Eating Healthy Spotlight on: Sweet Potatoes

• Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of vitamin A in the form of beta carotene and vitamin C.
• The nutrients in sweet potatoes are also anti-inflammatory, which means that besides being great tasting, sweet potatoes can help reduce the severity of conditions like asthma, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
• In addition, sweet potatoes are a good source of vitamin B6.

Recipe: Golden Sweet Potato Brownies 

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups peeled and finely shredded sweet potatoes
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 2 tablespoons milk

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the batter just until blended. Fold in the shredded yam. Spread the batter evenly in the greased baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes. Mix together the confectioners' sugar, butter and milk until smooth. Spread over the brownies while they are still warm.

Recipe: Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries

• 6 sweet potatoes cut into French fries
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a plastic bag, combine the sweet potatoes, canola oil, taco seasoning, and cayenne pepper. Close and shake the bag until the fries are evenly coated. Spread the fries out in a single layer on two large baking sheets.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until crispy and brown on one side. Turn the fries over using a spatula, and cook for another 30 minutes, or until they are all crispy on the outside and tender inside. Thinner fries may not take as long.