Thanksgiving is fast approaching and many a sweet potato casserole, rolls and pies will grace the dinner table. Americans will be buying pounds of sweet potatoes and cans of yams to make all the traditional goodies for the holiday season.
I always get confused about sweet potatoes and yams…Are they the same only with two names? Is there a difference between a casserole made from sweet potatoes versus one made from a can of yams? I know I’m not the brightest ‘bulb’ in the garden but every fall this burning question comes up. So, this year I decided to get to the bottom of this veggie poser.
You will be happy and very relieved to know that sweet potatoes and yams are two different animals. Sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas produce a root (the part that we eat) in 90-150 days and are easy to grow here in the U.S. Yams, Dioscorea batatas produce a tuber in 180-360 days and grow only in tropical climates. Yes, that means those cans of yams are really sweet taters!
Even the appearance is different; the skin of the sweet potato is thin and smooth while the yam has a rough and scaly skin.
So why do folks call sweet potatoes yams? One theory is about 50 years ago commercial growers in Louisiana wanted to give their sweet potatoes a unique product advantage so they would outsell those grown elsewhere. They decided to market them as “Louisiana Yams”…makes sense now, right?
When it comes to nutrition, sweet potatoes pack a punch that even Popeye would respect. Sweet potatoes have loads of beta carotene, Vitamin E and fiber without the fat, plus Vitamin B6, potassium and iron. The Nutrition Action Health Letter rates sweet potatoes as the number one best food to eat. A real super food! http://www.cspinet.org/nah/10foods_bad.html
Bake, boil, steam, roast, fry or microwave sweet potatoes for a powerhouse of flavor and nutrition…check out http://www.ncsweetpotatoes.com/index.php for lots of creative recipes.
Just think, this year you can be thankful for sweet potatoes and be able to share with others at the dinner table that cans of yams (grown in the US) aren’t really yams at all…I think there is a Dr. Seuss story in here somewhere!
For those of you who would like to know how to grow sweet potatoes stay tuned,
we will dig into that this winter.
Here are a couple of sweet potato recipes from my kitchen that I think you will enjoy.
Cindy Sue’s Sweet Potato Soup
Sauté in heavy steel pan with 1 tablespoon of butter on low heat until tender:
1 large onion, chopped
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 tart apple, peeled, seeded and chopped
Add:
1 can chicken broth
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon curry
1/8 to ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
½ Tablespoon fresh grated ginger root
Simmer on low until all is cooked (mushy)
Add 3 cups cream or milk, use a hand held blender to mix until desired creamy texture is achieved. Some small chunks are okay.
This is so good it is like having dessert first!
Combine, mix well, spoon into 9×11 baking dish:
3 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes
½ cup sugar
2 eggs beaten
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup milk
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
4 Tablespoon butter, melted
Combine in mixing bowl, spread over sweet potato mixture
½ cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 cup chopped pecans
3 tablespoon butter, melted
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
Yields 6 servings
Double recipe and use 11×14 baking dish for large gatherings.
