Zesty Cook » vegetable

What’s your Favorite Vegetable?

zesty — Wed, 11 May 2011 13:00:35 +0000

Hey there! I am organizing my garden plans and have a simple question for ya. What is your favorite vegetable to have out of the garden? Is it yellow beans, fresh beets, maybe yummy tomatoes or how about a crisp cucumber.

So far I picked up some seeds to get ready however the weather has been lousy and very cold. I am hoping to get the ground prepped in the next week or so. Here is a list of the seeds we picked up so far. Let me know your thoughts and if you have any additions you think we should get.

Beets
Carrots
Lettuce
Carrots
Yellow Beans
Sunflowers
Mint
Rosemary
Basil
Watermelon
Cousa
Peas
Cilantro
Tomatoes
Cucumber

I also picked up a growing guide…. which I am surely going to need. If you have any garden tips I would love to hear them. Send me an email or leave them in the comments. Have a great Wednesday and I will talk to you Friday.

Take care

zesty

An Oh Canada Sweet Potato Stack!

zesty — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:00:48 +0000

OH CANADA! Where do I start with today’s post. Let’s just say yesterday was a pretty exciting day for Canadians. Not only did we win the Men’s Hockey Gold medal in an exciting game but we won the most gold medals in Olympic history. All I can say is WOW and now I am not sure what I am going to do without any Olympics on for another couple of years.

Although the Olympics are over, the food lives on forever. Today I want to share with you another spin on some sweet potatoes. If you don’t know, I am a large lover of sweet potatoes and I will eat them in any way shape or form. Here is a few of the ways I have featured them on zesty in the past:

It is hard to believe how many times I have feature sweet potatoes but as I am sure you will agree with me…. these little orange babies are tough to beat. Below is the simple instructions I used to create the Sweet Potato Stack.

Ingredients

2 Large sweet potatoes
1 Tbsp. Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Method

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees and line baking pan with parchment paper.
Toss sweet potatoes in olive oil
Add salt and pepper
Bake for 20-30 minutes – watching the sweet potatoes caramelize on the top. Turn the potatoes over and continue cooking for another 10 minutes.

Move the sweet potatoes to the top rack and turn the heat down to 250 to let the sweet potatoes dry a little bit and become even crispier.
ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: The huge tip here is the thickness that you cut the sweet potatoes. Cutting them too thin will cause them to burn and become inedible and cutting them too thick will almost cause them to be baked. About an inch thick is the ideal thickness to get the amazing caramelized crust and the soft marshmallow like texture on the inside.

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Alright Monday is in full wing and things are happening and back to “normal“. I want everyone to have a great Monday and start the week off with a bang. How is the weather in your region of the world? I woke up to heavy rains and high winds… is spring on the way? Let me know your thoughts on mother nature and I will talk to you soon.

Take care

zesty

Garlic Mashed Sweet Potatoes

zesty — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 12:00:56 +0000

Well I am not sure if I lived in a cave or under a pillow for a long time, but I’ve managed to miss out on showing you my garlic mashed sweet potatoes! This side dish will literally take your breath away. I know a lot of readers love their sweet potatoes, whether it’s sweet potato fries, baked sweet potatoes, or a sweet potato casserole – this vegetable rocks.

Next time you pick up your sweet potatoes, I suggest that you try this 11 minute recipe. Yes you read it right – eleven minutes. Whenever I take a mouth full of this smooth as silk vegetable, it always ends in a “WOW”. I could eat this every single day and not get bored.

This is how to whip up garlic mashed sweet potatoes.

Ingredients

2 Large Sweet Potatoes
1 Tbsp. Butter
2 Cloves of Garlic (minced)
2 Tbsp. Brown Sugar (or Splenda)
1/4 Cup Skim Milk
Parsley for Garnish

Method

Microwave two sweet potatoes for about 8 minutes.
Heat up sauce pan to medium heat.
Add butter and garlic – cook for 1 minute.
Peel potatoes and place in pan.
Add brown sugar, and milk.
Mix together and mash thoroughly.
Top with Parsley.
Enjoy!

Zesty Tip: Sweet potatoes should not be refrigerated unless cooked. Store between 55 and 65 degrees F. Always use a stainless steel knife when cutting a sweet potato. Using a carbon blade will cause it to darken. When selecting fresh sweet potatoes, choose those that are smooth, plump, dry and clean.

I hope you have a great Wednesday and I look forward to hearing from you.

Take care

zesty