It is fall and that means sweet potatoes are at their peak. This is the best time of year to add sweet potatoes to your holiday meals. Although, why not enjoy them all year round? Even after the holidays sweet potatoes are a delicious and nutritious food. The United States currently grows 1 million tons of sweet potatoes every year!
Sweet Superfood Power
The deep and beautiful orange hues of sweet potatoes are full of beta-carotene. This is great for are bodies. We can convert it to vitamin A when needed. That is why eating one potato can give us an abundant amount of our daily vitamin A needs.
Fun Fact: we usually think of sweet potatoes as only being orange in color. However, some can actually be a vibrant purple color!
While sweet potatoes are a starchy vegetable, they don’t affect our blood sugar like you would expect. They are loaded with fiber so our bodies can digest them slowly. They also contain extracts that can reduce and stabilize our blood sugar.
When we think of vitamin C we think of oranges. Well now we can think of sweet potatoes! They are great sources of vitamin C containing 51% the daily value.
Helpful Hint: When you are purchasing sweet potatoes at the store, it may say “yams”. However, you can be sure you are purchasing sweet potatoes. Commercial productions of yams are rare, but sweet potatoes are grown like crazy!
Cooking: Luckily sweet potatoes can be baked, boiled, grilled, stir-fried with little damage to its nutrient content. However, steaming is a good alternative. It is quick, easy and does not require any oils or high temperatures.
Try a delicious and quick sweet potato recipe from Arizona Nutrition Network at eatwellbewell.org
Fast and Easy Sweet Potatoes
1 pound sweet potatoes, washed and cut into ½ inch slices
½ cup orange juice
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon butter, melted
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
Wash hands with warm water and soap. Wash fresh vegetables before preparing.
Put sweet potatoes in a large skillet and cover with boiling water.
Cover and cook until the sweet potatoes are tender. Drain well.
Mix all the remaining ingredients in a small bowl.
Return the potatoes to the skillet. Pour the sauce over them.
Cook over medium heat for another 5 minutes.
Serve warm.
CUSD Nutrition 