Sweet Potato Quesadillas

Howdy doody friends! (Side note: Claire and I have tried to decide how to appropriately answer this question..."doody goody"?? "HowDEE doody?"?? Let us know if you figure it out...)

So last night while I was scrummaging in the fridge (definitely past time for groceries...not a whole lot happenin' in there) for something for dinner, one of my partners in crime/exercise/healthy eating and roommate, Kenzie, had just returned from the grocery with a load of awesome-looking ingredients to make her tasty sweet potato quesadillas. If I hadn't already made some almost rotten pleasantly ripe asparagus and two goopy eggs for my lack-luster dinner, I would have totally partaken in her feast. Either way, I had to document the process of making them so I could steal her recipe and share it! :)

Here are the yum-a-licious ingredients to include:

• 1.5 cups finely chopped onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 cups grated and peeled sweet potatoes (approximately 3 sweet potatoes)
• 0.5 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• Generous "pinch" of cayenne pepper (this is how I usually measure all of my recipes...although with peanut butter or butter it generally turns into more of a generous "scoop of the hand")
• Salt and pepper
• 1 cup grated sharp cheddar
• Tortillas (makes about 8 of 8-10 inch tortillas)
• Salsa (optional, for the side or dipping)

PHEW! That's a lot of ingredients. A lot are spices you may have laying around the house already, though (hopefully). If not, it's totally worth it to splurge so you can use some of the ingredients for other sweet creations. Anyways, here are the steps:

1. Sauté onions and garlic in vegetable oil.

Work dem onions!

2. Add sweet potatoes, oregano, chili, cumin, and cayenne, and cook covered about 10 minutes, stirring.

Grate that sucker! Show 'em who's boss! (Unfortunately, Kenzie grated her finger pretty badly immediately following this picture...pretty gruesome.)

3. When potato is tender, add salt and pepper and remove from heat.

This stuff is smelling incredible right about now...and do you like her new Grandma cape?

4. Spread desired amount of filling and 2 tablespoons of cheese on tortilla.

5. Fold tortilla and toast in pan til browned on the outside.

The final product:

Oooooh yeah baby.

WOW, how much does your mouth water looking at that?? She also had some low-fat refried beans on the side, a perfect compliment to the main course. And there's no worrying later about this meal since it's surprisingly healthy (although you may need to worry about the beans taking effect later...).

Like I said earlier, unfortunately I had already eaten my meal for the night, but they turned out so well that we've already decided to have a roomie din din this week (with our other roommate, too) with this on the menu, so I'll give you my own personal review. Can't wait! :D -Anna