixing bowl and combine gently. Cool completely before stuffing the bird; refrigerate if not used promptly.
5. If you do not wish actually to stuff the bird, spoon it into a casserole. Cover casserole and set into a large pan. Pour hot water around the casserole to come halfway up the sides. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes at 325 F, basting occasionally with cooking juices from the bird or with the reserved sausage fat if necessary.

Grilled Potatoes with Garlic

From The Family Circle Cookbook
Serves 4

These are by far the tastiest potatoes to serve with steak or hamburgers! Yum, yum! And no dairy in the recipe.

1 1/2 lbs. small red new potatoes, scrubbed (or regular red potatoes)
4 large cloves garlic, unpeeled
4 tbls. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 tbls. white wine vinegar
2 tsp. dijon-style mustard
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 green onions, thinly sliced

1. Heat coals in grill. Make tray from heavy-duty aluminum foil by folding foil over for double strength and folding up sides; oil tray (I prefer to use a cast iron skillet).
2. Cut potatoes into pieces no larger than 1 1/2 inches. Combine potatoes, garlic cloves, 1 tbls. oil and 1/4 tsp. salt in medium-size bowl; toss until potatoes are well coated. Spoon potato mixture into foil tray, keeping potatoes in a single layer. Top with rosemary sprigs.
3. Grill potatoes 5 inches above medium-hot coals, covered with dome, turning occasionally, for 25 to 30 minutes or until tender and crisply browned.
4. Meanwhile, whisk together vinegar, mustard, remaining 1/4 tsp. salt and pepper in medium-size bowl. Gradually whisk in remaining 3 tbls. oil. Discard woody rosemany stems from grilling tray. Squeeze grilled garlic cloves from skins into dressing in bowl. Mash slightly into dressing.
5. Add potatoes and green onions to dressing; toss gently to coat. Serve warm.

Cornbread

Serves 6
Double recipe if making cornbread for Cornbread-Sausage Stuffing with Apples.

1-1/4 cup Pamela's Baking & Pancake Mix
1 cup fine yellow cornmeal
1/3 cup sugar or honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten (for fluffier muffins use two eggs)
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons melted butter

Muffins: Mix all ingredients together and fill greased muffin tin 3/4 full. Bake at 375° for 15-20 minutes.

Corn bread: Follow directions above, using two eggs. Pour into a greased 8-inch square pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes.