Sweet Potato Memories
Remember that side of sweet potatoes often served at holidays. And the gooey marshmallow topping that turned yams and sweet potatoes into pie? When I was a kid, I scraped the marshmallows off the delicacy and smeared the orange vegetable that people said was good for me aside. I loved my sweets, but vegetables? Yuk. I grew up thinking that sweet potatoes, yams, pumpkins and the like had to be sweetened in order to be palatable.
And yet, I could devour regular potatoes--no sugar of course but mashed, baked, fried, you name it. I still love potatoes, but because of their high starch avoid them in order to keep my blood sugars in balance. Today you will not find a single white potato in my house. Unless it is Christmas time and I am making lefsa.
In recent years I have converted from white potatoes to sweets and usually have them available every day. (My husband is a runner and sweet potatoes are a terrific recovery food.) They are excellent baked, steamed, oven fried and one of my favorites, sweet potato fries. Since the sweet potato casserole is still a popular dish, I thought I'd share my healthy version.
These days I resist the urge to add sugar to sweet potatoes. Okay, maybe a little maple syrup with the butter on a baked sweet. More and more though I find that they are delicious with nothing on them at all.
Now instead of adding all that sugar, I've created something even tastier. Of course you can simplify this dish even more by leaving out the eggs and serving the sweets mashed. I included the calorie laden version below so you could see the changes. Enjoy!
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 C clarified butter or coconut oil*
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 to 1 tsp cinnamon
2 T coconut milk (canned)
3/4 C pecans (Chop most but reserve some whole for topping.)
*you can eliminate the butter or oil and it still tastes great.
Directions for the healthy version
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil a suitably sized baking dish.
2. Bake or steam sweet potatoes until they begin to soften, about 30 minutes. Cool slightly, then peel and mash.
3. In a large bowl, mix the mashed sweet potatoes, salt, 1/4 cup butter, eggs, vanilla extract, cinnamon, sugar, and coconut milk. (I use the food processor for this.) Fold in chopped pecans, then pour into baking dish.
4. Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until top is slightly browned. Place whole pecans on surface as desired for presentation.
5. Pecans can be candied by mixing them in a little raw honey and then sprinkling them on the top of the dish.
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 C butter
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 C sugar
2 T heavy cream
-------------------------------
1/4 C butter softened
3 T flour
3/4 C packed light brown sugar
1/2 C chopped Pecans
And yet, I could devour regular potatoes--no sugar of course but mashed, baked, fried, you name it. I still love potatoes, but because of their high starch avoid them in order to keep my blood sugars in balance. Today you will not find a single white potato in my house. Unless it is Christmas time and I am making lefsa.
In recent years I have converted from white potatoes to sweets and usually have them available every day. (My husband is a runner and sweet potatoes are a terrific recovery food.) They are excellent baked, steamed, oven fried and one of my favorites, sweet potato fries. Since the sweet potato casserole is still a popular dish, I thought I'd share my healthy version.
A Healthy Easter Treat
These days I resist the urge to add sugar to sweet potatoes. Okay, maybe a little maple syrup with the butter on a baked sweet. More and more though I find that they are delicious with nothing on them at all.
Now instead of adding all that sugar, I've created something even tastier. Of course you can simplify this dish even more by leaving out the eggs and serving the sweets mashed. I included the calorie laden version below so you could see the changes. Enjoy!
Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole
4-5 sweet potatoes1/4 tsp salt
1/4 C clarified butter or coconut oil*
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 to 1 tsp cinnamon
2 T coconut milk (canned)
3/4 C pecans (Chop most but reserve some whole for topping.)
*you can eliminate the butter or oil and it still tastes great.
Directions for the healthy version
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil a suitably sized baking dish.
2. Bake or steam sweet potatoes until they begin to soften, about 30 minutes. Cool slightly, then peel and mash.
3. In a large bowl, mix the mashed sweet potatoes, salt, 1/4 cup butter, eggs, vanilla extract, cinnamon, sugar, and coconut milk. (I use the food processor for this.) Fold in chopped pecans, then pour into baking dish.
4. Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until top is slightly browned. Place whole pecans on surface as desired for presentation.
5. Pecans can be candied by mixing them in a little raw honey and then sprinkling them on the top of the dish.
Original Recipe
5 sweet potatoes1/4 tsp salt
1/4 C butter
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 C sugar
2 T heavy cream
-------------------------------
1/4 C butter softened
3 T flour
3/4 C packed light brown sugar
1/2 C chopped Pecans
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