!Sweet potato
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agk's kitchen
created: 22 April 2023 @ 17:20 UTC
updated: 26 Apr 2023 (removed burgers)
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"Bake sweet potatoes in their jackets in the oven
or over coals in foil with butter for 40 minutes.
Serve one per person."
--Mary Land 1954, Louisiana Cookery, p.211.
BAKE: Pierce holes w fork.
2hr @150C/300F, 1.5hr @175C/350F, 45min @200C/400F
Cut open, mash w butter and salt.
STEAM whole 30+ mins.
BOIL water to cover. Put in washed, whole unpeeled.
Cover, cook 20-30 min til tender. Drain, drop in
cold water, peels slip right off.
GRILL: Steam til tender. Skewer, baste with [miso-
walnut sauce]. Broil 1-2min, turn, broil 1-2 min.
PUREE: Mash without skin. For young babies, food
process or blend.
FREEZE: Put puree in icecube trays, dump in wax-
lined freezer bags. Keeps frozen 2 months.
FERMENT: Bake 1.5kg/3lb slow (2hrs). Peel, mash w
5mL/1 tsp seasalt & 60mL/4 Tbsp fresh whey. Place
in bowl, cover, leave room temp 24 hr. Refrigerate
in airtight container.
Baby must be >4 months old to eat cooked & pureed.
Two varieties sold in United States:
- bright orange flesh, sweet & moist cooked,
- ivory flesh, dry & mealy like white potato.
Dry-fleshed variety replaces white potatoes in
most recipes. Cooks faster, reheats better. Try
(sweet) potato salad & pancakes.
Moist sweet variety often labeled yam. Real yams
foreign-grown, can't usually find in US market,
have virtually no vitamin A.
Available year round. Peak Oct--Dec.
Buy loose. Get a good look at each one. Choose
small to medium-sized, thick, chunky, well-shaped,
tapering toward ends. Skin should be dry, firm,
bright, smooth, uniformly colored.
Try to get unwaxed; wax may hold pesticide residue.
Avoid ones with cuts, worm holes. Decay found
often: shriveled ends; wet, soft, discolored, or
sunken spots. Cutting out damage does no good. A
bad spot ruins it; the rest looks good, tastes
bad. Discard if serious damage.
Store in cool dark (10C/50F) in perforated plastic
bag so moisture doesn't build, after loosely wrap-
ping in wax paper for several weeks.
- Store room temp <1 week.
- Refrigerate cooked <5 days.
--Ruth Yaron 1996, 2013, Super Baby Food p.215-7
Probably no vegetable has higher beta carotene con-
tent. Beta carotene protects against cancer, cold,
infections. Carotene content increases as sweet
potatoes are stored through winter. Our bodies
only convert carotene to vitamin A in the presence
of bile salts. Eat w butter, egg yolks or cream.
These fats stimulate secretion of bile, help the
body convert carotenes to vitamin A, & make sweet
potatoes taste delicious.
Sweet potato's a good source of iron, potassium,
niacin, vitamin C, fiber. It's rich in vitamin B6
& magnesium, which protect against heart disease.
--Sally Fallon 1999, Nourishing Traditions p.405
Cooling thermal nature. Sweet flavor. Strengthens
spleen-pancreas. Promotes qi. Increases milk quan-
tity in lactating women. Removes toxins from body.
Builds kidney yin capability which benefits dry/
inflamed conditions.
Helps remedy thinness, diarrhea, night blindness.
If child swallows metallic object/coin, feed lots
of sweet potato. Sticks to object, eases passing.
Too much causes indigestion, abdominal swelling.
Moist red-fleshed variety exceptionally sweet, if
overeaten may cause weakness.
--P Pitchford 1993, 2002, Healing with Whole Foods
RECIPES
C=cup/240mL, T=Tablespoon/15mL, tsp=teaspoon/5mL
[miso-walnut sauce] for Grilled Sweet Potatoes
15mL/1T oil, 30mL/2T walnut flour
250mL/1C hot miso soup, dash nutmeg
Heat oil, stir in flour 1-2min on low. Take off.
Briskly stir in soup til smooth. Return to heat,
add nutmeg, nearly boil. Simmer til thick on low.
--Healing with Whole Foods p.602
Sweet Potato Dollars
serves 4
3-4 sweet potatoes, 3T melted butter, 3T olive oil
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Peel, slice at 1/4in intervals into rounds. Brush
2 baking pans w butter/oil mix. Arrange rounds in
layer, brush w remaining butter/oil. 45min @350F.
Sweet Potato Pancakes
serves 4-6
2 medium sweet potatoes peeled & grated
1 large potato unpeeled, washed & grated
2T whey or lemon juice, 1T sea salt
1 medium onion minced, 1 small carrot grated
3 eggs lightly beaten, 4T spelt or white flour
1/4C cilantro chopped fine, 3T butter 3T olive oil
--
Soak grated sweet potato in water w whey or lemon
juice overnight. Drain, squeeze dry in tea towel.
Mix eggs w flour & cilantro, season to taste. Stir
in grated veggies. Use 1/3-cup measure to scoop
batter. Saute in butter & oil til both sides gold.
--Nourishing Traditions p.405-6
Black Bean & Sweet Potato Burritos
prep 5min, cook 10min, serves 6-8
flour tortillas, 1T canola oil, 1/2C onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced, 3T peanut butter
3C sweet potatoes cooked & chopped
1.5C black beans cooked & drained
1tsp cumin, 1/2tsp cinnamon, 1/4tsp cayenne
1/4C green onions chopped, 2T cilantro chopped
salsa, sour cream
--
Heat oil medium-high. Saute garlic & onions a few
minutes til tender & onion translucent.
Stir in peanut butter, sweet potato, black beans,
mashing slightly.
Add spices, mix well. Cook a few more mins til
everything's heated through. Don't scorch, stir.
Serve in warm tortillas. Top w salsa, sour cream,
green onions, cilantro.
--Ryan Splint 2015, Hot Damn & Hell Yeah p.73
Sweet Potato Bread
Serves 8
Mix 1C shortening & 1C brown sugar. Add juice of 1
orange. Beat 3 eggs, mix well w other ingredients.
Beat. Add 6 baked sweet potatoes. Mix 1C cream w
2C butter & warm. Add to sweet potato mix. Sift 2C
flour, 1T baking powder, 1tsp salt. Add dry ingre-
dients. Mix & pour batter in greased baking dish.
Bake in preheated oven with slow heat ~40min.
Remove from dish, cool before cutting. Add shelled
pecans or fruit if desired.
--Louisiana Cookery p.245-6
Sweet Potato Pie
prep 25min, cook 60min, serves 6-8
unbaked crust, 1.5C sweet potatoes cooked & mashed
1T margarine softened, 1tsp baking powder
1/8tsp ground cloves, 1/8tsp ground nutmeg
1/2C silken tofu squeezed & pureed or well-mashed
1C white sugar, 1tsp ground cinnamon
1/8tsp ground allspice, 1/2tsp vanilla extract
1/2C soymilk with 2tsp lemon juice mixed in
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Preheat oven to 400F. Line pie plate w unbaked
crust. In large bowl combine sweet potato, margar-
ine, dry ingredients. Beat smooth. Stir in tofu,
soymilk, vanilla. Pour in pie plate.
Bake in preheated oven 10min @400F. Reduce heat to
350F, cook 35 more mins. Serve warm or chilled.
Garnish w whipped topping and a whole pecan.
--Hot Damn & Hell Yeah p.126
