Sweet Potato Fries
My Lil Plum NEVER ate sweet potatoes,,,,
Needless to say i NEVER complained because she ate just about everything else I put in front of her so,,, beggars cant be choosers right ?
Um,,, no,, not with this foodie mama !
So,, I figured I would continue to try and swing Lil PLum into the land of SWEET POTATO ENTHUSIASM,,,,,
Three words,,,
Sweet
Potato
Fries
A friend of mine told me she does something similiar with butternut squash and they arent as sweet,, you could try this too.
SWEET POTATO FRIES
3 Organic sweet potatoes scrubbed well.. (if you dont have organic I recommend peeling them ) The skins have all the nutrients so this is why I reccomend leaving them on.)
EVOO ( extra virgin Olive Oil ) or Coconut Oil ( about 1/4 cups,, enough to coat all potatoes well as this will be the oNLY Oil you use in this recipe )
Cinnamon
Cumin
Garlic salt
Sea Salt
Crushed Black Pepper
Oregano
Gallon size Ziploc Baggie
Preheat oven to 375
Cut and slice potatoes in french frie size ( place in bowl)
Pour in Ziploc Baggie ( have child do this part )
Add oil to bag ( Have child do this as well )
Add Herbs .(Have child do this as well,, this is why I reccomend having all spices already measured in a small child size bowl,, like a ramekin so they can dump em right in the bag )
Seal and shake up fries well til all coated with oil and spices ( Children especially like the shaking part )
Place in Roasting pan in oven and watch carefully. ( open bag for child and have them pour into pan )
Bake til soft inside ,, about 45 minutes,,, each oven is different so Im leary to put an exact time on this. Just watch themn til they are your desired consistency.
( Notice: I didnt give measurements to herbs because use them to your liking . I used the above combination because I wanted an indian flair. On that note,, I use a SMALL amount of Oregano,, as this tends to overwhelm recipes if used in large amounts. I also PROMISE the combination of Cumin and Cinnamon is DIVINE,,, just try it.
Here is a GREAT Way to get your kiddos to try new flavors in a FUN way. I STRONGLY believe that one of the EASIEST ways we can get our children to open up their culinary palettes is to get them to taste "Different" herbs,, other than salt and pepper and garlic,, ( the most commonly used spice in N america) They may be leary at first but if you continue on this herb journey they will develop a taste for these different flavors .
Studies show by the time children are 4,, their tastebuds have been formed for life,,, trust me on this,,, I have a 16 year old too,,, and tr ying to CHANGE their eating habits later in life is not IMPOSSIBLE but it IS quite difficult,,, So START EARLY !
Dont give in to the notion that children dont "LIKE" Spicey foods,,, BLAH BLAH BLAH !
I say,,, as long as its not flavored with Jabanero Peppers,,, they will be fine.
Remember,, their is a difference between being "Spicy" and being "Flavorful " This is why I like using the word herbs a lot instead of spices.
Studies also show that you need to "try" new food and flavors 8 to 12 times before children will be receptive to them... so bottom line.
DONT GIVE UP ! and HAVE FUN with cooking with your kiddos !
By the way,, Lil Plum LOVED these and I think in part to the fact that she "helped"
Did I also mention that this recipe in TOTAL took only about 15 minutes to prepare,, simple and easy and FUN !
