Sweet Potatoes Three Ways

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I don't have much to say here, short of the fact that sweet potatoes really float my boat.

They are good many ways, so I've chosen to share three with you today: mashed, oven fries and baked. Each is good in its own way and all are a welcome addition to any table.

A lot of my friends are wary when I tout the goodness of sweet potatoes, since their main exposure to them has been in the form of a casserole covered in marshmallows and maple syrup. That makes them sweet in the wrong way, and I understand why my friends are not huge fans of the sweet potato. Generally, once they've tried one of my plain and simple treatments, they are converted.

Enjoy them on their own or integrated into a meal with a salad and a roast.

Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

  • 1 to 4 sweet potatoes, skinned, boiled and diced
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • Salt to taste

Preparation

  • Put boiled potatoes in a bowl, add milk, butter and salt and mash them all up thoroughly.
  • You can also add 2 tablespoons of grated cheese like parmesan or sharp cheddar to the warm potatoes.

Oven-Baked French Fries

Ingredients

  • 1 to 4 sweet potatoes, skinned and cut into matchsticks
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • Salt to taste

Preparation

  • Place potato matchsticks on a rimmed baking sheet and put them into a 425 degree oven. Bake for 20 minutes, flipping the potatoes over halfway through the cooking time. Remove from oven, salt and serve.

Baked Potatoes

Ingredients

  • 1 to 4 potatoes (sweet, russet, new), pierced with a fork

Preparation

  • Bake potatoes for 40 minutes, remove from oven, pop open the potatoes and serve!
  • Serve with butter, sour cream, bacon or grated cheese.

roasted veggies

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"Kids will eat anything if you broil them in oil (the food, not the kids). Heck, you could probably get her to eat cardboard prepared that way."

So said my oldest sister D. when I reported that my daughter Iz, at the ripe young age of 2 was eating sweet potatoes, cauliflower and brussels sprouts. D. was especially impressed, having a son just one month younger than Ms. Iz, who would not think of touching any of these foods.

I recall Gran Fran making all kinds of food (that might have been considered odd for a home cook, even in NY in the late 70's and early 80's), such as okra, paté, bagna cauda, and any number of other off-the-beaten-path items she was inerested in trying out that week.

There were no options, as I mentioned in some earlier posts. You ate what the parents made. No questions, no exceptions. So, if a plateful of broccoli rabe with red pepper flakes showed up on the table, you ate it. I am not a fan of cooked spinach, never have been , never will be, but that is how it was served in those days on Gran Fran's table, so I had to eat it.

In my own adulthood, I have come to love okra, broccoli rabe and spinach (but uncooked, please). And, I've found a foolproof way to create veggies any kid (almost) will eat: roast the heck out of them. The longer they roast (or the higher the oven heat), the sweeter they become. To be fair, some of the important nutrients do disappate if you cook the veggies too long, but as an introduction to the different flavors and textures of a good variety of vegetables to a young one's palette, you can't beat this.

It is now possible for me to serve brussels sprouts and cauliflower just steamed, hence preserving their vitamins and minerals, to Ms. Iz, and she loves them. Of course, she likes it best when I add some olive oil to either a baking dish or a hot pan on the stove, and saute or roast her veggies, but she will eat them either way with pleasure.

Roasted Veggies

serves 4 as a side dish

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. Brussels Sprouts (or caulifower works well, too), shredded or well chopped
  • 3 Tbsps Olive Oil (best-quality, of course)
  • Salt to taste (you can add pepper, but not for the little ones

Method:

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees
  • Take a sheet pan, add some olive oil and salt.
  • Place the vegetables in question, and toss to coat with olive oil.
  • Roast in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the veggies are nicely browned.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes serves 4 as a side dish

Ingredients:
  • 2 Large Sweet Potatoes
  • 4 Tbsps Olive Oil (best-quality, of course)
  • Salt to taste (you can add pepper, but not for the little ones
Method:
  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees
  • Take a sheet pan, add some olive oil and salt.
  • Place the vegetables in question, and toss to coat with olive oil.
  • Roast in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, until the potatoes are nicely browned.