Sweet Potato - The Gateway Vegetable

Ever since I was little I wasn't particularly crazy about vegetables.  In college I became a self proclaimed "foodie".  I loved trying new dishes but most of them actually didn't include a lot of vegetables either. At restaurants I gravitated to things in the menu that were often breaded.  Foods from different countries were my favs - like Schnitzel, but I really wasn't that adventurous at all.

At home I still stuck with the regular stuff - meat, potatoes, pasta.

A couple of years ago a friend of mine introduced me to the sweet potato.  She suggested I "had" to try some sweet potato fries she made and she insisted I would "LOVE" them.  Well. . .I didn't.  Honestly I wasn't too keen on sweet potato based on that experience.

But, last year I found a recipe that included sweet potato and gave it another try.  Turns out it wasn't so bad after all.  Recently I've actually started to LIKE IT! *Gasp!* Sweet Potato turned out to be kind of like a Gateway Vegetable, leading to a willingness to experiment and try new vegetables . . .

This year, based on my sweet potato experiences, I'm really becoming more "adventurous".  We're trying to try new vegetables that are in season.  Tonight we tried turnip for the first time.  Honestly not the best vegetable out there but combined with beets and potato, some spices and chicken very edible. :)

Turns out vegetables aren't that bad after all. . .It's all in how you make them.  :)

Here's a link to the recipe I used tonight so you can also give it a try! :) Turned out pretty good! 

Crock Pot Chicken & Root Vegetables (Serves 3 to 4)

Ingredients

• 2 lb. chicken legs back attached
• 1/4 onion, sliced
• 1 beet
• 1 turnip, chopped
• 1 potatoes, chopped
• 1/2 tablespoon thyme
• 1/2 tablespoon oregano
• 1/2 cup water
• oil to grease crock pot

Instructions

1. Chop potatoes, onion, turnip, and beets about the same size and thickness and put in 6 quart greased crock pot.
2. Shake spices over top of veggie mixture.  Add water.
3. Place chicken on top of vegetables.
4. Cook on high for 4 hours.

 Original recipe modified from: http://www.dietsinreview.com/recipes/crock-pot-chicken-and-root-vegetables/