I wanted the very first food spotlight to feature a food that is well loved and that I have on hand, and my goal is to show you that sweet potatoes should not be relegated to the "Holiday Only" category. I absolutely love sweet potatoes (I gushed about them back in November), they are beautiful in color and have a naturally sweet (as the name would imply) taste.Sweet potatoes are root vegetables that are native to the tropical regions of South America. Although they are sometimes referred to as yams, this is a misnomer. Yams and sweet potatoes belong to different plant families and are only distantly related, additionally yams are indigenously to Africa and Asia. Traditionally the tuberous root portion of the sweet potato is eaten, but the leaves and shoots are edible as well. Sweet potatoes are usually in supermarkets year round, but the peak of their season is in November and December.
Sweet potatoes are extremely nutritious. A large sweet potato contains approximately 160 calories, and is extraordinarily nutrient dense. Sweet potatoes are rich in complex carbohydrates and fiber as well as vitamins A, C, and B6. "In 1992, the Center for Science in the Public Interest compared the nutritional value of sweet potatoes to other vegetables. Considering fiber content, complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron, and calcium, the sweet potato ranked highest in nutritional value." Click HERE for a detailed nutritional analysis.
Back in November I posted some delicious (and healthy) sweet potato recipes HERE. But here are a few more for you (some are more calorie laden than others)...
Baked Sweet Potato Sticks
Thursday's recipe (with photo tutorial) will feature sweet potatoes!
Thursday's recipe (with photo tutorial) will feature sweet potatoes!
* Thought this was interesting: sweet potatoes can yield 2 to 3 times as much fuel ethanol as corn! Click HERE for the full story.