(Image credit: United States Sweet Potato Council, 2020)
I definitely FALL in love with this season. What makes fall so special? It is when we are finally able to enjoy the milder temperatures, enjoy the color changing of the leaves, enjoy decorating for Halloween, and of course it is the time for enjoying sweet potatoes.
I know all of us have been eating sweet potato dishes all year round, but I am still going to make October the official month for sweet potato. LOL. A quick knowledge check here, do you know the flesh of sweet potatoes is not just limited to a orange-yellow hue, there are also sweet potatoes with purple and white flesh.
What do we know about sweet potatoes? Sweet potatoes are delicious, versatile, and packed with dietary fiber and nutrients. A medium size sweet potato consists approximately of 6.6 grams of fiber (according to US Dietary Guidelines 2010, it is recommended the general adult population should consume more than 25 grams of fiber daily). As we already know, dietary fiber possesses the benefits for overall digestive system health, heart health, and blood glucose regulations. Other than the awesome source of fiber, sweet potatoes are also rich in vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, copper, pantothenic acid, and vitamin B6 (the world’s healthiest foods, 2020) After learning the nutrient content of sweet potatoes, doesn’t it make you want to try out some sweet potato recipes? Sweet potatoes are one of the most versatile vegetables, you can incorporate ‘em in the appetizer, entree, and dessert dish. I have successfully made you all some sweet potato dishes.
APPETIZERS
Crispy baked sweet potato wedges: The recipe is adapted from Six Sisters’ Stuff. It is my favorite appetizer recipe. It is super easy to make, it takes about 20-25 minutes cooking time. Heads-up! You want to flip the wedges every 5 minutes or so, otherwise your sweet potatoes wedges will end up like mine (burn on one side).
Thai sweet potato stacks with peanut sauce: The recipe is adapted from Minimalist Baker. This recipe can be either an appetizer or entree depending on your preference. This recipe is quite time-consuming, but I promise it will definitely be worth every effort you put in. (TIPS: you might want to use a piece of toothpick to hold the sweet potato stack together)
ENTREE
Mexican quinoa stuffed sweet potato: It is an easy plant-based dish which is packed with protein and fiber. Protein sources come from black beans and quinoa. REMEMBER: it is important to alternate your protein, so that you will be able to consume a variety of nutrients. If you are interested in trying out the recipe, please refer to Simply quinoa.
Roasted sweet potato taco: If you would like to do some meal prep, this is the kind of recipe for you. It is super flexible when it comes to what ingredients to use. I referred to Gimme some oven for my sweet potato taco, and made some modifications to the filling (such as I used black beans instead of refried beans, added corn kennels, added morning star griller crumbles).
Chickpea and sweet potato curry: According to Kitchen Sanctuary, it is ‘‘a lightly spiced, fragrant curry with chickpeas, tender chunks of sweet potato and fresh spinach cooked in a creamy coconut curry sauce.’ This curry is best to pair with a bowl of jasmine rice.
(Ingredients sponsored by DRH Food and Nutrition Department)
DESSERTS/TREATS
Sweet potato breakfast cookies: The recipe adapted from eating bird food. This is a must have cookie recipe. It is super easy, delicious, and packed with fiber. NOTE: I did not have almond flour at the time, so I substituted with all purpose flour.
(Ingredients sponsored by DRH Food and Nutrition Department)
Salted chocolate chips sweet potato muffins: The recipe is adapted from Hello Spoonful. These muffins are super soft and fluffy. It is a perfect treat for this season.
(Ingredients sponsored by DRH Food and Nutrition Department)
Sweet potato flan: The recipe is adapted from Food52. If you are a flan person, this sweet potato flan has your name written all over it.
(Ingredients sponsored by DRH Food and Nutrition Department)
● NOTE 1: the cooking time in all the recipes may vary (due to the type of cooking equipment, environment)
● NOTE 2: the spices and seasoning use in all the recipes are for reference. Do feel free to modify them based on your preference.
Reference
The world’s healthiest foods (2020). Sweet potatoes. Retrieved from http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=64
United States Sweet Potato Council (2020). Varieties of sweet potatoes image. Retrieved from https://sweetpotatousa.org/about-sweet-potatoes/