There are not too many food, travel & lifestyle bloggers in the Florida Panhandle other than myself at 30A EATS, Molly from Duchess of Fork, and Tara from Della Rose Living, and today Tara has a guest recipe post to share! If I have missed an Emerald Coast blogger, let me know by commenting below, as I support everything local, especially my blogging buddies!
I am very excited to introduce Tara’s blog to you, as she began Della Rose Living in March of 2012 and has quickly caught the attention of many. Tara says, “I chose the name Della Rose Living, as my blog is derived mainly by my great grandmothers name, Julia Della. Rose is a play on another great lady in my family and I just loved how the two sounded together, but more importantly how they have inspired me in my life. ”Living” was added simply by how we live our life. All together it is a perfect name for me and what I hope my blog embodies.”
Though beautiful herself, Tara has the cutest family and they enjoy supporting local businesses, locavore living, and farming. Tara also shares advice on gardening, growing herbs, family projects, and her recipes. Tara says,”I’m just a regular country girl that is striving for a more self sustainable way of life. Ever since I was a little girl living off the land has always intrigued me. I think I should have been born in a different time or maybe on a farm, but here I am in Florida, living on the coast and trying to turn 5 acres into OUR own little farm!”
Tara chose to share her recipe for Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes, as she says, “Each fall, going on several years now, I pass this nice gentleman most every day for a month as he sells his sweet potatoes by the side of the road. His name is Ed, and he is a kind southern gentleman. He doesn’t say much, pretty shy, but always friendly and always has the best sweet potatoes. Whenever possible I buy my vegetables from a local stand or farmers market, if I don’t grow them myself. It makes me feel good knowing that I am supporting someone local!”
I think this recipe sounds delicious and will be a hit at my Thanksgiving table!
Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
Tara says, “We love sweet potatoes! But so many recipes make them sugary,and syrupy sweet so you lose the flavor of the actual potato.My Twice Baked version is savory, capturing the sweetness from the potato, buttery and nutty flavor from the cheese, and heartiness from the spinach. I make this dish often for a quick and simple dinner, that’s pretty healthy too!”
Ingredients
4 medium/large sweet potatoes, scrubbed
1 large bunch baby spinach
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
2 tblsp. grapeseed oil (olive oil works too)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 cup shredded Gruyere
salt & pepper to taste
few thyme leaves, fresh, chopped (optional garnish)
Preparation:
Place your potatoes on a baking sheet and lightly rub them with a good oil and sprinkle with salt. I do this because we eat the skin too and it makes it nice and crunchy! Using the tines of a fork poke a few holes in your potatoes and bake at 375 for roughly an hour depending on the size of your potatoes. Remove and set aside to cool slightly. Cut open each potato and scoop out most of the flesh inside leaving some around the skin so it doesn’t collapse. Set aside.
In a medium skillet saute the onions in oil for a few minutes adding garlic as the onions soften. Add the baby spinach, season with salt and pepper and saute til the spinach is wilted. This only takes a few minutes. Now add the potato flesh to the mixture, stirring well, combining all of the ingredients. Taste for seasoning, and add salt and pepper if needed.
Scoop mixture evenly back into each potato and top with shredded Gruyere. Broil for 3 – 5 minutes till golden and bubbly. I garnished mine with fresh chopped thyme leaves after I remove them from the oven.
Note from Tara: “I was super excited when Susan asked me to do a guest post as this is my FIRST time to do so! What an honor! I want to thank her for opening up her blog to me and my recipe. I started my blog and facebook page Della Rose Living back in March because I wanted to share some of the ways that we are trying to live more naturally and self-sustainably as a family. It has been a fun journey so far and I love sharing stories. Lately I’ve been sharing more recipes and how we support local farmers (locavore living), tips on raising chickens, canning, and the list goes on.There really is no rhyme or reason to it, just whatever strikes my fancy at the time, or what my girls ask me to post about! I thank you for reading, and hope you visit me at my blog, Della Rose Living, and my facebook page as well. Stop in and say hello if you can!
