Happy New Year and welcome to 2018! I still can’t believe I’m saying that, by-the-way…
This year, more than ever, I really want to simply my life and minimize the amount of wasted time and unproductive things that I do so that I can spend more time on doing things that matter. Posting recipes, writing blogs and reviews, and most importantly spending more quality time with my kids and husband are the things I am referring to most J.
I also want to do even more of my multi-purpose multi-tasking (check out THIS ARTICLE {http://healthyfitfabmoms.com/blog/articles/the-new-way-to-multi-task-and-how-you-can-actually-save-time-both-now-and-in-the-future} to learn exactly what I mean by that J) so I can get my daily to-do’s done in the quickest and most efficient way possible.
One of my favorite ways to do MPMT is by making meals that are considered “all-in-ones” and include a healthy dose of veggies, protein, fiber and fats. These dishes can also be repurposed for multiple meals or eaten in different ways so that no one will realize that they are getting the same leftovers again and again. Now this is what I consider a #momwin 😉
One of my favorite new recipes that I created for Christmas this year, and will probably forever be on my Holiday Recipe List,can go by two names (depending on who you’re serving it to and how much they like veggies): The Best Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole or Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Casserole – my husband despises cauliflower so I choose to use the aforementioned name around my household J – hahaha.
THE BEST HEALTHY SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE
~ or ~
CAULIFLOWER AND SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 10
INGREDIENTS:
- 3 medium/largeSweet Potatoes, skinned and cut into 1-2 inch chunks
- ½ large Cauliflower, cut intoflorets
- ¼ cupCoconut Oil (or any other kind of vegan butter or substitute)
- ¼ cup Erythitol (or other sugar-type sweetener of choice)
- 2 tsp.Ground Cinnamon
- 1 tsp.Ground Nutmeg
- ½ tsp. Ground Ginger
- 1 tsp.Sea Salt, or to taste
Pecan Topping:
- 3 Tbs.Erythitol(or other brown sugar substitute)
- 2 Tbs.Coconut Flour
- 3 Tbs. Almond Flour
- ¼ cup Coconut Oil, softened
- 3/4 cup Chopped Pecans
DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a steamer basket, put the Sweet Potato chunks and Cauliflower florets, cover and bring the water to a boil. Keep the lid on the pot and boil until the veggies can be easily pierced with a fork. This will take around 5 minutes or so.
- While the Sweet Potatoes and Cauliflower are cooking, measure out the Erythitol, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ginger and Salt into a small bowl.
- When theSweet Potatoes and Cauliflower are done, let them briefly cool and then add them to your blender (I have a Ninja), and blend until smooth.
- Add melted Coconut Oil (or substitute)and your spice mix, then blend until combined.
- Transfer to a lightly greased 9” baking dish, spreading the mixture evenly.
- Mix together all of the dry Pecan Topping ingredients, cutting in the Coconut Oil last, until a crumbly mixture forms.
- Sprinkle the top of the Sweet Potatoes withthe topping, making sure it’s covered evenly.
- Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes until potatoes begin to slightly bubble and topping is lightly browned.
- Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.
- Enjoy!
Recipe Notes:
- You can easily make this dish ahead of time in one of two ways:
- Bake the dish completely, let cool and store, covered, in the fridge. Then reheat at 275 degrees until warmed through.
- Make the sweet potato mixture and place in a baking dish tightly covered in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve. Set the toppings aside. When ready to make, add the Pecan Topping and bake according to the directions.
- To reheat: I like to either take out the portion I want and heat it as is, or stir it all up together so the topping is thoroughly mixed through.
- You can also sauté some spinach, zucchini, etc. and add it in with the mixed Sweet Potato mixture. I know it may sound a bit odd, but trust me – it’s good!
- If you feel like being super creative, you can also use this Casserole as a Soup base, and just add some Vegetable Broth to it in a medium-sized pan, heat it through, and then thoroughly mix it with a spoon or immersion blender. Now you’ll have a yummy and low-carb Sweet Potato Soup!
- Looking for substitutions:
- Coconut oil: butter, vegan butter or ghee are all acceptable substitutions for coconut oil.
- Pecans: walnuts or crushed almonds can be used in place of pecans…although I truly believe that pecans taste best! If you are allergic to nuts, pepitas will work too.
- Erythitol: coconut sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, or a stevia-blend can all be used as well. I like the Erythitol because it contains 0 sugar grams and still tastes great! Be aware, if you use “real sugar” it is a bit sweeter so I’d reduce the amount by 1 TB.
