Better than Restrant Fries

12 medium potatoes
1/2 C olive oil
2 tsp chili powder
2 T paprika
1 T onion powder
1 T garlic powder
1 T salt

Preheat oven to 450*
Cut up the potatoes in to fries.
Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl.
Mix the cut potatoes and spice mix in a large bowl.
Pour mixture onto 2 foil lined cookie sheets.
Cook for 45 minutes. Rotate the pans top to bottom every 15 minutes.
Yummy!

Sweet Potato Casserole

5 Sweet potatoes
1/3 to 1/2 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp salt
3 T butter softened
3/4 cup milk or evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves 

Topping:
1 cup brown sugar 
2/3 cup flour
6 T butter
1 cup chopped pecans

1. Cut the ends off of each sweet potato.
2. On a large baking sheet covered with tin foil bake the sweet potatoes for about 1 hour at 400 degrees. 
3. Scoop out the potatoes into a large bowl and mash with a potato masher. Add remaining non-topping ingredients and mix until smooth. Transfer to a 9x13 inch baking dish or a large casserole dish. 
4. In medium bowl, mix the brown sugar and flour. Cut in the butter until the mixture is coarse. Stir in the pecans. Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potato mixture. 
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until topping is lightly brown. 

Admittedly this isn't a healthy recipe, but it is a very hard recipe to screw up -- it is one of the most flexible options for Thanksgiving Day when it comes to timing everything right. You can get away with cooking the casserole for 30 minutes -- but it is safe to keep cooking up to an hour without adversely affecting your final product.

Mexican Rice

    1 1/2 cup long grain white rice
    1 tablespoon vegetable oil
    3 cups chicken broth
    1/2 onion, finely chopped
    1 bell pepper, finely chopped
    1 fresh jalapeno pepper seeded, chopped
    1 tomato, seeded and chopped or 15oz can diced tomato
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    salt and pepper to taste
    1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
    1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
   
    In a medium sauce pan saute rice, onions and peppers in oil over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Pour in chicken broth, and bring to a boil. Stir in jalapeno, and diced tomato. Season with salt and pepper and cumin. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes. Stir in fresh cilantro just before serving.

Refried Beans Without the Refry

Here is the original recipe from allrecipes.com  Refried Beans Without the Refry  the recipe below is changed for according to my preferences.

1 onion, peeled and quartered
3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
6 garlic cloves
3 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin, optional
9 cups water

Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on high for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.  Mash the beans with a potato masher.

Asparagus Pecan Saute

   1 teaspoon olive oil
   1 pound asparagus
   Babbie Bella mushrooms, quartered
   2 Tablespoons pecans, chopped
   2 tsp balsamic vinegar, or to taste 
   salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a skillet. Stir fry the asparagus and mushrooms in the oil for about 7 minutes.

2. Add the pecans (I end up adding a little more).

3. Add balsamic vinegar, a little at a time to taste. Beware. Don't add too much. Season with salt and pepper.

Serves: 3-4, Preparation time: 10 minutes

Mexican Bean Salad

I made this bean salad the other night, it was awesome!
I made a few changes.

• I only added 1 Tablespoon of olive oil instead of 1/2 cup.
• I found that I didn't have any kidney beans so I added garbanzo beans instead. You could add just about any beans that you have on hand. 
• I  used canned corn instead of frozen corn. 
• We are not fond of cumin so I added coriander instead.
• I skipped the red pepper sauce to make it more family friendly.  
• I replaced the red onion with a small shallot. 

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/mexican-bean-salad/detail.aspx

Broccoli Pasta Salad

16oz box rainbow rotini 
1 can black olives sliced
2 bunches broccoli or frozen broccoli
Sliced grape tomatoes

At the same time, cook the pasta according to package directions and steam the broccoli until crisp tender. Drain and rinse the pasta and broccoli  in ice water. Drain well and combine the pasta, broccoli, olives and tomatoes with 1 bottle of any flavor of Italian dressing.  Best if made a few hours before hand, chill.