THANKSGIVING
November 20, 2017
THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 13
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
with Roasted Garlic
By Katie Workman
The Associated Press
here are certain vegetables that I bring home and
have a stare-off with for a while before cooking
them.
I think sweet potatoes top the list, partly because they
will last forever, so the staring contest can go on for quite
some time. And partly because they have eyes. Oh, yes,
you are right, I am so funny.
While I love sweet potatoes simply mashed with some
butter and milk and not much else, that can be boring.
Then, because of the naturally sweet nature of these
potatoes, the tendency is to go for seasonings and flavors
that underscore or amplify the sweetness. But that gets
predictable as well.
Anyway, in my quest for different, for savory, and for
not a lot of extra thinking, I picked roasted garlic as the
newest uncomplicated addition to sweet potatoes. I’m
fairly certain this recipe is going to wiggle its way into the
regular rotation. Start with about eight cloves of the
roasted garlic, which will give the dish a nice but not too
intense garlicky flavor; add more if you want a more
pronounced hit of garlic.
There are many types of sweet potatoes, and if you are a
fan, have at it and get to know the different kinds. The
exteriors and interiors range considerably in color, but
most common are shades of white, tan, and all sorts of
oranges.
In this recipe, I tested an organic sweet potato with a
very pale cream interior (kind of the color of Yukon golds).
Next time I might look for orange sweet potatoes, since I
am a sucker for the color and it makes a holiday table feel
like a holiday table to me.
If you haven’t ever tried making roasted garlic, just do
that today. Start the garlic before you start the potatoes,
so the garlic will be roasted when you are ready to mash.
T
SAVORY SPHERES. Feeling uninspired when looking at a head of
cauliflower or broccoli to cook? Try roasting the spheres of proteins and
topping them with a sesame drizzle. The dish only takes 30 to 35 minutes
to make. (Photo/Mia via AP)
Cauliflower with
Sesame Drizzle
By Katie Workman
The Associated Press
ood writers (and I include myself) are often talking
about what new things you can do with that
package of chicken breasts or that pound of ground
beef to get out of the same-old, same-old cooking rut. But
we might not spend enough time talking about what to do
with that head of cauliflower or broccoli. We can all feel as
uninspired looking at those stoic spheres as we do with our
proteins, right?
So off we go, on the hunt for a new and simple side dish.
This is definitely one to keep in mind when you’re making
a stir-fry or other Asian-influenced dish. It’s especially
useful since you can make the drizzle ahead of time, pop
the vegetable in the oven, and get to work at the stove
making the rest of the meal. The cauliflower or broccoli
needs no attention as it roasts, only the sound of the
buzzer to remind you to take it out of the oven.
Katie Workman has written two cookbooks focused on easy, family-
friendly cooking, Dinner Solved! and The Mom 100 Cookbook.
F
Preheat the oven to 400º Fahrenheit. Cut the
cauliflower into florets. Place the cauliflower on a
rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil.
Toss well, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast
for about 25 minutes, until crisp-tender and browned
at the edges.
Meanwhile, if you are using the sesame seeds,
heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the
sesame seeds and stir frequently for about one or two
minutes, until they start to become golden; don’t
allow them get too brown. Transfer them to a plate.
In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil,
honey, and Sriracha sauce. When the cauliflower is
roasted, transfer it to a serving platter and drizzle
the sauce over it (or pass the sauce on the side for
everyone to drizzle over their own portion). Sprinkle
the top with sesame seeds, if desired, and serve hot
or warm.
Nutrition information per serving: 145 calories (87
calories from fat); 10 g fat (1 g saturated, 0 g trans
fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 490 mg sodium; 12 g
carbohydrate; 4 g fiber; 6 g sugar; 5 g protein.
It’s stupidly, stupidly easy. And such a simple way to
change up the flavor of everything from a crostini topping
to a sauce to a chicken dish.
If you want a milder garlic flavor in the potatoes, cut
back on the number of cloves you mash in.
Katie Workman has written two cookbooks focused on easy, family-
friendly cooking, Dinner Solved! and The Mom 100 Cookbook.
Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Roasted Garlic
Serves 8
Start to finish: 1 hour, including roasting the garlic
Roasted garlic:
1 head garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
Generous pinch salt
Preheat the oven to 400º Fahrenheit. Slice the top off the head of garlic so the top of the cloves are exposed. (You
can do as many of these as you want, at the same time.) Place each head on a square of aluminum foil, drizzle with
olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and wrap up the cloves well in the foil. Bake for about 45 minutes until the garlic is very
soft.
When cool enough to handle, squeeze out the roasted garlic from the papery peel, pressing up from the bottom to
pop it out.
Mashed sweet potatoes:
Coarse or kosher salt to taste
3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup whole milk or half and half (or a combo), warmed
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cauliflower with Sesame Drizzle
Start to finish: 30 to 35 minutes
Serves 4
1 large (1 3/4 pound) head cauliflower
(or substitute the same amount of broccoli heads)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 tablespoons untoasted sesame seeds (optional)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce
SWEET SPUDS. In chef Katie Workman’s quest for a different,
savory, and easy potato dish, she picked roasted garlic as her newest
uncomplicated addition to sweet potatoes. (Photo/Sarah Crowder via AP)
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, then allow the water to return to a
simmer. Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer. Cook until the sweet potatoes are soft, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Drain the potatoes. Either return them to the pot with about eight cloves of the garlic, or to taste, and mash with
an immersion blender or a potato masher, or put the potatoes through a ricer or food mill with the desired amount
of garlic, doing this so the riced potatoes fall back into the pot. Add the olive oil, butter, milk, salt, and pepper, and
stir to thoroughly combine. Serve hot.
Nutrition information per serving: 229 calories (73 calories from fat); 8 g fat (4 g saturated, 0 g trans fats); 14 mg
cholesterol; 344 mg sodium; 36 g carbohydrate; 5 g fiber; 8 g sugar; 4 g protein.
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Once, kids played like their lives depended on it.
If only kids still did.
Chunky. Hefty. Big-boned. For parents of overweight children, it’s all
too easy to minimize reality. But the consequences of a heavy childhood
may actually result in a generation of children with shorter life spans
than their parents.
Encourage physical activity and better
nutrition. Do whatever it takes to get
your kids as active as kids once
were. Activity and weight-bearing
exercise will help your child live
stronger, and live longer. For
more advice and information,
visit orthoinfo.org,
aap.org/obesity
and posna.org.