Simple Side

It's raining, it's cold, and it's a perfect day for this:

The kitties display their wisdom on a chilly day!

This weather was the perfect outcome for the Rest Day switch-a-roo -- not that I had a thing to do with it, but I sure lucked out! And, no one has to hear me complain about being on the treadmill! Everyone wins!

This weather is cozy and begged for something warm and filling for breakfast. Enter this ...

... from yesterday! It looks like mac-n-cheese ... It's soooo not mac-n-cheese! It's shredded sweet potato cooking up like hash browns!

Sound terrible? It's not! Remember, I hate sweet potatoes in general. I think they're really quite vile. However, when it comes to vegetables that have high nutritional value (these are great in the calcium, protein and fiber departments and low in the calories ... woohoo!), I search for any way to make it work in our world. Sweet potatoes showed up on our kitchen table a little more than a year ago, and they've remained a healthy swap many times when the carb cravings hit! So, I couldn't help but wonder if I'd be successful trying to make them into hash browns. (mmmm ... hash browns ...)

All I did was grate a sweet potato and spread the shreds evenly in a pan over medium heat. I sprinkled it all with about an eighth of a teaspooon of salt and with as much of this as I felt like shaking out:

We LOVE this seasoning!! It's a good
earthy flavor without going too far.

The layer of sweet potato was pretty thin, so it took less than 10 minutes to cook through to get the gross sweet potato taste off of 'em and leave a more potato-y taste and texture behind. The thicker the layer, the longer it will take to cook.

The cool thing I've found about sweet potatoes is even when the
skin looks burnt, it doesn't taste burnt. It's just yummy!

For next time, I need to make the grate size larger for an even better (more substantial) hash brown texture. Either that, or I need to tend to them more during cooking; as the moisture evaporates, the shreds stick together to the point it was one big layer of sweet potato and a bit difficult to pull apart with a fork. (But, if you're the kids, you pick it up like a potato chip and simply eat it!) I think shuffling it around while cooking will keep it separated better. Other than that little detail, we were all very happy with the taste! No one's breakfast plate had any remaining. And, might I add, it is super filling (as sweet potatoes are supposed to be in a lasting way), so just a small side of them is a great compliment to the meal!
I love simple!! This is a keeper for both taste and ease, so I wanted to share! It's a great comfort food choice as we head into the super-chilly season!!

Make your Monday simple, and, I'll see you tomorrow on regular Rest Day!