Wednesday 17 April 2013

Two-tone Oven Baked Chili "Cheese" Fries

Okay, so this isn't the most healthy thing I could have made, but it's awesome, and that counts for something right? Now, I have to admit, *gasp,* I didn't actually make this entire dish, but I know for a fact that it would work. I made the fries and the chili, but didn't have fake cheese to make it a whole dish. What I did eat was amazing, and I know that everything together would be redunkulous. 
I'm posting this recipe in two parts- one post for the fries recipe and one for the chili. You're gonna have to stay tuned to get the chili recipe... don't worry, I won't keep you hanging...  muahahaha! :P

Anyways, it's probably much healthier than the chili cheese fries that you would find anywhere else, because I baked the fries, made the chili with tons of veggies, and soy cheese isn't as fattening as regular cheese (I think?). Who knows these days, anyways... All I know, is that these are awesome and that I hope you will love them as much as I do (in my head)!!! 

Two-tone oven baked chili 'cheese' fries:

I made two different recipes, one for regular potatoes and one with sweet potatoes. I'm not normally into separating things (it all goes to the same place, right?), but you need to put them in their own pans anyways because of space, so why not get a little creative? You can go wild with these but I kept them pretty simple. I kept the skins on, because I hate peeling and I like the skin anyways, and there's apparently tons of fiber and nutrients in them, so why the heck not? Just scrub them like crazy and take off any gross looking parts.

Oven roasted sweet potato fries:
Adapted from SippitySup

Note: This recipe is easily doubled; it all depends on what you have on hand. Also, don't be freaked out that I only used one sweet potato, some of those things are HUGE! 

Ingredients:
1 large sweet potato, skin on, scrubbed, and cut into fries
1 egg white
1/2 tsp sea salt
3/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4-1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4-1/2 tsp dried parsley
1-2 tbsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 450°. Line one large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk the egg white until frothy. Add in the cut-up sweet potatoes and spices, and drizzle on the olive oil. Mix well with your hands (don't be afraid to get all messy up in there!). Pour your sweet potatoes onto the pan, and make sure they're all in one even layer. Bake for 10 minutes, then carefully flip pieces over. Stick them back in the oven for another 15 (or so) minutes until they're nice and golden brown. Be careful during the last few minutes, they caramelize quickly! 
Serve them fresh and hot with any dipping sauce (such as a sriracha lime aioli which I have yet to perfect...) OR with a hot cheesy pile of chili! Mmm sounds tempting.... Wait for the regular potato fries though! They're next!

Oven baked potato fries:
Adapted from The Comfort of Cooking

Note: Now I know you've probably seen all those recipes that call for soaking the potatoes in water, etc etc etc... Ain't nobody got time for that! Honestly, I'm sure it makes them a bit crispier, but these came out just fine without that (more than fine actually!)

Ingredients: 
3 large potatoes, skin on, scrubbed, and cut into thin-ish fries
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 tsp sea salt

Preheat oven to 450°. Line one large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, toss the fries with the olive oil and half the salt until they're well coated. Like above, spread the fries in an even layer on your pan. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake for 5 minutes. Remove the foil and let it bake for another 15-20 minutes, rotating the baking sheet after 10 minutes. Or be like me and forget to. Don't worry if a few come out a little too browny, those are for taste testing anyways :P. Flip those babies over after the 15-20 and keep them baking for another 5-10 minutes until they're golden brown and crispy. Right when they come out of the oven, sprinkle them with the other half of your salt, to taste. 
Serve hot from the oven, plain, with ketchup, or... keep them for your chili cheese fries, if you can!

At last!!! The time has come to put this post together!!! 

Ingredients:
1 recipe of the oven roasted sweet potato fries
1 recipe of the oven baked potato fries
2 or so cups of chili (recipe to follow)
1-2 cups of soy shredded cheese (I've tried a few brands and the one I've found melts the best is Daiya and it comes in a pepperjack flavour which tastes pretty good too!)

Set oven to 400°.
Throw your fries into a square 9x9 or 10x10 casserole dish. They might not all fit, if they don't, you're just gonna have to eat the remainders. Poor, poor you. Pour chili on top. Sprinkle cheese on top. Stick it in the oven until 'cheese' is 'melted.' Enjoy while hot!!!

P.S. you can totally make the chili with soy meat or just veggies, and put real cheese, or not if you're vegan! 



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