Green Chili "Cheese" Fries

Last Saturday Crab and I went out for an adventure.
We heard there was live music at High Desert Brewery and went to check it out.
It's a cute brewery with a nice patio and friendly people.
Before I came along, Crab frequented this place quite often.
A bit for the refreshments,
Some for the atmosphere
But mostly for their green chili cheese fries.
Delicious greasy fried coated in cheese and chopped green chilies.
The kitchen was closed when we went.
Which left a want for this delectable dish.

But if I'm going to make it.
I'm going to make it my way.

Green Chili "Cheese" Fries

Oh these babies are good.

First let's start with the cheese sauce.

I found this recipe on this site.

http://veganyumminess.com/vegan-nacho-cheese/

Check it out. =)

Chop up potatoes.
You are going to want around 2 cups.
I voted against peeling them.
And we usually only have the little guys.
I used about 5 of them.

Around 3 or 4 carrots, chopped into 1 inch chunks.

Add to about 3 cups of water.

Bring to boil.

After they are squishy and soft.
Drain the potatoes and carrots.
Throw into your blender.

About a cup of nutritional yeast.

 1/3 cup olive oil.
1/3 cup water.

And half a fresh squeezed lemon.
About 2 teaspoons of salt.

 And blend.

It was a little thick and wouldn't blend well.
So a splash of hemp milk.

Delicious gooey cheese sauce.

I don't think you can tell,

But this stuff is amazing.

It tastes like real nacho cheese.

Only not the disgusting parts of real nacho cheese.

Sooo yummy.

 Julianne some potatoes.
We only had the small potatoes,
so my french fries came out pretty adorable.

And of course a sweet potato as well.

Put a small amount of olive oil and salt in a bag.
Shake! Shake! Shake!
Shake some french fries!

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.
And 400 hundred for another 10.
Gets them just a tid bit crispy.

You know have a delicious plate of fries.

Coat with cheese and green chilies.

So delicious.

No need to feel guilty.

Well, not completely guilty.

New Mexico Love

Now here is a story about SnaiL
She was once gliding through New Mexico.
Heading home to her little snail garden.
A blizzard blew in and the grounds became icy.
 She was frozen in her shell for more hours than she would like to think about.
Since then, she has less than feelings of love for this southwest state.

I've been here for about 3 months. 

And I have to say, I think I might love it.

The flag of New Mexico.

The Zia in the middle.

Each line representing something different.

The four stages of life; Birth, Youth, Middle-aged and Elderly.

The four directions; North, South, East, West

The four season in a year; Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall

The four stages of a day; Sunrise, Noon, Evening and Night.

It's a beautiful flag.

I'm a little jealous I didn't get to grow up here.

I grew up in California.

Do you know how hard it is to draw a bear for the state flag in the 3rd grade.

I can't draw a bear.

I could have drawn a circle and 16 lines though.

I love my little town.

Las Cruces, New Mexico.

New Mexico has 2 things it is well known for...

Pecans and Green Chilies.

And this is a meal to show New Mexico some Love.

We're going to start by blending up some pecans.

Throw is some flaxseeds, chia seeds and just a few almonds.

Add a little seasoning.

Salt, Cayenne, Nutritional Yeast.

You should end with a delicious chunky powder.

Eat a couple of spoonfuls.

Just to um test it out.

Set this aside for now.

Maybe eat one more spoonful.

 Chop up some sweet potatoes.

Throw these in a pot with about 3 cups water.

Boil.

While those are boiling,

Saute up some garlic and onions. 

Mmm, I wish you could smell this deliciousness.

Some Anaheims and Poblanos.

  Cut the tops off.

You can leave in a few seeds to add to the flavors.

Boil these for 6 minutes.

This softens up the skins.

So you can easily slice through it with a fork.

Once the sweet potatoes are squishy.

Strain them.

Put them in a blender with the sauteed onions, garlic.

And some roasted green chilies.

One of my favorite foods in the world.

Grab some avocados.

Mash them up.

You'll be using this to make the pecans stick.

Most people might use egg.

But I like to rock vegan when I can.

And who doesn't love avocado. 

Stuff peppers with sweet potatoes and coat in pecans.

My hands were extra dirty

So I didn't take as many pictures as usual.

Or keep them in a very good order

Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes.

Cut up cucumbers, spinach and sprouts for a salad.

Realize you've laid the cucumbers out rather caterpillar-esque.

Make a caterpillar.

Sprout seeds for eyes.

Give him a big spinach stem smile!

It's the little things that make us happy.

hehe, cute little caterpillar.

Enjoy your delicious New Mexico meal.

Sweet Potato Sunday

Another slow starting Sunday morning.
I offerred Crab either Banana Pancakes or Sweet Potatoes with Green Chilies and eggs for breakfast.
He couldn't decide and I decided to make the best of both worlds.

Sweet Potato Pancakes.

The best place to start is with a sweet potato.

 Peel your sweet potato.  

Chop into chunks. 

Add to about 3 cups of water.

And start boiling.

As shelled pecans are about the same price as rubies.

We decided to start buying pecans in shells.

I got as cool nut cracker off Amazon.

But still going to be busy for a while.

Sit down and watch some Netflix.

A little under an hour later.

I've got about 2 cups of shelled nuts.

Time to get going on some pancakes.

1 cup of Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour

1 Cup of Almond Flour.

I like to mix in the almond flour when going gluten free.

Makes it a little bit denser and gives it that nutty taste.

1 teaspoon salt.

3 teaspoons baking powder.

1 teaspoon nutmeg.

1 and a half cups milk.

I did about 1 cup milk and a half cup water.

Almond milk is expensive,

So I try to stretch it out.

Cloud offering to help taste test.

( I swear, this is just a perception picture)

Her tongue never touches the batter.

Probably.

Cloud had been looking a little mangy.

I gave her a bath and brushed some coconut oil in.

She's been looking like a grease ball stray since.

I'm a terrible mom.

But I laugh at her a little bit.

2 beaten eggs.

Mash up your boiled sweet potatoes.

Then add it to the batter.

It gives your batter a lovely orange color.

So pretty.

Not a big Paula Dean fan, there is not butter in my house.

Luckily, coconut oil can usually be substituted. 

About 1/4th cup

Or about 3 huge spoonfuls.

About 3 handfuls of pecans.

Realize how quickly the pecans you spent hours cracking disappear.

A sprinkle of brown sugar.

About 2 tablespoons.

Some fresh ginger and cinnamon

I didn't really measure. Just grated straight into the bowl.

Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a hot skillet.

And when they start to get bubbly...

Flip them!

Apple Cider Vinegar Syrup

Start with about 2 cups of Apple Cider Vinegar.

Pour into a pot.

Add about 1 cup brown sugar

A spoonful or two of raw wildflower honey.

A few cinnamon sticks and some cloves.

A recipe I found said to thicken it with cornstarch.

I didn't have any cornstarch.

But the baking powder container was  right in front of me.

Baking Powder had cornstarch!!...

Baking powder also has baking soda...

Fun reaction.

Watch it bubble for a while.

But how to thicken it?

One site suggested another 2 cups of sugar.

No thank you.

I'd like to keep it as healthy as possible.

Plain flavored protein powder.

Shifted in to avoid chunks.

Less than a 4th cup I believe.

Keep the lid on.

Let it simmer and bubble.

It smells pretty amazing.

Let it simmer for about 15 minutes.

Stirring occasionally. 

Right at the end I added a dash of milk.

It just calmed the flavors and gave it a creamy texture.

Delicious Apple Cider Vinegar Syrup.

I had saved a few chunks of sweet potatoes.

And a handful of pecans.

I threw those in a pan.

With cinnamon, honey and brown sugar.

And cooked them till candied.

Serve with fresh apple slices.

Eat entirely too many.

But pretend it is still healthy.