Sweet potatoes are a bedrock holiday ingredient, but they’re also perfect for breakfast any time of the year. Toss a cooled, baked sweet potato into a smoothie, add them to your pancake or muffin batter, or turn them into hash browns for a burst of natural sweetness and an extra dose of vitamins and minerals.
I’m a savory breakfast gal, so I’m partial to using our yummy local sweet potatoes in hash browns. This dish is simple, packed with other brightly colored vegetables (hence the “jewel” reference) and really satisfying on a cool winter morning. If you’ve ever tried to make homemade hash browns, you know there’s a big problem with them sticking to the pan. This results from releasing starches when you start from a raw potato state. Solve this issue by peeling and dicing the potatoes first and boiling them in a saucepan until fork tender. This rids you of the sticky starches, and it speeds up the cooking process in a big way. The potatoes are ready in about 5-6 minutes.
Serve these hash browns with fresh eggs and whole grain toast for breakfast, or as a side dish for barbecue sandwiches, grilled chicken or pork tenderloin. You won’t regret it.
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Jewel Sweet Potato Hash
Servings: 4-6
2 medium to large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
4-6 small blue potatoes*, diced (unpeeled is fine)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
16 ounces fresh spinach, washed and stems removed
*Optional
Fill a large saucepan about halfway full and bring to a boil. If using blue potatoes, bring water to a boil in a second smaller saucepan—cooking them separately keeps the blue potatoes from staining the sweet potatoes. Add salt to the boiling water. Add the potatoes and cook 5-6 minutes until tender, but just firm. Drain and set aside.
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In a heavy sauté pan or cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil to medium high and add the onion, pepper, garlic and spinach. Sauté about 7 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Remove the vegetables from the pan and set aside. Wipe the pan clean. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and heat to high. Add the potatoes to brown quickly. Return the vegetables to the pan and combine the mixture gently.
Serve with fried, poached or scrambled eggs or as a side dish with grilled meats or seafood.
Maggie Heyn Richardson is a regular 225 contributor and the author of Hungry for Louisiana, An Omnivore’s Journey. Reach her at hungryforlouisiana.com.