Sweet Potatoes Offer Quality Calories

Did you know that a small baked sweet potato with the skin on is only 105 calories? If you love sweet potatoes as much as I do, this will probably come as A. a shock and B. an amazing revelation to you!

Now, I've never been much for calorie counting, I actually was always quite against it, but in the past few years this has become a necessity that I am less than thrilled about. As a person that thinks about food constantly and even dreams about it (yes, food literally makes an appearance in every dream) I have to view calorie counting as a game. I love numbers, so that helps, but now I am always on the lookout for quality foods that don't eat up my daily intake of calories and sweet potatoes are ranking #1! Here's why:

They are filling!

• Sweet potatoes have fiber, which is why they are so filling. Fibrous foods take longer to digest, so while they're waiting for their turn to make their way through the small intestine, they are resting in the stomach, keeping you feeling full.
• Sweet potatoes are dense and creamy. I love making a hot, baked sweet potato the first thing to hit my stomach when I'm really hungry and my stomach is growling. They are satisfying and feel like a warm, thick coating in my belly! Such a filling ingredient serves as the perfect carb in a complete meal compared to rice or bread which have much more calories.

They are full of flavor!

• Sweet potatoes aren't just a bland, dense carb - they actually taste good without much seasoning. Eat them alone or with a pat of butter as the carb in your meal.
• The natural sweetness in sweet potatoes makes them easy to pair with vegetables and many savory sauces. Think garlic sauce, soy sauce, miso, mustard vinaigrette, curry - the possibilities are endless!
• Thinking about color is a fun way to decide what to pair with sweet potatoes. For example, the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about a partner for that bright orange hue is green. Broccoli rabe, sauteed kale, garlicky spinach or grilled asparagus are all great over a baked sweet potato.

Here is a low calorie recipe that I find myself going back to for that satisfying pairing of sweet and savory.

Garlicky Broccoli Rabe over Baked Sweet Potato

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 (6-ounce) sweet potatoes

4 garlic cloves

1 bunch of broccoli rabe or broccolini

4 cups assorted mushrooms, like crimini, shiitake or portobellos

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Method

Bake sweet potatoes in oven at 375 degrees F until fork tender, about 30 to 40 minutes. Meanwhile, thinly slice garlic cloves, trim stems of broccoli rabe and slice mushrooms. In a medium skillet, heat oil until hot. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add broccoli rabe; cook and stir until almost fork tender. Add mushrooms and soy sauce; stir until mushrooms and broccoli are cooked; remove from heat and set aside. Remove sweet potatoes from oven, cut a slit in the sweet potatoes lengthwise. Spoon vegetables into slits of both sweet potatoes, dividing equally. Season with salt and pepper as desired.