Roasted Carrots and Sweet Potatoes

I made this original dish for the potluck on March 18. A big hit!

Carrots and (peeled) Sweet Potatoes, chopped into bold, attractive pieces. Peel the carrots, if not organic.

Enough to fill one-ish layer in a 9 x 13 glass baking dish.

Combine and drizzle over the vegetables, mixing to incorporate:

1/8 - 1/4 C olive oil

spponful of fresh rosemary, finely chopped

large pinch of fresh thyme, chopped

1 T brown sugar

1 T honey

1 t ground garlic (fresh would be good too)

1/2 t cayenne pepper

salt to taste

Bake at 375 until carrots are al-dente and sweet potatoes are soft.

Muhammara

Muhammara is a Syrian roasted-pepper and walnut spread - it's a great alternative to hummus. I found this yummy recipe on a friend's blog, sweetamandine.blogspot.com - she adapted it from Bon Apetit.

1 12-ounce jar roasted red bell peppers, drained
1.5 c walnuts, toasted
3-4 slices of sourdough bread (for 1/2 cup breadcrumbs)
2 cloves garlic
2 T extra-virgin olive oil (plus extra for drizzling)
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 (heaping) t ground cumin
1/2 t sweet paprika
1/4 t cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On one rack, toast walnuts on a baking sheet until fragrant (about 7 minutes). On another rack, toast the sourdough bread.

Grate the toasted bread to produce 1/2 cup of crumbs.

Place all ingredients into a food processor and blend to form a coarse puree. If you want it chunkier, add more crumbs and/or walnuts. If it's too dry, add a bit more olive oil.

Serve with toasted pita triangles.

Ginger Chocolate-Chip Biscotti

I made this recipe for the big meeting of the parents (Boehm/Luberoff + Upton/Cadwell). Great flavors and a good crunch, not to mention very low fat.

Yield: 3 dozen

1 t vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 egg white
2 c all-purpose flour
1 c sugar
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/4 t ground cloves
3/4 c semisweet chocolate minichips
2-3 T chopped crystallized ginger

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Combine vanilla, eggs, and egg white in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine the flour and next 6 ingredients (flour through cloves) in a medium bowl. Add flour mixture, chocolate minichips, and crystallized ginger to egg mixture; stir mixture until well-blended.
3. Divide dough in half, and turn out onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Shape each portion of dough into a 12-inch-long roll; flatten to 1/2-inch thickness. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove rolls from baking sheet; cool rolls for 10 minutes on a wire rack.
4. Cut each roll diagonally into 18 (1/2-inch) slices. Place slices, cut sides down, on baking sheet. Bake 10 minutes. Turn cookies over; bake an additional 10 minutes (cookies will be slightly soft in center but will harden as they cool). Remove from baking sheet; cool completely on wire racks.

Adapted from a Cooking Light magazine.

New Zealand Truffles

These are from the infamous Avonhead Playcentre Family Cookbook from when we lived in Christchurch.

1/2 tin sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon cocoa
1 packet malt biscuits
vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
7 Tablespoons butter
1 packet marshmallows
shredded coconut

Melt sweetened condensed milk, brown sugar, cocoa, butter, and vanilla. Do not boil. Crush biscuits and add to all ingredients except marshmallows. Roll mixture around a marshmallow, then roll in coconut and put into fridge to chill. Wet hands during rolling process is easier. If mixture gets hard to work with, reheat a little bit.