Background: I really want to like sweet potatoes. In fry form they are ok. When my kids were really little, we’d feed them roasted cubes of sweet potatoes. Those were also just ok. But if we’re being honest, they aren’t delicious like white or yellow potatoes because they don’t get golden brown. Some people claim there are tricks to make them crispy, but they are never going to be golden brown and delicious. I’ve tried sweet potato pancakes and sweet potato crêpes. I used to make these green apple, sweet potato tarts with bleu cheese. All only ever just fine. Why do I keep trying to fall in love with sweet potatoes? Because of fantasies created by marketing. It’s easy to imagine a life where sweet potatoes replace regular potatoes as a healthy alternative in all our favorite sides: fries, mashed potatoes, hash browns, etc. But that’s not, I don’t think, how nutrition works. (I’m no nutritionist.) If you fry them, load them down with butter and salt and sour cream, they might give you different nutrients, but they aren’t going to be “healthy.” Also what does “healthy” even mean? I’m not sure there’s a single meaning of “healthy.” I do think variety is important though, in both meal planning and in terms of getting lots of different nutrients. So I aim for variety in color, preparation, presentation, and flavor profile. Here’s a move that kind of worked for my family with sweet potatoes, which haven’t been a hit since the tiny roasted cube pick-ups era.
- Get a sweet potato or two, some salt, some butter, some cheese, and some All-Purpose Crunchy Vegan Topping.
- Steam them in a microwave-safe bowl or plate with a little water.
- Mash them with a potato masher and add butter while they are hot.
- Salt to taste.
- Cover with grated cheese of your choice and set aside until the rest of dinner is ready.
- When ready to serve, microwave again to warm up and melt the cheese.
- Top with All-Purpose Crunchy Vegan Topping.
Why It Works
- Peel the potato(s) and grate the cheese of your choice. I used cojack because it matched the color of the sweet potato. The sweet potato can no longer hide behind a veneer of healthiness because this dish is covered in a veneer of cheese.
- For my microwave this took three rounds of 6 minutes and I turned them with a fork in between each round.
- If you are watching your fat or you are vegan, you could try adding a bit of vegetable stock instead.
- You could add more spices here to match or compliment the flavor profile of your dish.
- I was going for orange because of aesthetics (of the 10-and-under set, not my own). I would let flavor be your guide here unless your family is full of flavor antagonists.
- This works because you can make it ahead of time and heat it up when you are ready to serve.
- This adds more flavor, more crunch, and more protein.
Mods:
- Alternately, you could put it in cast iron and broil if you wanted to brown the cheese instead of just melting it.
- You could swap out the butter for vegetable stock and lose the cheese and increase the crunchy topping and you’d have a vegan side dish.
- Use bleu cheese and add your favorite vinegar-based cayenne pepper sauce when you add the butter to take it in the direction of Buffalo Wings. Serve with a chicken cutlet and see if anyone makes the connection.
- Omit the cheese and butter and use an Asian-style chili sauce during the mashing process. Double down on the All-Purpose Crunchy Vegan Topping and you have a vegan version bursting with flavor and heat.