I am blessed with dear friends, some of whom are passionate about food and cooking. And, I love the rambling conversations we have that get started with a simple comment like “Here’s an interesting recipe. What do you think?” I especially enjoy in-person chats, but some fun food discussions happen via email and phone, too.
So, when I saw a recipe for sweet potato waffles on Facebook, I emailed the link to some friends and said, “Looks tasty!”
My friend, Diane Sievers, leapt right in. She lives in South Deerfield, so she stopped by Atlas Farm and got two huge sweet potatoes. Diane said, “I added pumpkin pie spice and drizzled them with maple syrup. Pretty tasty, actually. I would definitely make them again. The pumpkin pie spices make it a sweet dish with the maple syrup, of course. For savory, I'd add some chopped green onions and chopped fresh red chilies and maybe some ground coriander and fresh cilantro. Top with yogurt.”
So, the next night, she tried a more savory version. Her report: “The seasonings in these waffles were scallions, cilantro, ground coriander, and red pepper flakes. Equally as good as last night, but different. I made a sauce of Sidehill yogurt and some Feel the Bern mango habanero jam made in Brattleboro that I got at Atlas. Now, I’m thinking it would be fun to get a week's worth of dinners out of two sweet potatoes from Atlas!”
Then, she decided to make sweet potato oven fries and grill a steak. I asked how to make the fries. She said, “Toss with olive oil and salt and ground coriander. Roast in a 400-degree oven for about 25 minutes. Can add other spices of your choice, like cayenne pepper. Probably could use pumpkin pie spices, too.”
Clearly, Diane was on a roll. I asked about what other flavors might work for the waffles, wondering about curry or barbecue. Diane’s response: “Ohh, curry would be interesting. I wonder then about using coconut milk instead of an egg, but that isn't exactly local. Barbecue sounds intriguing. I wonder how it would work to use Appalachian Naturals Applewood Smoked Barbecue Sauce instead of the egg? And, maybe add some smoked turkey or turkey sausage? I’d have to try it out before I could recommend it.”
Later, Diane emailed a message saying, “One time, my sister made chicken pot pie filling and served it over regular waffles. I'm thinking a turkey pot pie over plain sweet potato pancakes would be another idea.”
Wow… One or two big sweet potatoes lead to so many possibilities. What are your favorite ways to enjoy sweet potatoes?
This week we’re eating …
Paleo Sweet Potato Waffles (or Pancakes)
Yuri Elkaim (yurielkaim.com/sweet-potato-waffles/)
“Serve it up sweet, with a pat of coconut oil and a bit of pure maple syrup. I also consider this one of my healthy dinner recipes as well; that’s because you can go savory, topping your sweet potato waffles with a fried or poached egg and dollop of guacamole.”
About 1 C. sweet potato, peeled and grated
2 eggs
2 T. coconut flour
1 ripe avocado
2 green onions, finely diced
1 lime, freshly squeezed
2 T. fresh chopped cilantro
hot sauce (optional)
sea salt and pepper
non-stick coconut oil spray
Preheat waffle iron. In large bowl, stir together grated sweet potato, one egg, coconut flour and tsp. salt. Spray waffle iron generously with nonstick spray. Spoon one half of sweet potato mixture into center of waffle iron. Close lid and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, or until waffle begins to turn medium golden brown. Remove waffle and repeat with second half of batter. While waffles cook, poach or fry eggs. Peel and pit avocado. Mash together with diced green onions and lime juice. Salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with hot sauce, if desired.
Local food advocate and community organizer Mary McClintock lives in Conway and works as a freelance writer for Greenfield Community College, brand promoter for Goshen-based local food company Appalachian Naturals, and writer/editor for More Than Sound. Send column suggestions and recipes to: mmcclinto@yahoo.com