GRANDMA PARSON'S BAKED BEANS

OVEN - 350 degrees

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs. Great Northern (or Navy) beans uncooked
2 lg. onions chopped
salt/pepper to taste
1/4 cup molasses
4 TBSP brown sugar
1/2 lb bacon or 1/4 lb. salt pork

DIRECTIONS:

Wash beans and place in a cooking kettle. 
COVER beans with water to 2 inches above beans.
SOAK beans overnight

ADD enough water to cover expanded beans.
ADD onions, salt and pepper.
BRING to a BOIL and let SIMMER until beans are TENDER.
STIR in sugar and molasses.

PLACE beans in a baking dish and place strips of bacon on top.

BAKE at 350 degrees uncovered approximately 1 hour or until they reach desired thickness.

* Was always a favorite at family gatherings in Bainbridge, NY

CANDIED SWEET POTATOES (YAMS) from GRANDMA BAILEY/PEGGY

"We always had these potatoes on Thanksgiving. It's a tradition as long as I can remember."

OVEN - 350 degrees

INGREDIENTS/DIRECTIONS:

4 Yams

1 bag light brown sugar

2 TBSP. Butter

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

2 cups water

Sweet Potatoes/Yams (rinse, leave skin on)

Parboil until knife makes it almost through potato (if they overcook it is okay)

Let cool.

PEEL and cut lengthwise and arrange in baking dish.

While potatoes are cooking take 

2 cups of water, butter, brown sugar and nutmeg and bring to a boil (slowly)

Use 2 qt. pan as brown sugar takes room until melted.

STIR until dissolved.

POUR liquid over potatoes and baste while in oven - 

COOK 1 1/2 hours (or until the potatoes are brownish)

You can do potatoes early and do liquid before putting in oven.

Any questions - ask me! 

BAKED GARLIC PARMESAN POTATO WEDGES

OVEN - 400 degrees 

INGREDIENTS:

3 large russet potatoes, sliced into wedges
4 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan
Salt to taste
2 tsp Italian seasoning
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp paprika

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place potato wedges in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle potato wedges with shredded cheese and toss again.

2. In a small bowl, mix salt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and paprika. Sprinkle seasoning onto potato wedges and toss to coat.

3. Place potato wedges on a baking sheet with skin-sides-down. Bake for 40 minutes at 400˚until potatoes are fork-tender and golden.

3 PARTY DIPS using PULSES (beans, chickpeas, lentils. etc.)

PULSES: the edible seeds of various crops

 (as peas, beans, or lentils) of the legume family

2016 is the YEAR of the PULSE!!

Pulses are a great tasting addition to any diet. They are rich in fiber and protein, and have high levels of minerals such as iron, zinc, and phosphorous as well as folate and other B-vitamins. In addition to their nutritional profile and links to improved health, pulses are unique foods in their ability to reduce the environmental footprint of our grocery carts. Put it all together and these sensational seeds are a powerful food ingredient that can be used to deliver the results of healthy people and a healthy planet.

LIL SPINACH BALLS

OVEN 350 degrees

INGREDIENTS:
1 box seasoned stuffing mix (6 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup melted butter
1 1/4 cup grated extra sharp Cheddar cheese
6 beaten eggs
2 boxes frozen, chopped spinach (10 ounces each)

DIRECTIONS:
1) Thaw spinach and squeeze out as much moisture as possible.
2) Combine stuffing mix, garlic powder, melted butter, cheese and eggs.
3) Add spinach and combine well.
4) Shape mixture into balls.
5) Bake in preheated 350(F) oven for 15 minutes.

Directions for FREEZING:
1) Prepare through Step 4, above.
2) Place on a lined baking sheet and freeze until hard.
3) Store in an airtight container or plastic bag.
4) Bake frozen in a preheated 350(F) oven for 20 minutes.

from Average Betty - http://www.averagebetty.com/recipes/lil-spinach-balls-recipe/

SWEET POTATOES

I've always been a regular white potato gal (and still am), and never got into sweet potatoes - baked they seemed dry and boiled/steamed seemed to take forever and end up not so tasty.....until I tried sweet potatoes this way. Try it - you'll love them!

I recently discovered that there is a better way to cook them in order to make them creamier and more flavorful (without any added ingredients or condiments). It’s very simple – just throw them in the crock pot!

After you rinse and scrub the outsides of them, just use a fork to poke some holes in them and put them straight into the crock pot. There’s no need to dry them – the liquid leftover on the potatoes from rinsing is all the liquid they’ll need. Then set the crock pot to low and cook for 6-7 hours (for 4 potatoes at a time). If you need your potatoes sooner, you can also throw them in the crock pot on high for about 3 hours. You should end up with perfect sweet potatoes with basically no effort required.

That's all!

Enjoy!

One small sweet potato has 262% of the daily value of vitamin A and 29% of the daily value of vitamin C. Sweet potatoes also have twice as much fiber as regular potatoes.

learned of this from www.tiphero.com