slightly spicy comfort food (piccadillo)

This is a nice one-pan meal for those ‘in-between’ days of Fall. It’s both sweet and slightly spicy (or very spicy, if you prefer). It’s also a kid-friendly deconstruction of a standard meat and potato dish.

Peel two large carrots and cut into small cubes. Rinse, but do not peel, two large Yukon gold potatoes, then cut into small cubes (about the same size as the carrots). Dice one small sweet onion (Maui, Vidalia, etc.).

Add a little olive oil to a non-stick pan set on medium high heat. Saute the vegetables for about 10-15 minutes (or until you see the onions begin to caramelize). Add 3/4 lb of lean ground beef and break up the meat into small bits.

Next, according to your preference, add 1/4 jalapeno pepper, finely diced (mild) to 1-2 whole jalapenos (spicy). Cook over almost high heat, constantly stirring and scraping up the caramelized bits from the bottom of the pan.

I consider piccadillo the South American version of corned beef hash – we keep ours fairly dry by not adding too much oil or any extra liquid (but it is equally good with a little beef broth added). It can replace seasoned ground beef in tacos (crispy or soft) and it also perfect on it’s own.

The high volume of carrots (plus the onions) make this deliciously sweet and very attractive to younger palates.