Sausage Sweet Potato Burrito

I must have gotten in touch with my creative cooking muse. Inspired by weeks of rotating through the same basic foods, she came to free us from culinary complacency. Thank heavens!

Tonight I was staring into my cupboards, again, trying to figure out what to make for dinner. You know how that goes. Suddenly, images of Irish Cottage Pie flashed through my head. Wouldn't that be tasty? Except my kids were lukewarm on it, and I didn't have the time for that much effort.

Suddenly, it hit me. And I knew what to do. And it was fast. All very good things. (Dinner? Also very good. In fact, it would also make a great breakfast.)

I remembered a recipe for crafting your own sausage patties from the premiere issue of Cooking Light Magazine.* (Seeing as how we were out of actual sausage, this would be perfect, with modifications of course.) My six year old adores sausage. I had left over mashed sweet potatoes in the fridge. My 4 year old adores mashed sweet potatoes. And tortillas. I had those. Also a favorite of my 6 year old. The 2 year old? She'll eat anything that doesn't run.

If I combine them, surely they'll like them. Right?

Mommy liked them. A lot. The savory spice of the sausage seasonings combined with a touch of sweetness from the sweet potatoes wrapped in a crispy tortilla shell made a perfect combination for me. The kids? The oldest devoured hers. The middle one peeled off the tortilla and ate the filling. The youngest? She went to town on the broccoli.

Oh well, you can't win them all.


Sausage Sweet Potato Burrito

1 medium tart apple, peeled and shredded
2 Tbsp grated onion
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp rubbed sage
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp allspice
1 pound ground turkey
1 c mashed sweet potatoes*
tortillas

In a bowl combine all ingredients except the sweet potatoes. Mix well. Add to large skillet and brown ground turkey mixture. When cooked through, add mashed sweet potatoes and heat through. Heat separate skillet on medium heat. Toss a tortilla on just long enough to warm it slightly, they are more pliable that way. Spoon filling into center of tortilla, fold in ends and wrap to form a burrito. You decide how full to make your burrito. Place on skillet (no oil, just a naked but warm skillet) and brown. Remove from heat and repeat with another tortilla. You can brown as many as will fit on your skillet. The crispy outside that is achieved this way really adds to the appeal of the dish. This should comfortably fill 8-10 tortillas.

*Cook's notes:

• This is not an endorsement of the magazine. I had a subscription many years ago. It was good. It was pre-allergy living. I have no idea how many recipes would convert. I just figured, if I'm going to use their recipe, I should give them credit.
• I was lucky enough to have leftover mashed sweet poatoes in the fridge. They were made with coconut milk and brown sugar. You make them the way your family likes them. Or get crazy and just toss in some cooked cubed sweet potatoes. But I kinda liked the way the mashed ones helped hold it all together.