Carmelized Sweet Potatoes

This dish is so basic and easy, yet completely delectable….bosting huge flavour!  Sweet potatoes are sweet and on their own and cooking them “low and slow” creates a caramelized crunchy outer layer with a creamy, warm center.  There is no need for maple syrup, sugar, cinnamon etc.  This dish offers loads of protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.   Enjoy sweet potatoes great taste and reap all its nutritional benefits.

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Ingredients:

(recipe from the edible perspective)

2 yams, sliced ½ inch thick (skins on)
1-2 Tbsp coconut oil
¼ tsp unrefined sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Melt coconut oil in pot then pour over sliced yams in a bowl.   Lay on baking sheet and sprinkle with salt.  Bake 20 minutes, turning once.
2. Turn heat up to 400 and bake for another 20 minutes, turning once. 

Enjoy!

Whole Food Sneak Peak: 
            Sweet Potatoes

The sweet potato is not a member of the potato family but part of the Convolvulaceae (morning glory) family.  In North America, we call the darker, sweeter sweet potato a yam.  It is not a true yam.  There are about 400 different sweet potato varieties – their flesh may be white, yellow or orange and the skin may be white, yellow, orange, red or purple.  Some are shaped like a potato, while others are longer with tapered ends. 

When the orange-fleshed sweet potato was introduced to the US, it was given the name “yam” to distinguish it from the white-fleshed sweet potato.  If sweet potatoes are labeled “yams”, it also must be accompanied by the label “sweet potatoes” so buyers can distinguish between sweet potatoes and true yams. 

Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of carotenes – the darker the variety, the higher the concentration of carotenes.  They are a good source of vitamins C, A, B6, manganese, potassium, iron, copper, biotin, pantothenic acid, vitamin B2 and dietary fiber. 

Just 1 cup of sweet potato contains: 4 g protein, 7 g fiber, plus a good amount of the vitamins and minerals mentioned above!!

Sweet potatoes contain unique root storage proteins which have been shown to exert significant antioxidant effects.  Along with its high content of carotenes and vitamin c, the sweet potato is a valuble food for boosting antioxidants in your body.

They are classified as “antidiabetic” food.  In animal studies it has been shown to help stabilize blood sugar levels and improve the response to insulin. 

Sweet potatoes are excellent on their own, baked or mashed; added to casseroles, soups or salads; thinly sliced for chips (recipe here).