Indian-Spiced Turnip Cakes with Mango Salsa

We have eaten well today! This afternoon, Tommie and I had lunch at Layalina, a Lebanese/Syrian restaurant in Arlington that our friend Tara had raved about. She was right -- fabulous food. Check it out if you're in the area.

Then tonight, I made this Indian flavored turnip cake recipe for the first time. If I'm being honest, it's a pain in the ass to make. The puree has to chill in the fridge at least four hours prior to forming the cakes, so right there Jack had almost lost me. I went to make the recipe the other night and realized that I needed to pre-make the puree. Grrrr.

Our kitchen looks like a bomb of bowls, pans, and cutting boards exploded, and then to top things off, our smoke alarms sounded while I was making the turnip cakes. That's the one downside to having an open floor-plan home -- the stupid smoke alarms go off all the time.

But, all that aside, this is one delicious, nutrient-rich meal. Sadly, this one gets knocked down due to the pain-in-the-ass factor, so we're giving it a 3.5. Oh, and BTW, I've given up on pinching off the stems of my spinach. You can't really tell when you cook spinach, but I guess for a salad I really should, but that's a pain in the ass too. On that happy note, bon appetit!

Smoky Sweet Potato Puree with Spiced Spinach

Go Canes!!! It's not often that my dinner is orange and green, but looky there!

This is the first time I've made this dish, and overall I'd say it was a success. The recipe calls for chipotle chiles in adobo sauce mixed into the mashed sweet potatoes, and that flavor combo works great. The sweet and the smoky blend perfectly.

After much thought, Hubby and I have decided that this dish gets 3.5 stars. Flavor = 5 stars. No protein-- I deduct a half point. But the kicker was texture. We felt it needed something crunchy or solid to offset the mushiness. So, for that we take off another point.

Though I'm loathe to say this: Meat eaters -- this would be a great side dish to pair with a simple meat. Your body will thank you for feeding it nutrient-rich spinach and sweet potatoes to fight off those free radicals.