Monday, November 2, 2009

Mashed 'Honey'-Roasted Sweet Potatoes

What's November without a sweet potato recipe or two? This dish is a snap to prepare, and can be made a day ahead of time, then reheated in the oven, covered, at 350 degrees before serving.

Peel and cube 3 pounds of sweet potato into 1-inch cubes. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, then lightly coat the tops of the sweet potatoes with cooking spray as well.

Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Combine the sweet potatoes in a large bowl with 2 tablespoons agave nectar (in place of honey), 2 tablespoons vegan butter (such as Earth Balance), and 1/4 tsp. salt. Beat with a mixer until smooth - this was always one of my dad's tricks to his 'world famous mashed potatoes' - an electric mixer instead of a potato masher. It makes them sublimely smooth and creamy.

Transfer to a serving dish, and drizzle with 1 and 1/2 teaspoons extra agave nectar just before serving. This makes enough for 6 side servings of 1/2 a cup and 140 calories each. If you want to prepare it for a crowd for the holidays, it doubles easily.

A note on the amount of sweet potatoes: I had a hunch that 3 pounds would yield significantly more than the servings size stated, so I only bought 2 pounds-worth, and indeed I was right: 2 pounds yielded exactly 6 servings of 1/2 a cup. So if you use the original recipe's suggested 3 pounds, be prepared to have extra servings.

Cost:
sweet potato $6.97
cooking spray $6.99

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