Sweet Potato and Apple Latkes

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/11/health/sweet-potato-and-apple-latkes-recipes-for-health.html

These were a nice twist on latkes, but when we simply followed the recipe exactly as written, we ended up with something good, but perhaps a little too soft and crumbly for our liking. Putting them on a cookie sheet in the oven for 10-20 minutes didn't change things much, either. One observation was that we ended up with far fewer latkes than predicted by the recipe, which suggests that we should have made them smaller. Doing so may have led to firmer latkes.

Pumpkin Pie with Brown Sugar-Walnut Topping

We finally got around to using the pie pumpkin that was kicking around the fridge for about a month. We don't have a go-to pumpkin pie recipe, so tried a new one this time.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pumpkin-Pie-with-Brown-Sugar-Walnut-Topping-355849

The use of brown sugar and walnuts did lead to a pumpkin pie with a distinct flavor, but we found it a bit too sweet, particularly in the topping. Next time, we should use less sugar in both the filling and topping.

Remade on:
12-27-12using only 3/4 cup sugar for the entire pie

Papalote Hummus

We didn't have any lemon juice around, but were in possession of a whole jar of Papalote salsa.  Decided to make hummus based on it instead.

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas
4 Tbsp tahini
4 Tbsp Papalote salsa
2 Tbsp olive oil
4 roasted garlic cloves
pinch of smoked paprika
salt

Prep:
Food process til smooth.

Pork Shoulder Stew

Inspired by an excess of peppers after a girls' campfire weekend.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pork-Stew-with-Sweet-Hot-Peppers-from-the-Abruzzo-351490

Remade on:
12/10/12 - Used less fennel seed than last time (it is unclear whether we used exactly the amount the recipe called for slightly less) and more rosemary. This made things better, we think.

Rosemary and Garlic-Roasted Pork Tenderloin

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/roasted-pork-tenderloin-50400000124499/

Paired with roasted Brussels sprouts and a "Warm Walnut Spinach Salad" that we didn't actually like all that much:

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/warm-walnut-spinach-salad-50400000124501/

Spicy Sausage and Chard Pasta

Dinner with Elliot in lieu of Loi.

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/spicy-sausage-chard-pasta-50400000123762/

Paired with guacamole, steamed artichokes, baked feta, and toasted lavash.

Remade on:
2013-03-10 using homemade sausage spicing & ground pork from butchery class; posing next to our new wallpaper:

Local early fall bounty

1. Steamed white corn
2. Tomatoes with EVOO, fig balsamic and herbed feta
3. Brussels sprouts with bacon, roasted at 500°, then 400° when the smoke alarm went off (Result: slightly soggy; perhaps it would have been better to cook the bacon and sprouts separately. Also, to use oil with a higher smoke point.)