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Sweet Potato Science—Sweet Potato Yogurt Bake
by Alice Osborne
(We’ve had many requests for more information and recipes on sweet potatoes, so for the next few weeks you’ll find it here!)
Recent research studies on sweet potato focus on two areas of unique health benefit:
- Unique root storage proteins in this food have significant antioxidant capacities. In one study, these proteins had about one-third the antioxidant activity of glutathione—one of the body's most impressive internally produced antioxidants. Although future studies are needed in this area, count on these root proteins to help explain sweet potatoes' healing properties.
- It’s an "Antidiabetic" Food! Sweet potato has this label because in recent animal studies it helped stabilize blood sugar levels and lowered insulin resistance. (Insulin resistance is a problem caused when cells don't respond to the hormone insulin, which is supposed to act as a key and unlock the cell in order to allow sugar to pass from the blood into the cell). Some of its blood sugar regulatory properties may come from the fact that sweet potatoes are concentrated in carotenoids. Research suggests that physiological levels, as well as dietary intake, of carotenoids may be inversely associated with insulin resistance and high blood sugar levels. Once again, more research is needed, but the stage is set for sweet potato to show unique healing properties in the area of blood sugar control.
With this in mind, we want to share a totally luscious sweet potato recipe the whole family will enjoy: Sweet Potato Yogurt Bake (wow is this good)!
Serves 4:
4 medium sized sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced relatively thinly
4 Tbsp parmesan cheese, grated
1 C plain, unsweetened natural yogurt
1/4 C cream
1 stick butter, cut into small cubes
pepper, to taste
cooking spray, to grease
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly grease bottom of shallow oven-proof casserole or baking dish with cooking spray.
Arrange slices of sweet potato evenly over bottom of casserole/ baking dish. Intersperse little cubes of butter with sweet potato.
In small bowl, briskly whisk cream with yogurt. Pour cream & yogurt mixture over sweet potatoes.
Sprinkle pepper to taste over the top. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top.
Bake covered for 40 minutes.
Remove from oven, remove cover.Return dish to oven; continue baking for 10 minutes, or until sweet potato is soft and tender and cheese has turned bubbly and golden brown.
Make your own healthy yogurt with our:
Yogurt Maker
Yogurt Thermometer
Yogurt Maker Jars
Contribute to the Cook'n Club!
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