As announced last week, it is time for our Annual Blogger Recipe Contest with the theme of ‘No More Mallows’.  Regular readers know that sassy sweets are such a versatile and adaptable ingredient that it really is a shame to condemn them to a monotonous culinary role as “that marshmallow casserole.” To me, it’s like taking a fine dry-aged prime-rib and using it to make a chicken fried steak.  Sure, it would probably taste good, but think of the potential cuisine that could have been.

Here is a little inspiration for your recipes. Over the past few years, this blog has highlighted sweet potato biscuits, nachos, cookies, pizza, soup, salad, ice cream, burritos, and sandwiches. Out sassy sweets have been paired with endive, mushrooms, quinoa, avocados, oranges, and even chocolate.  They have been featured in Italian, Spanish, German, Mexican, Indian, Jamaican, Korean, Jewish, Chinese, and American cuisine where they were fried, grilled, boiled, baked, sauteed, fricasseed, juiced, gravied, frozen and even served raw….all without a mallow in sight. 

And that’s not all. The sweet potato truly is the wonder of the kitchen.  It is a superfood that tastes delicious…How does it get any better than that?  I doubt I could eat spirulina every day, but sweet potatoes are something I just can’t do without.  I’m eatin’ em for breakfast lunch and dinner…and getting all those health benefits with hardly any effort on my part. What’s not to love!

As a final bit of inspiration, here is a recipe that is perfect for the season. With St Patrick’s Day right around the corned, I am featuring an Irish inspired dish, Sweet potato Stew with Pork.  Traditionally, Irish cooks used pork instead of corned beef. The beef tradition was actually started in New York, not Ireland, but I digress.  If you just can’t do without that corned beef flavor, try adding a bouquet garni of pickling spice as the pork simmers.  The spice blend pairs beautifully with pork.  And speaking of pairing beautifully, there in almost no better combination than sweet potatoes, pork and onions. Give this recipe a try, and I am sure you will agree.

Irish Sweet Potato Stew with Pork

Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless pork, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2-1/3 cups chicken broth
• 4 to 5 small onions, quartered
• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

Directions

• In a large bowl, toss pork with mustard until lightly coated. In a large resealable plastic bag, combine flour and brown sugar; add pork and shake to coat.
• In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, brown pork in oil. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add broth; bring to a boil. Scrape bottom of skillet to loosen any browned bits. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until pork is no longer pink.
• Add the onions, sweet potatoes, salt and pepper; cover and simmer 30 minutes more or until the pork and potatoes are tender. Stir in parsley.