What's On the Side: Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Okay, enough with the sweet treats (for now...). Let's talk savory dishes today. On Monday, I made  maple-glazed wild-caught Alaskan sockeye salmon fillets for dinner. To counter the sweetness of the maple glaze, I wanted to serve a side that leaned on the spicy side of things. I first heard about this recipe for chipotle mashed sweet potatoes on the Alton Brown podcast; Alton discussed it as one of his favorite sides to serve alongside a Thanksgiving turkey. I filed the recipe away as something to try in the future -- so here we are a few weeks later and I finally had a chance to give the recipe a whirl.

The flesh of a sweet potato can vary from light yellow to bright orange. As you can see in the image above, the sweet potatoes I used were of the light-yellow-fleshed variety. Though one variety of sweet potato make look different from another, I don't find there to be a drastic difference in flavor. In this dish, the sweetness of the potatoes are perfectly complemented by the smoky spiciness of the chipotle peppers. In fact, the chipotle peppers add such a smoky flavor that D asked if I had added bacon into the mix. (Nope!)

Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes (printer-friendly version)
makes 4-6 servings

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 whole canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, chopped fine
1 teaspoon adobo sauce from can of peppers
1/2 teaspoon salt
salt and ground black pepper, to taste

1. Add about 2 inches of water to the bottom of a large sauce pot. Bring the water to a simmer, then add to the pot the steaming basket with the chopped sweet potatoes, top it with the lid, and steam the potatoes until fork tender, about 20 minutes. (If you don't have a large sauce pot, you can steam your sweet potatoes in two batches, as I did.)
2. Place the steamed potatoes in a large shallow bowl. Add the unsalted butter and mash with a potato masher. Then add the chopped chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and salt and continue mashing until fully incorporated. Season to taste with pepper and additional salt if necessary.
3. Serve immediately.

(adapted from this Alton Brown recipe)

What's For Dinner: Sweet Potato Chipotle Soup

I, as many people do, like to think of the New Year as a new start in terms of diet and exercise. After a prolonged period of eating lots of delicious, yet rather-indulgent, items over the holidays, it's about time I settled back into a more healthy diet. One of the best ways I know how to do this is to start off the year by adding a lot more soups into my diet. And, no, not the kind you can buy in a can from the grocery store (the nutrition of which in most cases leaves a lot to be desired) -- instead I like to make soups from scratch. Throw together a few vegetables, a box of veggie or chicken broth, and some herbs and spices, and in about 30-45 minutes, you've got a healthy ready-to-eat meal. The soup recipes I follow tend to make many portions, so it's easy to have a healthy soup on hand for lunches throughout the following week. 

The first soup I made this year was a Sweet Potato and Chipotle Soup adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe. The addition of a chipotle pepper gives this soup a nice spicy undertone that doesn't overwhelm the rich sweet potato flavor. 

Sweet Potato Chipotle Soup (printer-friendly version)
makes 8-10 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium white onion, chopped
coarse sea salt and ground pepper
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced
3-4 medium sweet potatoes (2 pounds total), peeled and cut into 1" cubes
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, chopped
6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onions and saute until they are soft and lightly browned, about 5-7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cumin and minced garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30-60 seconds.
2. Stir in the sweet potatoes, chile, and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to medium, partially cover the pot with a lid, and simmer until the sweet potatoes are tender, about 20-25 minutes.
3. Remove the soup from the heat and allow to cool slightly. In batches, puree the soup in a blender. Be careful to allow steam to escape while blending.
4. Pour the pureed soup back into the soup pot and heat over low. Season to taste withs salt and pepper. Serve immediately. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week in the refrigerator; or you can freeze any leftovers.

(adapted from this Martha Stewart recipe)