How Sweet It Is

Sweet Potatoes aren't just for Thanksgiving anymore. We often think that they should be sweet and gooey, mashed up with pecans and marshmallows on top, but sweet potatoes are so versatile and can hold up to all sorts of cooking methods and spices. Since Thanksgiving is right around the corner we can focus on them in the traditional sense, but maybe I can help you see how versatile these beautiful orange beauties can be. Sweet potatoes have some amazing health benefits. Maybe not so much when they're stirred up with brown sugar and marshmallows, but on their own with a little bit of salt and pepper and a dab of butter, you're really helping yourself out by eating them. Sweet potatoes are a great source of beta carotene which is found in orange vegetables. It has vitamin C and E. Just one medium sized sweet potato contains 4 times your daily recommended allowance of vitamin A. They are a wonderful source of fiber and they are fat free.


A Little History: Sweet potatoes are often misunderstood. Have you ever been confused when trying to figure out if it's a Yam or a Sweet Potato? They aren't even in the same family. Yams are from the lily and grass family, they originate from Africa and are starchier and drier than the sweet potato. Yams are monocot which means they come from a plant having one embryonic seed leaf. Yams have a higher sugar content, they aren't very pretty on the outside, they look like bark and when you cut it open the flesh is very white. Sweet Potatoes are from South America and are a dicot, meaning they have two embryonic seed leaves and are in the morning glory family. They were domesticated over 5000 years ago. You may also think the sweet potato is Polynesian. Carbon dating shows that the earliest South American voyagers took sweet potatoes to the Cook Islands around 1000A.D. 


So why all the confusion? Sweet potatoes are quite colorful, they can range from white to yellow, red, purple or brown. They are classified by 'firm' or 'soft'. If you're in the grocery store it's good to remember that if it's not labeled a "yam", it's a sweet potato. By law yams are always to be labelled with stickers and you'll probably not find a yam in the typical grocery store produce section, but you would definitely find them in an international market. Those light colored things that are shaped almost the same and sit next to sweet potatoes are sweet potatoes too. It become confusing when you're in the canned aisle and you see "canned yams" which are really sweet potatoes and then in the produce section it's labeled yam/sweet potato. You'd think they could figure it all out to help the consumer.

Savory Baked Sweet Potatoes

This is a great side dish that goes especially well with chicken and pork. This simple recipe is hearty, healthy, delicious and satisfying. What more could you want?

Ingredients

3 sweet potatoes

2 tsp. Honey

1 heaping T. brown sugar

       (optional -4 slices of crumbled bacon)

1 T. Parsley chopped

lite olive oil (bertolli is the best)

salt & white pepper to taste

To make:

Toss  peeled and cubed sweet potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and white pepper

Bake sweet potatoes at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. In a sauce pan or microwave

safe container combine sugar and honey and melt. Pour over sweet potatoes, sprinkle with

crumbled bacon and parsley.

Serve immediately.

Scalloped Chile Sweet Potatoes  

4 to 6 servings

1 heaping tablespoon chipotle pepper puree
3 medium sweet potatoes peeled and thinly sliced 1/8-inch thick
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Whisk together cream and chipotle puree until smooth.

In a 9 by 9-inch casserole dish, arrange the potatoes in even layers. Drizzle with 

3 tablespoons of the cream mixture and season with salt and pepper. 

Repeat with the remaining potatoes, cream, and salt and pepper to form 10 layers.

Cover and bake for 30 minutes, remove cover and continue baking for 45 minutes to 1 hour, 

or until the cream has been absorbed and the potatoes are cooked through and the top is browned.

Sweet Potato Crumb Cake

Photo and Recipe courtesy of www.myrecipes.com

1 large sweet potato + 2 tsp. butter + 1/3 c. chopped pecans + 2 T. brown sugar + 1 1/2 c. all purpose flour + 

1/2 c. whole wheat flour + 3/4 c. packed brown sugar + 2 tsp. baking powder + 1 tsp. ground cinnamon + 

3/4 tsp. salt + 1/4 tsp. nutmeg + 2/3 c. orange juice + 3 T. vegetable oil + 1 large egg, lightly beaten + pam

Preheat oven to 350°

Pierce potato with a dork; place on a paper towel in microwave oven. Microwave at high 7 minutes, turning after 4 minutes. Wrap potato in paper towel; let stand 5 min. Peel potato; mash to measure 1 cup. 

Place butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at medium 20 seconds or until soft. Stir in pecans and 2 tablespoons sugar.

Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine all purpose flour and next 6 ingredients (flour through nutmeg) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add mashed sweet potato, juice, oil, and egg, stirring until well blended.

Spoon batter in to an 8X4 inch loaf pan coated with pam. Drop pecan mixture by spoonfuls over top of loaf; gently press into batter. 

Bake at 350° for 1 hour until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 5 min, then remove.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Spinach Risotto
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch cubes

2 tablespoons olive oil

6 cups vegetable broth

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 shallots, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach

To make the risotto, heat the vegetable broth in a medium sauce pan. Simmer on low while you make risotto. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the shallots and garlic on medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, or until browned. Add the rice and stir until all of the grains are coated with butter. Add the white wine and cook for about 2 minutes. Add one cup of broth to the rice and stir with a wooden spoon until the broth is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the broth, one cup at a time. Keep stirring the risotto. When the mixture starts to dry out, add more broth. Continue until the rice is cooked, this will take about 30 minutes. Remove pan from the heat. Stir in Parmesan cheese, spinach, and roasted sweet potatoes. Stir until well combined. Season with salt and pepper and serve warm.

Pin It