Sweeeeet Potatoes!

A wheelbarrow full of sweet potatoes just in time for Thanksgiving.

This year I thought I'd try my hand at growing sweet potatoes. I eat them enough, and had heard
they're quite heat tolerant. So, along came July and in the ground they went. They are the perfect plant to grow because sure enough, they like this Texas heat. Time passed and now it's November, and although it's still not quite that cold yet, we had a light frost and that was my signal that it is time to pick. Six hours of picking later I have over a wheelbarrow full of those wonderful orange roots! Sweet potatoes are high in beta carotene and vitamins E and C. The skins are a good source of fiber. They can also be cooked almost in any way, even eaten raw. Sweet potatoes are a great addition to any fall meal for either a savory side or a sweet dessert dish. Here are a couple ways my family likes to enjoy sweet potatoes.

Vegan- Friendly Recipies:

Sweeeeeet Potatoes! Grab a handful and get cooking!

The first and simplest way we cook sweet potatoes is with a stir fry. We cut them into round slices and also small like fries. Mix in some diced regular potato pieces, and cut up some yellow squash, and sometimes even add carrots. Put in the pan a good dash of pepper and salt. We usually use grapeseed oil for a nice pan fry, as it tends to do better with the higher temperatures. Put it on high with just the potatoes and sweet potatoes. Pan fry until mostly tender. Throw in your other veggies and fry till soft. What a great simple meal this ends up being, and completely vegan too!

The second way is to make a sweet potato casserole. This takes just a bit more effort but turns out wonderful if you like sweet potato dessert. This is also a vegan-friendly recipe.

Ingredients: 3.5 pounds sweet potato, 1/4 cup almond milk, 1/4 cup maple syrup, 2 tbsp oil. For baking: 1/3 cup flour, 11 tbsp cane sugar, 2 pinches sea salt and cinnamon, 1/2 tsp vanilla. 4 1/2 tbsp coconut oil, and 1 cup pecans.

Peel and chop sweet potatoes, and boil them until tender with some water. In the wait time make your
topping with the pecans, flour, sugar, oil, and a bit of cinnamon. Mix those together and pulse in a
blender until finely chopped.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Drain sweet potatoes when done and place in a mixing bowl with 2 tbsp vegan butter or oil. Mix until smooth. Next add the maple syrup, milk, sugar, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon. Mix again till smooth. Place mixture in a casserole dish, and add the crumbled topping, and maybe add more pecans if desired. Place in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.

Let cool for 5 minutes and enjoy!!