Root Veggie Mashed Potatoes

Look, if you've got some potatoes you just want to use up, boil 'em up and smash 'em and serve with ur meats nom nom.  I thought this rigorously-tested Cooks Illustrated recipe was worth trying though - a little extra effort, but some new tastes and probably vitamins and stuff in there.

Recipe

1 1/2 lbs potatoes, cut into small chunks
1/2 lb your combination of carrots, turnips, parsnips, celery root, etc., cut into small chunks
4 slices bacon, cut into small pieces
1/3 c broth
3/4 c half and half
1 tsp thyme

Start by crisping up your bacon in a large saucepan, then remove but leave the grease.  Put in your root vegetables and brown, then stir in the potatoes, broth, and a sprinkle of salt.  Cover and simmer 25-30 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and everything is nice and crushable.  Mash gently (you want chunks, not puree) and mix in the bacon (if you haven't eaten it all in the meantime), thyme, and half and half.

Notes

This one will come down to the balance of liquid.  You want your potatoes to cook through softly but not end up soggy.  I didn't quite nail it the first time, but the flavors were still very rich (OK, it was mostly bacon but I'm sure the carrot and turnip (my combo) helped).  Here it is with a bit of the night's protein, baked salmon:

Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken

It really seems that there's no end to delicious-looking crockpot recipes - which works out nicely, because the same could be said about this winter.  Here's the latest (originally here):

Recipe

3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thighs, whatever
1 onion, minced
3/4 c honey
1/2 c soy sauce
1/4 c ketchup
1 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp ginger, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
4 tsp cornstarch
1/4 c water
salt & pepper
rice (optional)
sesame seeds (optional)

Season your chicken with a little salt and pepper, and put into the crockpot.  Add your onions.  Mix together the honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oils, ginger, garlic, and red pepper, then pour over everything.  Cook on low for 4-5 hours.

One more step: Once it's done, remove the chicken.  Whisk together the cornstarch and water, and stir into the broth.  Cook on high another 15 minutes, then serve - over rice, with sesame seeds sprinkled on top, etc.

Notes

I put this together in a flurry of about 20 minutes (although I forgot the garlic).  Then it did the crockpot thing sitting around for an afternoon, and now it is super delicious (I also forgot the sesame seeds at first).  Rice (or something similar/paleo) is a must, because the sauce is so good...  It might be worth tearing apart the chicken a little bit toward the end so that the juice can better sink in...  Definitely worth coming back to, testing some little additions (sriracha? more veggies? etc.).

yeah, could use some veggies...