Real Food Friday Feast - Sweet Potato Bake

My body has never liked normal potatoes. I'm not sure why but it's linked to my IBS. It could be because it's just a heavy vegetable to eat. It contains a lot of starch. Whatever the reason, I can't eat them, but fortunately, sweet potato doesn't affect me at all and I love sweet potato so I am always looking for new ways to prepare it.

First, a quick look at the health benefits of sweet potato in comparison to a normal, white potato:

• Fibre content: Sweet potatoes contain almost twice the amount of fibre as normal potatoes. The high fibre makes them far lower on the Glycemic Index than normal potatoes because they release far slower into your system, thereby avoiding a sugar rush.
• Vitamin content: 
• They contain a lot of vitamin B6 which is crucial in breaking down homocysteine, a substance which contributes to hardening of the arteries and blood vessels. Vitamin B6 helps keep the walls of blood vessels flexible and healthy allowing blood to flow freely. They also contain a lot of potassium which plays an important role in lowering blood pressure AND it's an important electrolyte which helps the brain and central nervous system function normally. 
• One sweet potato contains your complete recommended daily allowance of Vitamin A, and then some. Beta-carotene or vitamin A is a powerful antioxidant which helps prevent several different types of cancer. It also helps to protect your skin internally from sun damage and it's very good for protecting your eyes from damage as well.
• Sweet potatoes are rich in vitamins C and E which are potent antioxidants that prevent disease and promote longevity. They also play a huge role in the health and beauty of your skin and hair. All of these vitamins combined make the sweet potato a really powerful "beauty food";) They'll give you a healthy, glowing complexion and vibrant hair!
  
• Mineral content: Manganese is a trace mineral that has some really good health benefits. It supports healthy blood sugar levels which can help stabilize the appetite for hours where most other carbohydrates will give you a sugar crash. It plays an important role in the generation of energy and the utilisation of antioxidants. It helps anemia and premenstrual symptoms in women as well.

It's important to always eat some fat with your sweet potatoes if you really want to reap all the benefits of the vitamins it contains. Actually, it's important to eat fat with ALL your meals! But especially sweet potatoes. That way your body will use all the beta-carotene available, and it's a LOT, in a sweet potato.

The key with sweet potatoes, is NOT to confuse them with normal potatoes when cooking. They ARE sweet and that means they probably won't go too well with some of the things a normal potato will be tasty with. If you are going to make a sweet potato dish, prepare for it to be just that, sweet! This sweet potato bake is not to be confused with a normal potato bake which is all about cheese and salt and onions and all other things savoury! This is very different.With that in mind, I tried out this recipe on a few friends and GLM as well. She's not a fan of sweet food mixed with savoury. To be honest, I'm not either! But this came out really tasty and was a hit all round:) 

Sweet potato bake

1kg sweet potatoes

1 Tbs raw honey

2 Tbs butter

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

2 large eggs

1/2 cup crushed or chopped pecan nuts

• Preheat oven to 180° C
• Scrub sweet potatoes with some water mixed with a little vinegar (to get rid of any nasties) and chop them into chunks
• Place in a pot of water and boil until tender OR, if you have a steamer, place in  the steamer until tender (I prefer this method as it preserves more nutrients)
• Once cooked, remove all the skin (this will be really easy now that it's soft. This is the only time I'll recommend removing the skin and it's simply to avoid clogging up your mixer. The skin of a sweet potato is very tasty and good for you.)
• Place sweet potato pulp in a large bowl and add honey, butter, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg and beat with a mixer on low speed until it's all combined
• Add eggs and beat until smooth
• Spoon mixture into a baking dish
• Cover with crushed pecan nuts (if your dish is big you may need more pecan nuts. It's really nice to cover it completely so the whole top is crunchy)
• Bake for about 40mins
• Just before you serve it, put it under the grill for 5 minutes to make the nuts nice and crunchy
• Serve!

This dish actually even works as a dessert. It's a great winter meal because it is like real comfort food and kids will love it!

Have a super weekend everyone!