Baked Sweet Potato

This recipe reminded me so much of our Stuffed Acorn Squash, yet slightly simpler! Once upon a time, I was not a huge of sweet potatoes because I thought they just weren't as good as regular potatoes. The Irishwoman in me likes my potatoes plain and simple, preferably mashed with butter and occasionally cheese. However, Will has been introducing other potato options into my life, most frequently the little red potatoes, which he roasts and covers with fresh herbs and they're divine.


And slowly but surely, sweet potatoes have been making their way into my life. My hands-down favorite way to eat them is in fry form, preferably from Vertigo here in Tallahassee. You have not lived until you've had their sweet potato fries (or their burgers with local cheeses). So when Will slipped this recipe into our weekly line-up, I kind of shrugged it off because if there's anything I've learned from cooking with Will, it's that I need to be open to trying anything and everything and trusting that it will be good! Needless to say, this recipe did not disappoint. Full of flavor, there was a fantastic sweet/salty flavor combination happening, between the garlic/kale and the sweet potato/cranberries. The mixture blended so well together and our humongous potato proved to be the perfect portion size for us to split.

Cooking Notes: Will used kale instead of spinach and we decided to use one massive sweet potato as opposed to two smaller ones. We slightly adjusted some of the ingredients to be more appropriate for our potato size, but otherwise everything else remained the same as the original recipe!

Baked Sweet Potato (adapted from Budget Bytes; serves 2)
1 very large sweet potato
2 tbsp veggie oil, divided
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups fresh kale
1 1/2 tbsp butter
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
3 tbsp dried cranberries
S&P, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, then wash and dry sweet potato. Prick the skin a few times on all sides with a fork. Use 1 tbsp of veggie oil to lightly coat the skins. Place the sweet potato in a baking pan and bake for one hour in the oven, or until soft all the way through.

When there's about 15 minutes left to go, add 1 tbsp of veggie oil and minced garlic to a medium skillet. Saute over medium heat for 1-2 minutes or until garlic it barely fragrant and a little soft. Add the kale to the skillet. Season with S&P. Continue to saute until kale is wilted.

When the potato comes out of the oven, carefully slice open from end to end (protect you hand by holding potato in a towel). Use a fork to lightly mash the insides. Add about a 1/2 tbsp of butter to the inside and season lightly with S&P. Push the kale mixture in and top with chopped walnuts and cranberries!

Recipe: Budget Bytes: Loaded Sweet Potato