Last week ended up being crazy busy for us, as I had to be downtown 3 days in a row unexpectedly. I barely had a second to breathe let alone plan dinner, so the slow cooker was dusted off about a week earlier than expected. Not that I minded spending 15 minutes in the morning to coming home to a wonderfully smelling kitchen.
One of the things I made in the crock pot, besides this delicious chili, was "baked" sweet potatoes. All I had to do was wrap them in foil, throw them in the crock pot, turn on low, and come home with a ravenous stomach and a plan for a quick meal! Have I given thanks to the slow cooker Gods yet?
On the bus ride home I had come up with an idea for the sweet potatoes that involves semi-gutting then re-stuffing them with a tex-mex mixture (a lot like stuffed zucchini or squash). Given my love for the sweet potato/black bean combination and my craving for spice I jotted down a hodgepodge of ingredients I thought would go well with the bean and potato base.
Its basically a "dry" chili with tons of flavor. Now I know this recipe isn't revolutionary in any sense, but it was new to us and ready in about 20 minutes. Mission accomplished.
You could use the mixture as a side dish, filling for a vegetarian burrito, or maybe a sweet potato hash! Oh the ideas that went through my mind as I devoured mine.
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| Carefully removing the foil |
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| Everything simmering |
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| Served with avocado on top and sides of homemade applesauce & sautéed vegetables |
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 cup black beans
1 chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1/2-1 tablespoon adobo sauce, omit if spicy isn't your thing
1 cup chopped carrot
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper (any color)
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
water
cooking spray
Directions:
When you wake up in the morning: wash and dry sweet potatoes, wrap them in aluminum foil, place in slow cooker, and heat on low for 6-8 hours.
Remove sweet potatoes with tongs (they will be HOT) and set aside.
Heat a large skillet sprayed with cooking spray over medium heat.
Once skillet is warm add onion, carrot, and bell pepper, cooking until onion is translucent and carrot is soft.
Add black beans, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, taco seasoning, and a little water to help stir everything together. Turn heat down to low and allow to simmer.
In the mean time, carefully unwrap the sweet potatoes from foil and cut them in half hotdog style.
Scoop out center, leaving about 1/2 inch of potato on all sides and the bottom.
Add scooped out centers to skillet and stir. Allow to cook for another 5 minutes or so, then remove from heat.
Equally distribute black bean filling between the 4 sweet potato halves (I had extra that went great with scrambled eggs).
Top with cheese, avocado, sour cream, etc!
Serve warm and enjoy :)
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