Heather Thomas - The Sweet Potato Cookbook

SWEET. SAVOURY. NUTTY. CREAMY.
AND PACKED WITH NUTRIENTS! THE POSSIBILITIES WITH SWEET POTATOES ARE ENDLESS.

Loved all over in the form of sweet potato fries, roasted whole with yummy toppings, and even baked in brownies, this cheap, nutritious ingredient adds a taste of luxury to any recipe. So, dig into this cookbook that shines the spotlight on this humble, versatile and delicious veg!

From Sweet potato pancakes and Savoury sweet potato and parmesan muffins, to Spiralized sweet potato pasta, Sweet potato enchiladas, and even Sweet potato and hazelnut brownies, youll find tasty and creative recipes to suit all tastes.

Heather Thomas is a health and cookery writer and editor who has worked with all the major slimming organisations in the UK, including Slimming Magazine, Slimming Clubs, Weight Watchers, Slimming World, Rosemary Conley, LighterLife, Scottish Slimmers, Unislim, Cambridge Weight Plan and Tesco Diets. She is the author of The Avocado Cookbook (Ebury, 2016) and The Chickpea Cookbook (Ebury, 2017), The Sweet Potato Cookbook (Ebury 2017), The Hot Sauce Cookbook (Ebury 2018).

Heather has worked with many top chefs, nutritionists and womens health organisations and charities, and has contributed to health and food magazines in the UK and the United States. She practises what she preaches and eats a very healthy diet and stays slim and fit.

SERVES: 4 | PREP: 10 MINUTES | COOK: 3040 MINUTES

Oven-baked sweet potato fries make a delicious snack. You can eat them with one of the delicious dips or serve them with a steak or griddled chicken breast as a healthy alternative to French fries. Theyre so quick and easy to prepare.

500g/1lb 2oz sweet potatoes

olive oil spray

a good pinch of sea salt crystals

freshly ground black pepper

fresh herbs for sprinkling, e.g. rosemary or thyme leaves

1 Preheat the oven to 180C, 350F, gas mark 4.

2 Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes theres no need to peel them. Pat dry with kitchen paper (paper towels) and cut them into long thin matchsticks. Spread them out on a large baking tray (cookie sheet) or roasting tin (pan) and spray lightly with oil.

3 Sprinkle the sea salt over the sweet potatoes and then grind the black pepper over the top. Scatter with the herbs.

4 Bake in the oven for 3040 minutes until crisp and golden brown. Serve immediately while piping hot.

You can choose different flavourings try the suggestions below:

Crush 3 garlic cloves and scatter over the sweet potatoes before spraying with oil. Turn the potatoes in the oil to coat them and sprinkle with chopped thyme leaves. Cook as directed in the recipe above.

For a sweeter, caramelized version, oven-bake for 10 minutes (as above), then drizzle with 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and return to the oven for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and bake for a further 515 minutes until crisp.

For a hot Indian take on the fries, sprinkle the uncooked oiled and seasoned sweet potatoes with some diced chilli and black mustard seeds.

If you like your food hot and spicy, try making the Cajun spice mixture .

TIP: You can buy olive oil sprays in most supermarkets or, better still, fill a misting oil sprayer with extra-virgin olive oil and keep it handy on the kitchen counter. It will coat food more evenly than drizzling the oil over and its healthier as youll use less oil and so consume fewer calories.

Sweet potato fries

SERVES: 4 | PREP: 10 MINUTES | COOK: 2530 MINUTES

Crisp, golden sweet potato wedges are easy to rustle up and they make a great accompaniment to salads, griddled meat, chicken and fish. They are very versatile and you can flavour them in so many ways.

600g/1lb 5oz sweet potatoes

olive oil spray or 2 tbsp olive oil

a good pinch of sea salt crystals

freshly ground black pepper

fresh herbs for sprinkling, e.g. rosemary, oregano or thyme leaves

1 Preheat the oven to 200C, 400F, gas mark 6.

2 Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes theres no need to peel them. Pat dry with kitchen paper (paper towels) and cut each one into thick wedges. Arrange on a large baking tray (cookie sheet) or roasting tin (pan) and spray or drizzle lightly with oil.

3 Sprinkle the sea salt over the sweet potatoes then grind the black pepper over the top. Scatter with the herbs.

4 Bake in the oven for 2530 minutes until tender inside but crisp and golden brown on the outside. Serve immediately while piping hot.

Before baking, sprinkle the oiled wedges with teaspoon each of ground fenugreek and ground coriander plus a pinch of crushed chilli flakes.

Dust the oiled sweet potatoes with some West Indian jerk seasoning (you can buy it in small jars in the spice section of the supermarket). Bake as above and serve with hot sauce and some chilled plain yoghurt.

For a Thai version, mix 12 tablespoons of green curry paste with 1 teaspoon of grated fresh root ginger and use to coat the sweet potato wedges prior to baking. Eat sprinkled with chopped coriander (cilantro).

Bake the sweet potato wedges with some peeled red onion wedges and slivered garlic cloves, scattered with herbs and crushed chilli flakes and drizzled generously with oil.

Give the sweet potato wedges a subtle spiced flavour and aroma by sprinkling with cumin seeds, a diced chilli and 1 teaspoon of lemony sumac before baking.

SERVES: 6 | PREP: 15 MINUTES | COOK: 1520 MINUTES

4 sweet potatoes

olive oil spray or 2 tbsp olive oil

tsp chilli powder

sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

1 Preheat the oven to 200C, 400F, gas mark 6.

2 Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes and pat dry with kitchen paper (paper towels). Slice them as thinly as possible into wafer-thin rounds. This is best done with a mandolin.

3 Put the sliced sweet potatoes with the oil and chilli powder in a bowl and turn them over until thoroughly coated. Spread them out on a large baking tray (cookie sheet) in one layer.