Food* California Sweet Potatoes For Holidays And Every Day (NAPS)—Here’s food for thought: As more and more Americans realize, sweet potatoes can be enjoyed not only during the winter holidays but on other holidays and on a regular old Tuesday night, for that matter. Highin vitaminBe, vitamin A, carotene and potassium,rich in antioxidants, vitamins Cand Eanda great source ofmanganese and dietary fiber (almosttwice as muchfiberas a white potato), sweet potatoes are healthful and nutritious. Sweet potatoes grown in California, many on small family farms, are especially delicious because California’s warm, dry Sweet Potato Jalapeno Corn Muffins are a great addition to brunch, lunch or dinner. Here are a few ways to incorporate adding these delicious muffinsto the menu. Only mildly spicy, the muffins have climate and rich, sandy soil grow some of the nation’s best sweet potatoes and they are available year round. tasty California sweet potatoes in dishes for other holidays and anytime. Switch up a classic potato gratin recipe andsubstitute California sweet potatoes for white potatoes.It’s a great accompanimentto an Easter ham or lamboras an easy-to-makeside dish to go along witha store-boughtrotisserie chicken—making any weeknight meala little more special. Whenavocadotoaststartsto feel little humdrum,forget the bread and pop a %-inch-thickslice of a California sweet potato into the toasterfor five or so minutes, then top with peanut butter and sliced bananas, chocolate hazelnut spread and crushed nuts, cottage cheese and chives or a fried egg with a dash of hot sauce. And if you haven't had yourfill of avocado toast, go ahead and smear the toasted sweet potato with mashed or sliced avocado and enjoy the best ofboth worlds while skipping the gluten—the opportunities are practically endless. California sweet potato ovenfries are a welcome changeto regular old French fries and are supereasy to make. Simply cut the sweet potatoes into desired thickness, coat them with olive oil and sprinkle witha little salt, pepper, cayenne, cumin or other favorite spice, arrange ona cookiesheet so they are in a single layer and bake at 425 F. until done. Anddontforget the long-popular baked. California sweetpotato. Just preheat the oven to 400 F, pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork, wrap them individually in foil and bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until fork tender. Thenthe fun begins: Enjoy them with little salt, pepper and butter or stuff them with bacon and cheddar or sour cream andchives. For your next brunch, picnic, tailgat- ing party, holiday open house or random Sunday breakfast with familyorfriends, try great texture, flavor and nutrition thanks to mashed sweet potatoes in the batter. Enjoy them for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner—they go great with ham and eggs, green salads, soups, stews and chili. SweetPotato Jalapefio Corn Muffins Makes 20 muffins 1% 1 1 1% % % c yellow cornmeal call-purposeflour T baking powder t salt t baking soda t ground chipotle chili peppers 8 oz cream cheese, softened 4 % % % 2 large eggs c melted butter c plain yogurt c honey jalapenios, thinly sliced Preheat oven to 400 F. Pierce sweet potatoes, wrap in foil and bake until tender, about 1 hour; set aside to cool. Loweroven to 375 F. Coat 20 cups from two 12-cup muffin tins with nonstick spray;set aside. In medium bowl, whisk cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda andchili powder;set aside. Peel skin from sweet potatoes, transfer flesh to large bowl and mash with cream cheese. Whisk in eggs, butter, yogurt and honey. Add cornmeal mixture and half of jalapefios; stir until just combined. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups. Top with remaining jalapejios. Bake until a tester comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Let coolslightly or completely before serving. Learn More For further information and recipes aboutCalifornia sweetpotatoes, visit www. casweetpotatoes.com. Editor’s Note: This story should be ofparticular interest to the editors in the states of California, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Utah and Idaho.
