Sweet Potatoes Update A Comfy Classic
(NAPSA) – For 200 years and more, a one-dish meal of seasoned beef and mashed potatoes has been known as cottage pie. Like any classic, it’s ready for an update-and a sweet-potato topper does the job.
Think about breaking through a golden crust into sweet-potato creaminess, and then into a succulent layer of seasoned beef. Comfort foods with such qualities are often problematical on the nutrition front. But this clever twist on a popular pie is not just hearty and delicious, it’s downright wholesome.
Sweet potatoes provide many nutrients, including fiber, beta-carotene, vitamin C, potassium and magnesium. And for those on diabetic diets, there’s good news: Preliminary research suggests that sweet potatoes help stabilize blood sugar and lower insulin resistance. Visit www.ncsweetpotatoes.com for more information.
Most of the nation’s sweet potatoes are cultivated in North Carolina’s fertile fields and are available year-round. Given this fact, it’s appropriate that our prize-winning cottage pie recipe comes from Ashley Bonnema, whose Ashley’s Kitchen blog is described as ‘Southern tradition meets genuine Midwestern values.’
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds North Carolina sweet potatoes about 2 large
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 1/4 cup celery chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic finely chopped, 1 large clove
- 1 pound ground beef 90% lean
- 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons thyme fresh, or dried thyme, or herbes de Provence, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt divided
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper ground, divided
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
- Oil a 6- to 8-cup shallow baking dish. Pierce sweet potato skins; microwave until tender, about 4 to 6 minutes; cool.
- In large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and celery; cook and stir until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir 1 minute. Add beef; cook and stir until it just begins to brown. Stir in tomato sauce, Worcestershire, 1 teaspoon of the thyme and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and pepper; bring to a boil.
- Transfer to baking dish; spread evenly. Scoop sweet potato from skins into medium bowl; add butter, milk, remaining 1/2 teaspoon thyme and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. With electric beater, beat until smooth; spread over meat in baking dish.
- Bake until bubbly, about 20 to 25 minutes.
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