Harvest of the Month: Sweet Potatoes

A sweet potato is a starchy and sweet-tasting root vegetable. They commonly have brown skin and orange flesh. Other varieties are white, purple, or yellow. Sweet potatoes are rich in fiber, a good source of vitamins A, B, and C, and are also low on the glycemic index. This means your blood sugar will spike less when you eat a sweet potato compared to a regular potato. Sweet potatoes have been quite trendy over the last year or so, appearing in recipes as veggie noodles and even sliced long ways and topped as a substitute for toast.

How to Select
Look for small to medium sweet potatoes. These will be richer, creamier, and easier to handle when cutting or slicing. Larger sweet potatoes tend to be starchier. Also look for firm and smooth skin.

How to Store
Keep sweet potatoes in a cool, dry place like your pantry. You can keep them for up to two weeks.

How to Prepare
Sweet potatoes can be prepared in a variety of ways. You can make sweet potato fries, boil them for sweet potato mash, cook them like a regular baked potato in the oven, or roast or grill them as a side dish.

Try this recipe for Tex-Mex sweet potato hash!

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