Thursday, November 03, 2005

Sweet Potato Heaven

You couldn't have forced me to eat a sweet potato when I was a child, but now I eat them almost every few days in season. This week Publix features sweet potatoes for 25 cents a pound (15 cents cheaper than the place I had been buying them). I will be stockpiling enough to last me at least a couple of months. They are so easy to throw in the oven while something else is baking. The kitchen smells delicious as the flesh caramelizes and splatters in the pan.

Last Thanksgiving I brought a no-sugar-added sweet potato casserole to our family gathering. It stinks that the diabetics in the family could not enjoy what, to me, is the quintessential Thanksgiving casserole. As long as you don't load them with brown sugar, sweet potatoes are far more diabetic-friendly than white potatoes; their fiber balances the starch. I baked several potatoes until the insides felt gooey, split the skins and emptied the filling in a bowl. I added butter and "the sweet spices" to taste: nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger heighten the perceived sweet sensation because they are so often used in baked goods. I whipped an egg and half a cup of milk together, stirring it into the potato mixture. I put the casserole back in the oven at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, until thickened. On the stovetop, I toasted chopped pecans in melted butter, and quickly coated them with cinnamon and one tablespoon of sugar-free maple syrup. I poured the chopped nuts across the top of the casserole. Delicious!

3 comments:

MommyLydia said...

Times for those of us that don't know what "feels gooey" is? :)

Meredith said...

Well, I generally put them in the oven at 350 when I start thinking about dinner, and let them cook perhaps an hour, more or less. If you pick up the hot potato and it feels hard, it is not quite done yet. The cooked potato should "squish" a bit in your hand.

Anonymous said...

Enjoyed a lot! » » »