Everyday Road to Healthy

  • Home
  • Healthy Eating
    • Recipes
  • Health & Fitness
    • Goal Trackers
    • Our Cancer Stories
  • Self Care
  • Home Care
  • ERTH Finds
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Copyright
    • Privacy Policy

December 22, 2020 ·

Totally Tubular Sweet Potatoes

Healthy Eating

Jump to Recipe

The sweet potato gets a lot of much-deserved glory during the Thanksgiving holiday when it is baked with milk, butter, and brown sugar and sometimes (always in our house) topped with marshmallows. But it’s also a great alternative and slightly healthier option to its spud counterpart on any of the other 364 days of the year as well. So let’s dive a little more into the what, why and how of the sweet potato.

What makes something a “tuber” vegetable? Tubers are the oblong growth (ie, a potato) on an underground root of a plant that store nutrients for next season’s growth. Once they are mature, they are dug up and used for food. Other popular tubers are taro, ginger and artichokes, not to be confused with “root” vegetables such as carrots.

What are the benefits of eating sweet potatoes? I recently participated in a 21-day workshop on intermittent fasting. A question was asked about what to eat during the fed state when feeling a little run down (it was actually a question specific to menstruation, but I imagine it applies to any feelings of fatigue and just overall lack of energy). The answer was to add sweet potatoes to meals. That’s because the sweet potato is high in carbs and fiber but lower on the glycemic index than a regular white potato. This means slower digestion and slower rise of blood glucose levels and insulin levels for sustained energy. It’s a low and slow carb.

Is a sweet potato healthier than a white potato? The short answer is not much. The main benefit is what is mentioned above. But nutrient for nutrient, they are about the same. The only nutrient where a sweet potato reigns supreme is Vitamin A. Sweet potatoes are high in the antioxidant beta carotene, giving it its orange color, which our bodies convert to Vitamin A. Vitamin A helps with things like vision (eat your carrots), immune health and reproductive system.

Can you eat the peel? Yes, once scrubbed clean, the peel can be eaten. But as a matter of preference, I find most people do not.

I say sweet potato, you say yam. A yam is a sweet potato, but a sweet potato is not always a yam. Huh? A yam is actually a TYPE of sweet potato, but not the type of sweet potato we’re talking about here. For our purposes, when I say sweet potato, I mean sweet potato, like what is typically found in stores, is called for in recipes and what is pictured in this post.

How to cook sweet potatoes – So let’s get down to the best part. Cooking and EATING the sweet potato!

Bake ’em: Scrub them clean, poke some holes in them with a fork, line the pan (trust me on this one because they ooze goodness while they bake), and bake at 425 degrees for 45 minutes, or until tender.

Microwave ’em: If you aren’t against using a microwave to cook your food, you can prep the potato the same way as above and microwave for 5 minutes. If not cooked to tender, continue cooking in 30-60 second increments until done.

Oven Roast ’em: This is my favorite way to prepare sweet potatoes as a side dish for dinner. I peel and cube them and toss them with olive oil and a little maple syrup. Bake at 425 for about 30 minutes until they are tender and slightly caramelized.

Print Recipe

Oven-Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

  • 2 medium sweet potatoes
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 tsp sea salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  • Scrub sweet potatoes, peel and cut into cubes.
  • In a large bowl, toss the sweet potatoes with olive oil and maple syrup.
  • Spread potatoes on a parchment lined baking sheet and sprinkle with salt.
  • Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes or until caramelized and tender.

And of course, add to recipes: We’ve featured quite a few recipes with sweet potatoes as the star. Try our Brussel Sprouts and Sweet Potatoes Hash, Karina’s Sweet Potato & Black Bean Enchiladas, and Southern Sweet Potato Casserole.

Eat healthy!

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin4
4 Shares

Don’t miss out!

Previous Post: « 10 Peloton Must Have Accessories
Next Post: Candy Cane Christmas Cookies »

Footer

LET’S GET SOCIAL

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

everydayroadtohealthy

☘️Happy St. Patrick’s Day! ☘️ I’m we ☘️Happy St. Patrick’s Day! ☘️ 

I’m wearing my green today and preparing to make some corned beef and cabbage for dinner, but what is this day about? Here are some fun facts:
☘️
What are we celebrating? St Patrick’s Day commemorates the patron saint of Ireland, a missionary who brought Christianity to Ireland. It is celebrated on March 17th, which is the day he is believed to have died.
☘️
Why shamrocks? St. Patrick used the 3-leaf shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity.
☘️
Why green? Green has tradition in Ireland but an old folklore states that wearing green makes you invisible to leprechauns. If they can see you, they will pinch you! 
☘️
Why corned beef and cabbage?  Well, corned beef and cabbage is NOT the traditional dish in Ireland! When Irish immigrants came to America, they couldn’t afford the more traditional pork and bacon, so they used the cheapest cut of meat they could find, beef brisket. So corned beef (not in any way related to corn but is a reference to the brine) and the inexpensive vegetable, cabbage, became the celebration dish of choice. (Side note, if you are Catholic and St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Friday during Lent, like today, diocese will usually issue a dispensation from abstinence, which means meat can be eaten today.  So queue the corned beef!).
☘️
#funfactfriday #stpatricksday
Because I love this quote so much, I had to upgrad Because I love this quote so much, I had to upgrade it from a story to a post. Michelle Yeoh, 60 years old, is the first Asian woman to win an Oscar for best actress for her performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once. 🏆What an inspiration! 💗 And not to be overshadowed, Jaime Lee Curtis won her first Oscar for a supporting role in the same movie. She is 64.

🌟It’s never too late!🌟

#ageisjustanumber #everythingeverywhereallatonce #michelleyeoh #jamieleecurtis #oscars #everydayroadtohealthy #healthyliving #healthylife #healthylifestyle #healthyeating #healthyhabits #selfcare #healthandwellness #healthandfitness #startwhereyouare #earthdayeveryday #healthyfood #fitness #fitnessjourney #healthjourney #fitnessmotivation #healthyrecipes #fitnessover40 #pushing50
Angela’s day in a reel - 1/21/2023 #dailyreel #e Angela’s day in a reel - 1/21/2023
#dailyreel #everydayroadtohealthy #butfirstcoffee #southblock #acaibowl #onelife #neopolitanpizza #boxerdog
Happy New Year! I’ve been a little absent becaus Happy New Year! I’ve been a little absent because I started the year off with a cold that left me tired and unmotivated. But I’m feeling better and starting my goal tracking a little late. I thought it would be helpful to combine all our goal trackers into one file for easy downloading and printing. The link to the all-in-one file can be found in our profile @everydayroadtohealthy ☝🏼. Swipe to see January printed at 75% and taped inside my planner. I’m hoping this works better for me this year!
💚 Start where you are. 🤎
.
#everydayroadtohealthy #healthyliving #healthylife #healthylifestyle #healthyeating #healthyhabits #selfcare #healthandwellness #healthandfitness #startwhereyouare #earthdayeveryday #healthyfood #fitness #fitnessjourney #healthjourney #fitnessmotivation #healthyrecipes #fitnessover40 #pushing50 #habittracker #goaltracker #2023goals
2022, you were filled with some great memories! I’m always sad to see another year go by. But I’m looking forward to making memories in 2023! 
.
#everydayroadtohealthy #healthyliving #healthylife #healthylifestyle #healthyeating #healthyhabits #selfcare #healthandwellness #healthandfitness #startwhereyouare #earthdayeveryday #healthyfood #fitness #fitnessjourney #healthjourney #fitnessmotivation #healthyrecipes #fitnessover40 #pushing50 #goodbye2022 #hello2023 #timeisathief #happynewyear #makingmemories
We hope everyone has a wonderful day filled with t We hope everyone has a wonderful day filled with the magic of the season! ❤️💚
I gave our protein balls recipe a little Christmas I gave our protein balls recipe a little Christmas upgrade. After refrigerating for a bit, dip in some melted chocolate and add some sprinkles! 😋 Search “protein balls” at everydayroadtohealthy.com for basic recipe, then add your own holiday upgrade!
.
#everydayroadtohealthy #healthyliving #healthylife #healthylifestyle #healthyeating #healthyhabits #selfcare #healthandwellness #healthandfitness #startwhereyouare #healthyfood #healthyrecipes #fitnessover40 #pushing50 #proteinballs #proteintreats #healthyholiday #healthyholidayrecipes #healthyholidaytreats
I’m sharing my tips and tricks for making the pe I’m sharing my tips and tricks for making the perfect jasmine rice 🍚 including what rice cooker I use, how much I make, and an age old method for measuring the water. Search “perfect jasmine rice” at www.everydayroadtohealthy.com for all the details!🍚
.
#everydayroadtohealthy #healthyliving #healthylife #healthylifestyle #healthyeating #healthyhabits #selfcare #healthandwellness #healthandfitness #startwhereyouare #earthdayeveryday #healthyfood #fitness #fitnessjourney #healthjourney #fitnessmotivation #healthyrecipes #rice #howtomakerice #ricecooker #perfectrice #jasminerice
If you’re looking for a way to volunteer this ho If you’re looking for a way to volunteer this holiday season - Wreaths Across America is this Saturday, Dec 17th. “In many homes there is an empty seat for one who is serving or one that made the ultimate sacrifice” this holiday season. Visit wreathsacrossamerica.org for more details on volunteering, donations, and locations near you.
Load More... Follow on Instagram