3 Thanksgiving Recipes: We Be Yammin’

The Food Adventure Crew  will be yammin’ this Thanksgiving.   Today we share 3 of our “go to” recipes that may put a resurgence in your holiday sweet potato dishes.

First let’s get the scoop on this SWEET POTATOES !

HERE IS THE SKINNY ON SWEET POTATOES aka YAMS:

—That sweet, orange-colored root vegetable that you love so dearly is actually a sweet potato. Yes, all so-called “yams” are in fact sweet potatoes. Most people think that long, red-skinned sweet potatoes are yams, but they really are just one of many varieties of sweet potatoes.

Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet

— They contain high amounts of fiber and potassium. They have more grams of natural sugars than regular potato but more overall nutrients with fewer calories.  Sweet potatoes are thought to help maintain a healthy blood pressure and protect against cancer.

RECIPE #1: Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet

Lets get into out first recipe – This one is from our in-house health and wellness Food Adventurer, Jessie Whitesell.  This active mom has her own health and nutrition coach business.  She can be reached at [email protected]

This Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet takes 30 mins and you will be amazed by the fall flavors.  It’s ONE-PAN meal that is perfect for your family to enjoy!  This dish is GLUTEN FREE !

3 Tips to make the best Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet recipe:

1. Don’t overload your skillet with sweet potato because this veggies will take forever to cook and you may burn your food. If your cast iron skillet is 9-10 inches, the ideal amount of diced sweet potato is between 2-3 cups.
2. Cover the skillet with a lid and reduce the heat to medium to cook the sweet potato faster.
3. You can cook first the sweet potato and add it into the pan when the ground turkey is cooked.

   Ingredients

   •  2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
   •  1 lbs grass-fed extra-lean ground turkey
   •  1 tsp garlic clove — minced
   •  ½ cup onions — diced
   •  ½ cup yellow pepper — diced
   •  1 ½ cups sweet potato — peeled and diced
   •  Salt and freshly ground black pepper
   •  A pinch of red chili flakes
   •  ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
     

     Instructions

     

     Jessie Whitesell

     1. In an iron cast skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.
     2. Add ground turkey and garlic. Use a wood spoon breaking up the turkey while it cooks. Stir occasionally and cook for about 5 minutes.
     3. Add onions and yellow peppers and cook until onions are soft.
     4. Add the sweet potato, chili pepper, salt, and pepper.
     5. Cover the skillet and cook until they are tender. Don’t forget to stir occasionally. If necessary, add more olive oil or a little bit of water to cook the sweet potato faster.
     6. While the sweet potato is cooking, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
     7. When the sweet potato is tender, add shredded mozzarella cheese and bring the skillet to the oven to melt the cheese
     8. When the cheese melts, remove from the oven, and garnish with parsley.

      

     RECIPE #2: Cora’s Sweet Potatoes

     This one is from our Food Adventurer Jackie – the Upstate New York Italian mom with a serious appetite.

     

     Jackie and her daughters

     Jax says:

     When planning out our Thanksgiving menu, the kids asked about having sweet potatoes. I became nostalgic and told them how we used to have them with marshmallows on top (they were also the candied sweet potatoes from a can-blech).
     Well obviously the kids became excited and insisted I make that for Thanksgiving.  So Cora (my oldest) and I decided to reinvent the old classic with fresh sweet potatoes and of course, adding on the marshmallows! You’ll see that I made the dish half with and half without the marshmallows in case some people aren’t a fan. Though I think you’ll find this dish to have just enough sweetness without being overwhelming.

     

     Start with Roasted SweetPotatoes

     Ingredients:

     3 large sweet potatoes cut into cubes
     1/4 cup Orange Juice
     1/4 cup Butter
     1/2 cup Brown Sugar
     1 tsp Cinnamon
     1/4 tsp Ground Cloves
     1/4 tsp Nutmeg
     1/2 tsp Salt
     1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

   Instructions

   • Preheat oven to 375 degrees
     Grease a 9×13 dish with butter.
     In a small saucepan, simmer all ingredients (except sweet potatoes and marshmallows), until slightly reduced to a thin syrup (about 15mins).
     In a bowl, toss sweet potatoes with the syrup and then add to the greased dish.
     

     Coras Sweet Potatoes

     Bake covered with foil for approximately 45 minutes, stirring every 15.
     Bake uncovered for an additional 20 minutes, or until tender and starting to caramelize.
     Top with marshmallows and then broil until brown and gooey!
     Again you can top half only with marshmallows like we did.
     Enjoy!

   Now we pass the baton to Steve, aka The Big Ragu, who will give us his favorite sweet potato recipe that is an inspiration from the old BURBANKS  restaurants that were in Dayton and Cincinnati that specialized in BBQ.  This is the recipe for their Sweet Potato casserole, which is kind of like a sweet potato pie.  He has made it a few times for dinner parties and holidays and it is always a big hit !

    

   RECIPE #3: Burbank’s Sweet Potato Casserole:

   

   cooking the yams

   Ingredients:

   • 3 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes
   • 1/2 cup white sugar
   • 2 beaten eggs
   • 1/2 teaspoon salt
   • 4 ounces melted butter
   • 1/2 cup milk
   • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
   • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
   • 1/2 cup flour
   • 1 cup chopped nuts
   • 3 tablespoons butter

   Instructions

   

   Burbanks Sweet Potato Casserole

   1. Mix first seven ingredients together and place in 9×9 glass pan.
   2. Mix remaining ingredients and spread on top of potato mixture.
   3. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, or until heated through.
   4. Recipe may be doubled.
   5. Enjoy!

    

   ***There you have it 3 recipes for SWEET POTATOES that will boost your Thanksgiving table !  Try them and feel free to leave feedback below.

   HAPPY THANKSGIVING from FOOD ADVENTURES !

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   The Big Ragu from Food Adventures

   

   Jackies Baked Sweet Potatoes

   

   Jax serves this one half and half – with and without MARSHMALLOWS !