Sweet Potato Fries with Lime Mayo Dipping Sauce

Great games coming up this weekend: Alabama vs Texas A & M.  Notre Dame vs Purdue.  I could go on and on.  Probably your school is having a party even if they are playing in the SEC or Big10, but whatever, you do, I know you don't want to slaving over the stovetop preparing food.

Make it simple this weekend:  Try the Marinated Flank Steak or Bandilicious Chicken Marinade.  Make your own salad or stop by Homemade Pizza for one of their seasonal salads.  And throw these in the oven.  Then...step away.  Enjoy the game!

Found this recipe in one of Epicurious magazines--delicious.  Approx cost: $3-4.

Equipment:
Large Baking Sheet
Aluminum Foil
Mixing bowl
Grater with a fine tooth side

Ingredients:
2-3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into wedges
1-2 Tbls of vegetable oil (do not add excessive oil--potatoes won't crisp)
Salt & Pepper

Dipping Sauce:
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/4 tsp lime zest
1/8 tsp cayenne
1-2 tsp of lime juice

Instructions:
1. Wash your hands.
2. Preheat oven to 450F degrees.
3. Cover baking sheet in foil and spray with PAM

4. Toss the sweet potato wedges with vegetable oil on the baking sheet and spread out on sheet

5. Salt & Pepper potato wedges.

6. Bake in oven for 15-20 minutes.  Turn wedges once, and finish baking 15 minutes longer.

7. Combine mayo thru lime juice in a bowl.

8. Potato wedges should be golden and crisp.  Get your platter out and serve with dipping sauce.

9. Awesome.
10. Enjoy the compliments.

Lemon and Pine-Nut Rice

Here's the final recipe for your simple, greek-inspired meal: Lemon and Pine Nut Rice.   I found this in Martha Stewart's--Fresh Flavor Fast cookbook and modified it by using chicken broth to make the rice and adding fresh herbs to the lemon juice, zest, and toasted pine nuts. You can always make plain old regular brown or white rice, but sometimes it's better to be different.

Equipment:
3 qt saucepan with a tight-fitting lid

Ingredients:
1 + 1/2 cups of water
1 chicken buillion (or just use chicken broth altogether)
1 cup rice

1-2 Tbls of lemon juice
1/2 tsp of lemon zest, grated
1 Tablespoon of butter
1/4 cup of pine nuts, toasted in a small skillet on Medium

Mixture of fresh herbs, ie oregano, majoram, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Wash your hands.
2. Bring chicken broth to a boil.
3. Add rice and bring to a boil.
5. Cover and reduce heat to 'Low'.
6. Simmer for 15-17 minutes.

7. While you are making perfect rice, prep your other ingredients.
8. Finely chop the majoram and oregano if you decide to add these.
9. Toast your pine nuts.  Follow this closely because these nuts are expensive and burn easily!!!

10. Zest and juice lemon.

11. When rice done, remove from heat and fluff with a fork and butter.  Let sit for 5 minutes.
12. Stir in remaining ingredients.

Bring out the grilled chicken souvlaki and tzatziki.
Make your bucket list, sit back, and dream of Greece.

Roasted Corn with Jalapeño, Lime and Manchego

Nothing says summer like corn.  We seem to go crazy with fresh corn once it becomes available, and I always try to make a few extra cobs whether I'm grilling them or boiling them in a pot of water.  Any leftovers are perfect additions to salads, quesadillas, or salsas.

But sometimes, I tire of flossing at the dinner table and getting my hands all buttered up...and this recipe from Epicurious Mobile App is just the solution:

Roasted Jalapeño-Lime Corn with Manchego.

Since summer doesn't last forever, and I don't always feel like shucking corn or pulling the grill out, you can use good-quality canned corn kernels (in water without additional flavors or sugar).
Great side dish!

Equipment:
12" skillet
Spatula or wooden spoon
Serving Bowl
Grater

Ingredients:
2 cans corn kernels / or 6 ears of sweet corn, unhusked
2 Tbls extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbls butter
Kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper

1 jalapeño, seeded, finely diced
1 medium shallot, finely diced
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

3/4 cup manchego cheese, finely grated
1/2 lime juice and zest (adjust for taste)

Instructions:
Do not plan on walking too far from the stove-top. 
This recipe is not hard but you do have to pay attention to the skillet for 30-35 minutes.

Option A: Roast The Corn Yourself
1. Wash your hands.
2. Preheat oven to 450F degrees.
3. Roast unhusked corn on a baking sheet  x15-20 minutes, turning occasionally.
4. When heated thru, set aside and cool.
5. Shuck corn, remove kernels from cobs.  Discard cobs.
6. Follow same instructions as in Option B / Step 3. below.

Option B: Open A Can of Corn
1. Wash your hands.
2. Open and drain 2 (14oz) cans of corn.
3. Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat.

4. Add shallots and jalapeño and sauté until slightly brown.

5. Add corn kernels, however you got them.

6. Saute corn until golden brown, approximately 30-35 minutes.

7. Add butter and stir until melted.

8. Transfer corn mixture to a wide bowl or deep platter and stir in salt, pepper, and pepper flakes.
9. Squeeze 1/2 lime into mix

10. Add manchego cheese and zest.  Stir.

11. Serve immediately