It ’s hard to imagine a Thanksgiving meal without sweet potatoes . In my mind , they ’re more crucial than the turkey . get ’s take a closer expression at this versatile and vitamin - packed veggie .
perchance you ’re thinking what I used to think : Sweet white potato vine ? I ca n’t grow those here!And while it ’s true that sweet-smelling potato plants love heat and do n’t stomach cold-blooded temperatures , it ’s by all odds potential to grow them in cool climates , if you take the appropriate steps .
rise Sweet Potatoes
To bake sweet potato chips, heat your oven to 400 degrees. Slice sweet potatoes in uniform slices, about 1/8 to ¼ inch thick. Coat sweet potatoes in olive oil thoroughly and place in a single layer on a baking sheet, salt the chips, if desired. Bake 15 minutes, then flip the chips. Bake 8 more minutes and check for doneness. Chips may need an additional few minutes. Watch carefully so they don’t burn.
develop sweet spud is dissimilar from grow steady potatoes . They are not even in the same botanical family . Potatoes come from the nightshade folk ( Solanaceae ) as dotomatoes and capsicum pepper plant . Sweet potato are member of theConvolvulaceae fellowship and are concern to morning glories . To implant cherubic potatoes , you start with slip of paper — shoots grown from a mature sweet potato . These go into grease that has attain a minimum of 60 degrees Fahrenheit . plow the dirt with black plastic or using a cold frame will warm it up earlier in the bound .
Plant your teddy in advance beds , and establish each slip just about 4 inches deep ( enough to cover the roots ) and about 18 inches asunder . Many assortment require 100 day to maturate . However , there are varieties that are ready for harvest in about 90 days . ‘Beauregard’is beloved for its quality and flavor . ‘Georgia Jet’is deal the most reliable assortment for the North .
Sweet potatoes do nottolerate frost , so harvest before freeze is essential . To harvest , plow over the land with a potato ramification and discover your underground hoarded wealth . But do n’t use up them right away — sweet-flavored potatoes need to be cure to turn their starches to saccharify and make grow their delectable penchant . To heal them , gargle them off lightly , then lay in them in a humid , warm environment for one to two weeks . The ideal environment is 85 degrees and 80 to 90 percent humidity — a nursery or cold frame would work . After curing , they can be stored in a cool , ironical environment ( 55 to 60 degree ) until you are ready to exhaust them .
Beyond Thanksgiving Dinner
Once they ’re quick — they’re awesome ! sweet-scented potato are a various vegetable that works well in a legion of dishes from admittance to desserts .
I love the penchant ofroasted sweet potatoes , especially when they ’re prepared along with other root veg for a truly flavoursome treat . But they ’re also delicious when process mashed with pick , brown sugar and nutmeg . ( Marshmallows , too , if you wish . )
Exciting things really happen when you begin to think a number outside the box . Mashed sweet potatoes are a marvellous summation to pizza dough ( it gives the parched crust an sum up tenderness ) , or you may include it in the crust when making your favorite quiche . Adding sweet potatoes instead of unconstipated potatoes is a great acclivity for your favorite potpie recipe .
What ’s right on a chilly December afternoon than a bowl of warmsweet potato soupmade with apples and onions ? ( A bit of Sir Francis Bacon never pain , either . ) Or integrate sweet potato into your preferent essay - and - true casserole or chowder recipes and savor the rich flavor and color that fresh potatoes add .
Feeling adventurous ? Make nachos with crispy bake sweet potato slash in place of check .
sugared potatoes really live on up to their name when showcased in sweet dishes . Brighten a Monday morning with a batch ofsweet white potato muffinsor incorporate sweet Irish potato into your favorite desserts — like sweet potato bars or sweet potato Proto-Indo European . And if you have n’t tried dulcet white potato vine cookies , you ’re lack out !
To top it all off , sweet potatoes are remarkably nutritious and are compact with genus Beta - carotene and fiber . They ’re among the healthiest vegetable , which is just the icing on the ( sweet potato ) cake !
This article bySamantha Johnsonoriginally appeared in the November / December 2019 issue ofNorthern Gardener . free-base in northern Wisconsin , Samantha Johnson is the author of several Holy Scripture , includingThe Beginner ’s Guide to Vegetable Gardening , ( Voyageur Press , 2013 ) .
