When you go to the store, there’s a good chance that you’ll pick up at least one package of ground beef. But then what do you do with it? It seems that all too often the ground beef turns into spaghetti sauce, a casserole, or meatballs. I’ve got nothing against these meals… as a matter of fact, I really like them… but have you ever stopped to wonder how many other things can be made with ground beef? One time I got a “Ground Beef” cookbook, in hopes of getting a lot of new ideas. Unfortunately, I think I learned how to make 4 different spaghetti sauces, 12 different casseroles, and more meatballs that you can shake a stick at. Which, when you think about it… If you shake a stick at a meatball, you may end up with a shish kebab 😉

Two days ago, I was thinking about dinner (I know…shocker!). Anyway, I knew that Kenny had a pound of grass-fed beef in his fridge, and I wanted to see what I could make with it. So after work, I stopped at the market and I picked up a sweet potato, green onions, baby Romaine lettuce, and a few jalapeños. By the way, I had absolutely no idea what I was going to make, but those lovely organic ingredients just looked good to me that day.

I met him at his house, but since it was such a beautiful day, we decided to postpone dinner, and enjoy the late afternoon first. He lives near the base of a mountain, so we decided to take the road to the top. It was a beautiful drive, and on our way back down we decided to stop near one of the small rivers. It’s a good thing that I brought my phone with me, because I had quite a surprise: two beautiful does were out having their own supper before it got too dark. They didn’t seem to mind that I was sitting there so close to them. It was a true Disney moment, especially when a little squirrel ran down the tree and hopped across the trail. I almost expected him to break into song. The video I took is at the end of today’s blog, but here’s the picture…

Okay, back to the recipe at hand:  we drove back down the hill, and Kenny asked what I was going to make for dinner. It occurred to me just then that I still had absolutely no idea, and I hadn’t planned a thing. Well… Time to think quick on my feet!
I began to dice the sweet potato, sliced green onions, and minced jalapeño, hoping to get some inspiration. Which I did.

The end result was quite tasty, and I can tell you that when I had the leftovers for lunch yesterday, they were equally as delicious. The best part was that it turned out to be Gluten Free, which is always a good thing.  After dinner, Ken gathered the plates to wash them and let me know that he would really like to have that meal again. Hooray! We have a winner!

Please enjoy, and if you ever decide to make this meal, I’d love to hear about it! Actually, I would love to hear about whether or not you think you may want to make these tiny little pockets. PS: you probably should… They’re really yummy!

Sweet Potato and Beef Pockets

3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 sweet potato, peeled and diced small
5 green onions, sliced thin
1/2-1 jalapeño, minced
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 pound grass fed ground beef or bison
small organic 4″ mini corn tortillas (I use Mi Rancho brand)
mozzarella, freshly shredded
organic baby Romaine lettuce
fresh Mandarin oranges, peeled and sectioned
avocado, peeled and sliced
black pepper

Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet on medium setting. Add sweet potato, green onions, and jalapeño. Stir often, so ingredients don’t stick to the pan. After three minutes, start to stir occasionally until sweet potatoes have darkened corners. Add garlic powder and salt. Add meat and stir often.
Cook until meat is no longer pink. Take skillet off of heat.
Put small amounts of Romaine on plate. Top with mandarins and avocado slices. Squeeze the juice from one Mandarin section over salad, and sprinkle with black pepper; set aside.
Fill small corn tortillas about 1/2 of the way with meat/sweet potato mixture. Top with mozzarella. Set on plate next to salad. Enjoy!

Okay, as promised, here’s my Disney moment…

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