Baked Rosemary Sweet Potato Fries

These are very easy! And probably one of my favorite appetizers to make and eat.

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 25 - 35 min
Servings: handful of fries for 4

You will need:
1 storage ziplock bag (or 2, depending on how many you are making)
1 large baking sheet

Ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
sea salt (your descretion)
rosemary (your descretion)

Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Wash sweet potatoes in warm water (warm or hot water will soften the potatoes so they are easier to cut). *Cut sweet potatoes into desired size fries, the smaller the fries, the more crunchy they will be when you bake. Place fries in zip lock bag.

Pour olive oil, rosemary and sea salt into zip lock bag. *Leave air in bag. Seal and mix ingredients. **

Place fries on *greased baking sheet, space evenly so the fries bake. Put fries into oven.
Bake @ 350 for 25 mins (+/- depending on how crunchy you like them).

Enjoy!


additional directions:
*Using butcher knife & cutting board, cut sweet potato in half, long ways. Cut halves again in half, long ways. Begin to cut fries from the forths.
*May have to actually blow some air into the bag.
*Grease sheet using either Pam or olive oil, spread with paper towel.
*Keep an eye on them when you get to 20 min, take them out just shy of how done you want them, they continue to bake after you take them out of the oven.

**If you are preping them for a future meal you can put the whole bag in the fridge and save the baking for later.

Chicken Bites

Very easy! reduced fat & appetizer version of Savory Crescent Chicken Squares. I'd also suggest doubling the recipe if you are cooking these for 8 or more people... they go fast!

Minutes to Prepare: 15
Minutes to Cook: 20
Number of Servings: about 20 (depending on how big you make the bites)

Ingredients
1 - (3-oz.) pkg. fat free cream cheese, softened
1 - tablespoon Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread, softened
2 - cups shredded cooked skinless chicken breast (if you're in a hurry, canned shredded chicken breast)
1 - tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1/8 - teaspoon salt
1/8 - teaspoon pepper
2 - tablespoon fat free milk
1 - (8-oz.) can Pillsbury Reduced Fat Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
1 - tablespoon Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread, melted (optional)
3/4 - cup dried seasoned bread crumbs or seasoned croutons, crushed (optional)

optional additions:
-they can stand on their own with just the above simple recipe, but its a very flexible appetizer, you can pretty much add whatever you want.
1 - tablespoon diced green chile peppers
1 - tablespoon rosemary, cut it up into small pieces
1 - tablespoon chopped onion

Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

In medium bowl, combine cream cheese and 1 tablespoon softened margarine, beat until smooth. Make sure the chicken is completely drained, this is very important, the bites will be runny if the chicken is to wet. Add chicken (drained), chives, salt, pepper, milk, and green chives; mix well.

Arrange 1 can of dough on baking sheet or stone into 1 long rectangle. Firmly press perforations to seal, the mix will spill out if there are tears. Spoon chicken mixture in a line in the center of the rectangle. The amount you spoon in will determine how big the bites are, I usually do just a spoonful. There are 2 ways you can do the next step, depending on your preference:

1. Spread the mixture out, leave about 1/2 an inch from the edge (or more if your spoonfuls were small). Roll dough and chicken mixture, to create one long roll of chicken & dough.
OR
2. Leave the spooned out line in the center, grab the ends of the dough, overlap and seal the dough. (If you do this version, use smaller spoonfuls! It will really help with overflow when cutting and placing on the baking sheet.)

Pinch edges to seal. Starting at one end, cut roll into bites. Again, your choice on size, I usually do about 1 1/2" - 2". Place on un-greased cookie sheet. Brush tops of sandwiches with 1 tablespoon melted margarine; sprinkles with bread crumbs or crushed croutons. This last step is optional, I discovered one year when making these, that the bites are just as good without the additional bread and butter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 25 minutes (depending on size) or until light golden brown.


Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe (for full Chicken Squares): 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 390.4
Total Fat: 14.2 g
Cholesterol: 65.9 mg
Sodium: 737.3 mg
Total Carbs: 33.0 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.1 g
Protein: 33.4 g

View full nutritional breakdown of Low Fat Savory Crescent Chicken Squares calories by ingredient

My Favorite Recipes

In no particular order:




Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets

Baked Potato Soup

Chicken Bites

Baked Rosemary Sweet Potato Fries

Sausage Balls

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Super Chocolate Special Brownies

Chocolate Bomb Ice Cream Cake

Honey Balsamic Glazed Rosemary Chicken

Working with a migrain... never a good idea

Tally for today:

Couldn't fall asleep until early in the am = I am tired

I am tired = I am not social, a bit short, and have no patience

No patience = snapped at more then 1 person

Snapped at more then 1 person = I feel horrible for snapping at most of those people (some of them deserved it)

Some of them deserved it = working on my own and not getting distracted

Not getting distracted = the 1 good thing that happened today - I got work done!

1 good thing happened today = I still feel bad, now its the end of the day and I am tired and getting a head ache

Got a head ache = I do not like this day.

Painting

So I love to paint. I usually do it for my own pleasure and stress relief, but lately I've been doing a lot of paintings for gifts. I really wish I could do this for every gift from now on, its so much more fun then going and buying something. :)

Reason #1 of why I paint:
Painting is like therapy, when I am stressed out I love to smear the colors together until they fall into place.

Reason #2:
I have a creative side, this is one way for me to express that side. I love to experiment, learn and discover new things. There is sooo much I still have to learn. I am such an amateur!

Reason #3:
I love being able to put what is in my mind and heart onto a canvas. It may not always turn out the way I originally intended, but I have fun doing it. My favorite paintings have been the ones that started off one way and morphed into something great.

Reason #4:
So much more fun to paint a gift for a person, using them as inspiration.

I really could go on, but I'd rather just put some of my paintings below. Enjoy!

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Day 1 of WW

Today is my first meeting ever with WW. I am excited an nervous about starting this new adventure, I like to think of it as an adventure, it means I will need to plan, prepare and challenge myself to accomplish my goal. I am embarking on this journey with my good friend, it will be great for me to have the extra help and encouragement. So, I will try (because I'm usually not very good at keeping a blog) to keep up with my posts and therefore keep better track of my progress.
Wish me luck

 

Until next time, Love

Been a while

Its been a long time since I've posted a blog. So here it goes...

Today is Tuesday, its close to the end of September, and summer is basically over. When I went out to my car this morning it was covered in fallen leaves from the tree it sits under. This confused me, because it is hot and humid today, it does not feel like fall. I'm not ready for fall, I want more summer, more time at the lake, more trips, more time with friends in the summer sun. But since the weather is deciding to change, I guess I should just accept it and appreciate the in-between weather that is extremely pleasant.
You know the weather I'm talking about, the mid 70's with a light breeze and the sun shining bright in the sky to warm your face. The leaves turning and their colors showing more vibrant in the warm sun. I do love that kind of weather.

I know this is incredibly boring... My first blog back and I'm writing about the weather. Don't worry, my posts will get more exciting, I intend to catch you all up on what I've been doing since my last post.

Until next time, Love
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry