Everyone has their guilty pleasure show. Some watch Jersey Shore. Some watch Real Housewives. Some watch Glee.
My guilty pleasure is Food Network’s Worst Cooks in America, a show where the worst cooks in the country are taught how to cook by two celebrity chefs (this past season it was Bobby Flay and Anne Burrell).
Every time I watch this show, I’m always flabbergasted by where these worst cooks start and where they end up. Thinking back to the beginning, I instantly recall a harried cook running around the kitchen yelling “WHY ISN’T THE TU-FU (tofu) MELTING??!?!?! THE TUFU JUST ISN’T MELTING!!!” Or I recall Anne Burrell scolding one of her contestants for trying to make Vanilla Fried Chicken work more than one time.
By the end, one of the finalists made this, Crab Stuffed Sweet Potato Cannelloni. Impressive stuff, huh?
Instead of noodles, you make the cannelloni rolls from thinly sliced sweet potato. A mandolin is essential for this, to get the slices super thin:
You boil the sweet potato slices for 3 minutes until tender. Lay them out to cool, and in the meantime prepare the crab salad mixture, full of crisp apple pieces, chives, crushed red pepper, mustard, and mayo:
Spoon big scoops of crab into each sweet potato slice:
Start rolling up the sweet potato to enclose the crab salad:
Set up the cannelloni so the seam is facing down:
Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, and extra apples and chives. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 1 large sweet potato
- 8 oz lump crab meat
- 1/4 cup brunoised apple (julienned apple cut into small diced squares)
- 1 scallion, chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped chives
- 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp stone ground mustard
- 1 tbsp mayonnaise
- salt and pepper
- extra virgin olive oil
Directions:
- Peel and thinly slice the sweet potato using a mandolin. Boil the sweet potato slices in salted boiling water for about 4 minutes until tender but not mushy. This part is a little tricky, if you overcook them (or undercook them) the slices will break. Drain and let the sweet potato slices cool.
- Prepare the crab salad by mixing the crab meat, brunoised apple, scallion, chives, red pepper flakes, mustard, and mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Place small spoonfuls of crab into each sweet potato slice and roll it up. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and extra apples and chives. Enjoy!
Notes
Recipe adapted from Anne Burrell.
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
OMG. I would have trouble not eating all the crab filling with a spoon before filling the cannelonis. We watched this season of Worst Cooks too and the Tufu scene was one of my favorites!! haha!
Worst Cooks in America is one of my favorite shows. I find it amazing that people can be that bad, but than I think about mt clients. I have taught so many to cook with tofu.
Oh…this is so perfect, I like how the color are mixed here, and of course, the flavors, I never try crab with apple, but sounds delicious.
I am going to have to make these this week! They look so yummy and refreshing!
I have yet to watch that show. I need to DVR it, because it always looks good. This sounds like a wonderful cannelloni, and I love the sweet potato swap.
What a clever idea, I love this! The contestant seemed to have come a long way if he/she was able to create this.
Very visually appealing too.
That is a dish I could totally love. What a great idea to use sweet potatoes as “pasta.” It is amazing how much people learn on that show.
I cannot get that show on the tv here in HK. Sound like fun. However, we do have the AFN. I love this idea with all of the unique flavorings for the cannelloni and using the sweet potatoes. Take care, BAM
What’s one good-looking, quick and gluten free appetiser! Great idea!
Thank youfor your advice on my blog post for sweet potato doughnuts, ill try to make them again with less flour! Then i see your blog and it sounds awesome, this recipe for example is exactly the kind of things i love ! Thank you for recipe =)
Superb, tasty, cool and light this recipe is all. It touches all the flavors and yet it is so subtle. Love to try this the next day I get crab.
Pretty cool idea. Bright, flavorful and brilliantly good.
Joanne, I love Worst Cooks, too! I missed this season, but this recipe is simply stunning!
Damn you woman!! I am already seeking help for my Chopped addiction and now I have to watch Worst Cooks in America too!! When I saw your FB page I was wowed by your photography and styling. Now here I am equally impressed with your writing. Nice work!
HAHA Chopped is a great show!!! Worst Cooks is entertaining too though hehehe. Thanks Jill!
What a combination…
For me any TV show about food would be my guilty pleasure
Anyway your recipe looks a bit tricky, I cant imagine handling the cooked sweet potatoes with mandolin, great effort you make it look real easy
Wow, this is one of your prettiest dishes. And that’s saying a lot. Looks fantastic.
Good morning! I featured this recipe on my blog today, it looks great! Thanks for allowing me to share. Here is the link http://carriesexperimentalkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/05/week-16-seafood-frenzy-friday.html