Welcome to our first edition of Foodie Friday! Once a month, I’ll be posting recipes that focus on foods that are GREAT for your eyes!
This is the month of all things SWEET POTATO!
Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of Vitamin A, which is essential for healthy eyes. It protects the cornea, and helps to combat dry-eye. Sweet potatoes also contain beta-carotene which can be turned into vitamin A by our bodies. Beta-carotene is an antioxidant and may reduce the risk of cancer.
Ready to jump on the sweet potato bandwagon? Read on!
Savory
Sweet potato fries
The creator of these fries spent hours perfecting a delicious recipe:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Perfect-Oven-Sweet-Potato-Fries/
Sweet
Sweet potato pie
An oldie but a goodie! Try this 5-star pie from allrecipes.com:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sweet-potato-pie-i/
Wildcard (vegan friendly!)
Sweet potato/banana smoothie
A frosty treat for these warmer months! This is the only recipe I have personally tried so far (I bought 2 lbs of sweet potatoes, so the rest of the dishes are on my very-near horizon), and it’s delicious! I added a bit of honey and a splash of vanilla to kick the flavor up.
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sweet-potato-and-banana-smoothie/
Hungry for more info on sweet potatoes? Check out the following links:
- From NPR we get two stories: one about the transoceanic travels of the sweet potato, (long before Europeans were discovering the Americas) and the second about how sweet potatoes are helping to save lives in developing countries: http://www.npr.org/templates/archives/archive.php?thingId=158870691
- Do you know the difference between a sweet potato and a yam? Yeah, I didn’t either, until I read this: http://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/mysteries/sweetpotato.html
- Love podcasts? Here’s a health-focused podcast highlighting (you guessed it) sweet potatoes! http://www.bulletproofexec.com/podcast-30-sweet-potato-power-with-ashley-tudor/
If you make any of the recipes, or have your own sweet potato facts/foods to share, please feel free to comment below!
Happy Eating!
