I had accumulated quite a few sweet potatoes from our organic produce co-op and I wasn’t quite sure what to do with them. Sweet, marshmallowy casseroles don’t appeal to me, so I decided to roast them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. I threw in some other root vegetables I had lying around along with some whole garlic cloves, and topped it off with some fresh rosemary sprigs from the front yard. It was a big success at Thanksgiving dinner! Here’s what I did:

Ingredients:
A few sweet potatoes
A few red potatoes
A few carrots
Large onion
About 10 whole garlic cloves
Any other root vegetables that you like
Fresh rosemary sprigs, or your favorite herbs
Handful of toasted pine nuts

Wash vegetables well and cut into bite-size chunks.
Peel onion and cut into chunks.
Toss vegetables and onion in large roasting pan with olive oil, salt, and pepper (you can use a spoon, but using your hands is best).
Toss peeled garlic cloves on top.
Place rosemary springs on top.
Roast at 400 degrees about 50 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
Discard rosemary sprigs and replace with fresh ones as garnish.
Sprinkle with toasted pine nuts as garnish.

Because of our schedules, my husband and I have a hard time coordinating dinner. We both work until 7 or 8:00 at night, and by that time nobody wants to cook, and dinner out just doesn’t sound good. We usually end up going out for a bowl of soup or sandwich.

I’ve really been struggling to find a way to make our evenings together low-key and enjoyable, especially since they’re only a couple of hours long.  Read the rest of this entry »

There are some great suggestions in this article from Self. They list 20 different ideas that if integrated into your life could help you make wiser, healthier choices. Just choose 5, or 3, or just 1 for goodness sakes! Remember that making small, simple changes, one at a time, will get you to your health and fitness goals.