Sneaky Chef

Crunchy Chicken Tenders (continued)

by Missy Chase Lapine

Sneaky Chef Make-Ahead Recipe #2: Orange Puree

1 medium sweet potato or yam, peeled and rough chopped

3 medium to large carrots, peeled and sliced into thick chunks

2-3 tablespoons water

In a medium pot, cover carrots and potatoes with cold water and boil for about 20 minutes until yams, and especially carrots, are very tender. If the carrots aren’t thoroughly cooked, they’ll leave telltale little nuggets of vegetables, which will reveal their presence (a gigantic no-no for the sneaky chef).

Drain the potatoes and carrots and put them in the food processor with two tablespoons of water. Puree on high until smooth; no pieces of carrots or potatoes should remain. Stop occasionally to push the contents from the top to the bottom. If necessary, use the third tablespoon of water to make a smooth puree, but the less water the better.

This makes about 2 cups of puree. Double the recipe if you want to store another cup of puree.Store in refrigerator up to three days, or freeze 1/4 cup portions in sealed plastic bags or small plastic containers.

Sneaky Chef Make-Ahead Recipe #12: Better Breading

1 cup bread crumbs, preferably whole wheat*

1 cup almonds, slivered and blanched (optional; omit if allergic)

1 cup wheat germ, unsweetened

1 teaspoon salt

With this recipe, you are aiming at the consistency of cornmeal, not bread flour. Pulse almonds in food processor. Don’t let the food processor run continually; if you don’t pulse it, you will end up with nut butter. Pour the meal into a bowl, and then combine into it the ground bread crumbs, wheat germ and salt.