Applesauce Sweet Potato Fries

SWEET POTATOES!!!!! I love'em. These fries are versatile and are packed with so much natural flavors. Here is another quick and easy seasoning recipe. This one requires some marinating time, so its not a ready-set-eat meal but the wait is definitely worth it. By letting this marinate, the flavors are able to really seep into the sweet potato and instead of having a little bit of seasoning when you bake it, you experience all the flavor of the seasoning. I didn't create or pair a dipping sauce with these fries as I simply didn't see a need for one. They are fully capable of standing on their own.

Applesauce Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients (serves 3-6)
3 sweet potatoes
2/3 cup applesauce
½ TBSP cinnamon
½ TBSP pumpkin spice
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper

1. Peel and cut the potatoes into fry length strips.
2. In a large freezer bag, place applesauce, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, salt, and pepper in bottom of the bag. Place the cut potato strips in to the bag and press out all the excess air and seal. Move the potatoes around in the sealed bag making sure ALL the potatoes be covered with sauce, about 3-5 minutes.
3. Place sweet potatoes in refrigerator for at least 3 hours but no longer than 5.

After marinate (refrigeration):

4. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
5. Line two cookie sheets with wax paper and spray the paper with nonstick cooking spray. Remove marinated fries from the refrigerator and arrange amongst the two cookie sheets making sure the fries do not touch.
6. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes then remove, flip fries, and bake for a remaining 15- 20 minutes.  (**Note the fries may stick slightly to the wax paper due to the “sticky” applesauce, however, the cooking spray should help eliminate this.)
7. Remove from oven and allow the fries to cool for about a minute then immediately remove from pan. Best served warm but taste great cold. No need for a dipping sauce. Enjoy!

HERSHEY Oatmeal Cake

Okay, the one thing I say time and time again is NOT to be afraid to play around in the kitchen. This cake is one of the best examples of what can happen when you do. I sat down one evening after purchasing a bag of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oats and put pen to paper. At this point, I really hadn’t worked with oats much in the past. I think I made quick oatmeal and no bake cookies but that was it. As I wrote this recipe, I was unsure how it would turn out but was willing to take the chance. In reality, I was attempting to make a cookie but created a cake. A very happy accident this turned out to be, this cake has a “not-too-crunchy” crust and a moist chocolate filled center.

Hershey Oatmeal Cake

Ingredients
¼ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 TBSP vanilla extract
1 ½ cup all purpose flour (Bob’s Red Mill GF)
1 cup oat flour (Bob’s Red Mill GF)
1 TSP baking powder
1 TSP salt
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup semi-sweet HERSHEY'S chocolate chips
3 TBSP HERSHEY'S cocoa powder
½ TSP cinnamon
1 TBSP grade A maple syrup
powdered sugar to top

1.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2.     In a medium size bowl, mix flour(s), baking powder, cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt, oatmeal, and chocolate chips.

3.     In a large size bowl, cream together eggs and sugars. Add in maple syrup and vanilla extract. Add in your dry flour mix.

4.     Grease a 9-inch round baking pan and pour batter into it.

5.     Bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees this will make the crust (top and bottom) nice and crunchy but not burnt. Bring the heat back to 310 degrees and bake for another 10 minutes. Use to the toothpick trick to test that the center is not gewy.

6.     Remove from oven and top the cake with powdered sugar. Allow to cool for half an hour before serving. Serve as is or with chocolate syrup, extra powdered sugar, or simple icing (recipe listed below). Be your own chef!!!!! Enjoy!

Hershey Oatmeal Cake
w/ Simple Icing

Simple Icing
1 greek yogurt cup (6 oz)
1 cup powdered sugar
2 TSP vanilla extract

1. In a medium size bowl, whisk mix together yogurt, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract.
2. Cover with saran wrap and place in refrigerator for half an hour (to thicken up) before using.

Apple Oatmeal Twist

Apple oatmeal twist is a slight variation to the classic hot oatmeal cereal. Nothing fills you up faster than a nice warm bowl of oatmeal on a chilly fall day. This dish can be served hot or cold, with or without the topping, ultimately this is the opportunity to be your own chef and decide how you wish to eat it. And it can all be accomplished in under 10 minutes!

Apple Oatmeal Twist

Ingredients


Apple Oatmeal Mix
½ cup rolled oats (Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oats)
1 cup apple juice
½ TBSP cinnamon
1 TSP sugar
1 granny smith apple

Topping
½ cup cool whip
1 TSP cinnamon

Apple Oatmeal Mix

1.     In a medium/large bowl place ½ cup rolled oats and 1 cup of apple juice. Stir and cover bowl, microwave for 1 ½ to 2 minutes.

2.     Core and peel the skin from apple and cut into small/medium chunks.

3.     Remove bowl from microwave (be careful it will be hot) and fold in the cinnamon, sugar, and apple chunks, mixing thoroughly.

4.     If you wish to eat warm, immediately continue to the whipped topping portion of this recipe. If you wish to eat cooled, cover with saran wrap and place in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Topping

1.     In a small bowl, mix ½ cup cool whip and 1 TSP cinnamon and mix well.

2.     Dollop on top of apple/oatmeal mixture or serve on the side. Enjoy.

Pumpkin Puffs

My pumpkin puff cookies recipe actually evolved from a plain sugar cookie recipe. These bad boys are exactly what the name suggests; puffy and full of pumpkin. Not only is the name fun to say but these cookies have a subtle pumpkin flavor and a hint of sugar cookie.  I absolutely love them and I think you will too. :-)

Pumpkin Puffs

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1 cup softened butter
1 egg
1 TBSP pure vanilla extract
2 ¼ Gluten Free All Purpose Flour (Bob’s Red Mill)
1 TSP baking soda
1 TBSP cinnamon
1 TBSP pumpkin spice
4 TBSP pumpkin
1 tsp xanthum gum (If not GF and using white all purpose flour, this is not needed)

1.     In a large bowl, mix sugar and butter. Beat in egg and vanilla until light and fluffy. Thoroughly mix in cinnamon, pumpkin spice, baking soda, and xanthum gum. Add in pumpkin and mix well. Lastly add in flour and mix well.

2.     Cover the bowl with saran wrap and place in the refrigerator for approximately 1 hour or until chilled.

3.     Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet (possibly two) with wax paper and remove the batter from the refrigerator. This batter is extremely sticky and a little hard to work with. You may want to get a small dish of water to dip your spoon and a few fingers in when moving this batter onto the sheet. You want to make small balls (about the size of a half dollar quarter) and no higher than half an inch. Sprinkle each cookie ball with sugar.

4.     Bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from sheet and allow cooling. Enjoy.

Pumpkin Puff "Close-Up"

Plate of Pumpkin Puffs