Southwest Sweet Potatoes

These Southwest Sweet Potatoes are so delicious and super easy to make! They’re full of nutritious ingredients to fuel your body with lasting energy, and are perfect to make ahead of time to ensure that you’ll have something ready to go for your lunches or dinners for the week.

In this recipe, the ground turkey (and the tempeh in the vegetarian version) provides an optimal amount of protein which supports muscle protein synthesis – and the more we support our muscle the easier it is to regulate our body fat. As we age, we don’t absorb the aminos from our protein as readily, so upping your protein intake after 40 can help you preserve and also add lean muscle!

I used sweet potatoes since they’re a delicious fiber-rich whole food carbohydrate that digests more slowly than simple or processed carbs. Slow digesting carbs like these helps stabilize blood sugar and promote a healthy gut microbiome, (1). They are a great source of Vitamin C and beta-carotene (2), which are powerful antioxidants that can protect against chronic and degenerative diseases (3).

I topped it all off with some fresh salsa and avocados – which are a wonderful source of healthy fat that helps you feel nourished and satisfied, especially when including them with a serving of protein.

Avocados are rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA’s) which have been shown to lower cholesterol levels (4). In addition to being a great source of healthy fat, avocados are high in fiber, rich in potassium, vitamin C and vitamin K (5) – all of which contribute to a strong immune system.

All of these healthy ingredients come together to create a truly amazing and easy meal that’s perfect anytime of the day! You can serve this with a green salad to include even more veggies. Enjoy!

Southwest Sweet Potatoes

Servings: 4

You will need: knife, cutting board, measuring cups and spoons, mixing bowls, baking tray, large skillet, wooden spoon

Key: T=Tablespoon; tsp=teaspoon

Ingredients:

For Sweet Potatoes:

• 4 small sweet potatoes
• 8 oz cooked black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 lb ground turkey (or for a vegetarian version 1 lb tempeh, crumbled)
• 1 T extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped finely
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

For Salsa:

• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped
• 1/4 small red onion, diced
• 1/2 lime, juice of
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

For Guacamole:

• 2 avocados, mashed
• 1/4 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 T cilantro, chopped
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Wash and pat dry sweet potatoes. Wrap each sweet potato in foil and place on a baking tray. Bake in oven for approx. 1 hour or until soft in the center.
3. While sweet potatoes are in the oven, heat olive oil in a medium sized pan, add onions, spices and garlic. Sauté over low to medium heat for 5-10 mins or until onions are soft and fragrant.
4. Add in ground turkey (or crumbled tempeh), breaking up with a wooden spoon while cooking, until cooked through.
5. Add in the black beans and mix and heat through for 5 mins.
6. Meanwhile, mix the cherry tomatoes and red onions for the salsa into a bowl, top with lime juice, salt and pepper, and set aside.
7. In another mixing bowl, mash the avocados and add in the red onion, lime juice, fresh coriander and salt and pepper. Mix until combined.
8. Once the sweet potatoes are cooked through and cool enough to handle, remove from the foil and cut lengthways to create an opening, being careful not to cut all the way through.
9. Spoon 1/4 of filling into each sweet potato and top with guacamole and salsa.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 sweet potato Servings per Recipe: 4 Calories per Serving: 530 Protein: 31 grams Carbohydrates: 48 grams Fat: 27 grams

I hope you enjoy this recipe! Let me know in the comments below if you make it and how it turns out.

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References:

1. Liu, Man et al. “Dietary fiber isolated from sweet potato residues promotes a healthy gut microbiome profile.” Food & function vol. 11,1 (2020): 689-699. doi:10.1039/c9fo01009b. Web. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31909777/
2. Rautenbach, Fanie et al. “Antioxidant capacity and antioxidant content in roots of 4 sweet potato varieties.” Journal of Food Science. June 2010. Web. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20629859/
3. Sies, H et al. “Antioxidant functions of vitamins. Vitamins E and C, beta-carotene, and other carotenoids.” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences vol. 669 (1992): 7-20. doi:10.1111/j.1749-6632.1992.tb17085.x. Web. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1444060/
4. Grundy, S M. “Monounsaturated fatty acids and cholesterol metabolism: implications for dietary recommendations”. The Journal of Nutrition. 1989. Web. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2649645/
5. Dreher, Mark L and Davenport, Adrienne J. “Hass avocado composition and potential health effects”. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. 2013. Web. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23638933/

Original Article