Sweet potatoes are good all year
January 5, 2005
By Marc Bouchard
Question: What American-grown vegetable
do the following sentences describe?
It was eaten by approximately 75 percent of the American
public during the Thanksgiving, and Christmas seasons?
It will probably not be eaten by about 75 percent of
those same people until the next group of holidays comes
around.
It is one of the few produce items whose popularity
has diminished over the last few years.
It is thought of as being a high-fat, high-carbohydrate
and high-calorie vegetable, unsuitable for the weight-loss
diets that many of us are about to undertake.
Contrary to this belief, it is in reality an outstanding
diet food, undoubtedly one of the healthiest foods on
the entire planet.
Answer: The orange-fleshed sweet potato,
sometimes called a yam.
Enjoy the potato
Don’t blame the sweet potato for its poor public
image! The fault lies in the way it was handled in the
kitchen.
It’s hardly surprising that most of you will
forsake this prince among vegetables. The majority of
the sweet potatoes eaten during the last two months
were mutilated beyond recognition by the cooks who prepared
them.
Boiled into a soft mush, blended with enough butter,
cream and fat to kill a pig, and sweetened with enough
sugar to put us all into shock, the final results are
predictable. Whether served in a pie or cake, or smothered
with baked marshmallows (more sugar!), after a few bites
of these over-processed sweet potatoes, we’ve
had enough.
If, instead, we had treated them with some respect,
we could have enjoyed the naturally rich flavor and
texture without becoming tired of it. At the same time,
we could also enjoy its nutritional benefits.
Sure, the sweet potato is a starchy vegetable laden
with carbohydrates and natural sugars. But this is offset
by a generous portion of nutritional fiber.
In addition, its vitamin and mineral quotients are
off the chart, compared to most other vegetables –
potassium, iron, A, B, C, D, and all in considerable
amounts.
Best of all, sweet potatoes are loaded with beta carotenes,
more than either broccoli or carrots. These antioxidants
are important to our immune system, which could come
in handy as the cold and flu season rolls along.
In the opinion of some experts, sweet potatoes rate
overall as the healthiest vegetable generally available
to the general consumer. So why aren’t you eating
more of them?
I will grant you that a plate of nothing but sweet
potatoes is too much of a good thing: Too much starch,
too much sugar (no matter how natural) and just too
much orange.
But used in judicious quantities as a foil for other
foods, it provides a welcome contrast. In this manner,
you can enjoy the richness without developing palate
fatigue.
In addition, sweet potatoes are extremely easy and
quick to prepare. And moneywise, they are consistently
one of the best food values, in terms of both quantity
and quality.
Potato prep
For starters, let’s steer clear of the classic
boiled and mashed treatment. It’s probably the
least interesting way to prepare them.
If you are a soup or stew maker (and who isn’t
at this time of year?), consider adding a small amount
of diced sweet potatoes to the pot. They add a natural
sweetness that works well against bitter vegetables
such as celery and savory meats such as beef and pork.
In vegetable soups, the judicious addition of cubed
sweet potatoes livens things up, without overpowering
other elements. In a pot of white or black bean soup,
sweet potatoes not only add taste, but they break up
otherwise dull color patterns, making the dish more
visually appealing.
The trick is to know when to add them, so they retain
their shape and do not disintegrate into mush.
The secret is to cook the soup until most of the ingredients
are 90 percent done. At the last minute, add sweet potatoes
cut into 1-inch cubes.
It probably won’t take more than 10 or 15 minutes
more simmering, and the potatoes should be tender but
still hold their shape. Shut off the heat immediately.
All the variety
Roasting or pan-frying the potatoes accomplishes more
than merely cooking them. It gives them the one thing
they so sorely lack: texture.
A little high heat against the open flesh of the potato
will caramelize those natural sugars, encouraging the
development of a crispy skin. And who doesn’t
like crispy potatoes?
Served on the side of almost any grilled, broiled or
roasted fish or meat, crispy sweet potatoes enhance
their savory aromas. And at the same time, the nutritional
level of your entire meal will improve significantly.
If you have any roasted or fried sweet potatoes left
over after dinner, save them. You’ll be amazed
at how many ways you can use them.
Leftover potatoes can turn the next morning’s
hash browns into something special. Cold sweets can
be diced and mixed with boiled white potatoes for a
colorful potato salad.
Create hearty winter pasta by sauteing leftover roasted
sweets with a tablespoon of olive oil, garlic, sliced
mushrooms and shredded Swiss chard or spinach. Add a
portion of cooked spaghetti or fusilli and a light sprinkling
of Parmesan cheese, and you’ve got a low-fat and
high-vitamin and -fiber meal.
Whatever you do, don’t run to the store and buy
10 pounds of sweet potatoes, just for the beta carotene.
Within a couple of days, you’ll be tired of them.
Since they hold up so well, I always keep just one
or two of the tubers on the counter next to the onions
and garlic. That way, whenever the mood strikes, I can
use them without ever becoming bored.
OVEN ROASTED SWEET POTATO SPEARS
Sweet potato
1 teaspoon oil
Salt
Pepper
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Using a sturdy chef’s knife and a steady cutting
board, slice the potato in half lengthwise. Then slice
each half into 4 long wedges of approximately the same
size. In a bowl, toss the wedges with the oil and a
generous pinch of salt and pepper.
Arrange the wedges skin side down on a cookie sheet
or tray. Place in the oven and bake until the flesh
is beginning to brown and a light crust is developing.
Time will vary from 18 to 30 minutes.
The best way to test the potatoes is to pinch the flesh
with your fingers. If you can easily push your fingers
through, they’re done.
TWO POTATO PANCAKE
½ cup grated sweet potato
½ cup grated white potato
Salt
Pepper
½ tablespoon oil
½ tablespoon unsalted butter
In a small bowl, combine the two potatoes with a healthy
pinch of salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly.
Place a nonstick 10-inch saute pan over high heat.
Add the oil, and when it is hot add the grated potatoes.
With a spatula, spread the potatoes about to form a
circle of uniform thickness. Press down on the potatoes
with the back of the spatula to compress slightly.
Lower the heat to medium, and cook until the potatoes
have browned on one side. Invert the pan over a plate
so the pancake drops out with its cooked side facing
up.
Add the butter and as soon as it has melted slide the
cake back into the pan. Cook on medium heat until the
other side has browned. Remove immediately and serve.
The outer surface will be crispy, with the shreds of
sweet potatoes darker than the white potato. The interior
should still be slightly moist.
Total cooking time is about 4 to 6 minutes.
NOTE: Pancakes or latkes traditionally call for binders,
such as flour, cheese or eggs. In this case, the natural
starches present in the potatoes will do the job, yielding
a lower calorie cake.
Source:www.nashuatelegraph.com
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