Sweet Potato Casserole

Image to come after it's done cooking

Sweet Potato Casserole
From Lisa's Kitchen

3 c sweet potatoes, mashed (2-3 large potatoes)
2 egg
1/2 c milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c sugar
1 stick butter, divided
1 c brown sugar
1/2 c flour
1/2 cup nuts.

Beat together first 5 ingredients and half a stick of butter. Spread mixture into a greased pan (8 in square pan). Mix together remaining ingredients until well combined and spread over the sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350 for 35-40 min.

My Notes:

I had never had straight sweet potatoes before Thanksgiving. I had them mixed in with things (brownies, thanks to working with a dietician), but never on their own. My stepmom made these for Thanksgiving, though, and I promised I would try them for her. I loved them. They're super sweet, and, as my dad says, almost like a dessert.

If you want to make them pareve, you can use soy milk and margarine. But it's just not the same.

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake
Originally found at Keebler

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 egg
1 Pie Crust (Graham Cracker or Chocolate)*
1/2 cup raspberry preserves

Beat cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually mix in sweetened condensed milk and 2 Tbsp lemon juice. Add egg, mixing until just combined. In a separate bowl, mix remaining tablespoon of lemon juice with raspberry preserves. Pour half of mixture into crust, then top with half the preserves. Top with remaining cream cheese mixture and remaining preserves. Use knife or spatula to swirl preserves into cream cheese mixture. Bake at 300 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes, or until center is almost set. Cool on wire rack for one hour, and refrigerate for at least three hours.

My Notes:

I definitely thought the amount of lemon juice they called for was a bit excessive; my cream cheese mixture was very runny going in, so when I put my raspberry preserves on top, they sunk into the batter. That might have had to do with the fact that I don't own an electric mixer, so I didn't really beat my cream cheese til it was fluffy. I also didn't have much control over them, so I couldn't really swirl them very easily.

It looks pretty good, though, all things considered. My stepmom made this in a chocolate crust, and it was amazing. I made it in a regular graham cracker crust, and it was still good.

*If you don't want to buy one (or can't find one that's kosher, take a package of graham crackers, crush them, and then mix with half a stick of melted butter and a tablespoon or so of sugar.

Latkes!

Latkes
From Naomi's Kitchen

5 baking potatoes
2 eggs
1/4 onion, grated
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp chili powder
Oil for frying

Grate the potatoes, and squeeze them to make them as dry as possible. Mix with eggs, onion, flour, and seasonings.

Heat oil to about 350 degrees. Form potato mixture into patties and gently drop into oil. Fry until golden brown, about 2 minutes each side. Serve with sour cream and applesauce.

My Notes:

So, many months ago, I mentioned to my mom that I was going to try to make falafel. She suggested I contact one of her coworkers, Naomi, for her recipe, and then realized after I asked Naomi that she was thinking about latkes, not falafel.

I mixed up some more adobe sour cream (sour cream mixed with adobe chilis and sauce... a little goes a long way) and spiced up the latkes themselves with just a little bit of chili powder (you can't really taste it, it just adds a bit of a kick). They're marvelous.