Growing Sweet Potatoes

All the recipes here are things I've gathered off the web.  I haven't tried them yet, but I'm planning to soo, and will post results.

Nutritional Information for sweet potato leaves

http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c20gy.html
1 cup (1.25 ounces), raw:
Calories: 35
Fat: 0g
Sodium: 3g
Carbohydrate: 2g
    Dietary fiber: 1g
    Sugars: 0g
Protein: 1g


http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c20gz.html
1 cup (1.25 ounces) cooked, steamed, without salt
Calories: 22
Cholesterol: 0
Sodium: 8mg
Carbohydrate: 5g
    Dietary fiber: 1g
    Sugars: 3g
Protein: 1g

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Taiwanese Chicken-Stuffed Sticky Sweet Potato Dumplings

Something totally different...it's very sticky, very interesting, and has a nice combination of flavours. If you like the stickyness of tapioca, then this is great.

1. Heat the oil in wok. Stir-fry the chicken pieces until cooked.
2. Add the bamboo shoots and stir-fry for 3-4 minute.
3. Add the shallots and soy sauce and stir-fry for another 1-2 min, or until fragrant. Remove and set aside.
4. Place the sweet potato in a dish and cover with cling wrap. Microwave for approximately 10 min on med-high, or until soft and cooked through. Allow to cool so that it's still soft but won't burn your fingers. Peel the skin off.
5. Tip the flour out onto the workbench. Knead the flour and the sweet potato until it's not sticking to your hands anymore, is a light orange and has texture like playdough.
6. Coat your hands in wheat flour. Take a small handful of the dough and flatten into an oval the thickness of 1/4 inch.
7. Place a teaspoon of filling into the centre and close dough around filling, pressing edges together to seal if necessary. Shape into a ball.
8. Repeat until there is no more dough/filling left.
9. Line a steamer with baking paper and dust lightly with wheat flour.
10. Place the balls in, about 1 inch apart to allow for spreading.
11. Steam for 15-20 minute.
12. Serve immediately or wrap individually in cling wrap, as they dry out easily and then become very chewy.

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Diana's Candied Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

• 4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced
• 4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 3 tablespoons apple juice or cider
• 3 tablespoons melted butter

Procedure

1. Arrange sliced sweet potatoes, apples, and raisins in a greased 2-quart baking dish.
2. Mix the liquids and butter together.
3. Pour liquid mixture over the dish's contents.
4. Cover with foil and bake at 350° for 30 to 45 minutes, until sweet potatoes are tender and glazed

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From Mental Masala, Unusual Greens, Part 3

I have probably seen the leaves of sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) in various Farmers' Markets many times before, but was formally introduced to them by a fascinating (and quite challenging to shop for) book called Cooking with Asian Leaves. The book provides detailed descriptions of thirty herbs and leaves used in Asian cooking, and two recipes for each. There are many that you would expect--curry leaves, shiso, chrysanthemum, Thai basil--and many that are unheard of outside of Asia (or expatriate communities) like boxthorn leaves, agathi leaves (a.k.a. West Indian pea tree, white spinach), noni leaves (a.k.a. morinda, Indian mulberry), and ponnangani (a.k.a. sessile joyweed). I imagine that most of the leaves are available somewhere in the Bay Area, but have thus far not gone on a systematic leaf quest.

The sweet potato is one of the world's most cultivated crops, and is grown all over the world, but especially in Asia and the Pacific. The leaves are good forage for domestic animals, so consumption by humans is looked down upon in some places as the food of the poor. However, because some varieties of leaves are high in protein, they can serve an important place in a diet that is based on tubers and other grains. Chinese herbalist lore says that the leaves can improve the respiratory and renal system function.

Like spinach, chard and other greens, sweet potatoes leaves are highly versatile. Cooking with Asian Leaves has two recipes: sweet potato leaves in a coconut milk sauce, and stir-fried sweet potato leaves. Since it was still close to my Eat Local month, I used the second one as my inspiration. I found the leaves to be quite tasty: tender, a nicely balanced flavor, not even a hint of bitterness, and none of that strange astringency that greens like spinach and chard possess.

Here is my version of stir-fried sweet potato leaves:

Ingredients
One bunch of sweet potato leaves (volume of the untrimmed bunch was 6-10 Qt.)
1-2 hot dried red chilies
1-2 cloves of garlic
Salt, soy sauce, pepper to taste

Method

1. Fill a pot with water and put it on the stove over high heat. The pot should be large enough to hold the leaves, and there should be enough water to cover the leaves.
2. Strip the leaves from the branches. The thin stems that attach the leaves to the branch are tender enough to eat, so there is no need to remove only the leaves. Wash and drain the leaves.
3. Mince 1-2 cloves of garlic.
4. Chop the chilies fine, and combine with the garlic.
5. When the water comes to a boil, turn off the heat and carefully add the sweet potato leaves. After 2 minutes, remove and rinse with cold water. Chop the leaves. (This step was recommended by the cookbook to remove traces of natural slime from the leaves.)
6. In a large skillet or wok, heat some vegetable oil over high heat. When it is hot, add the garlic and chilies. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring often.
7. Add the greens, then stir-fry the mixture until the greens are tender, about 2 or 3 minutes. Add salt, pepper, soy sauce, or other flavorings to taste.
   
   

Note: Separating the leaves from stems for some bunches of leaves can be a tedious chore, but with this particular batch of sweet potato leaves, the leaves were attached to the tough branch by a long stem, and I was able to quickly strip them using a pair of scissors.

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SWEET POTATO BISCUITS
Africa
Method

1. To prepare sweet potato flour, wash, peel, shred and sun dry sweet potatoes. Then pound and sieve.
2. Sieve flour into a bowl.
3. Add grated orange rind to flavour.
4. Rub fat into flour until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs or gari.
5. Add sugar and mix.
6. Beat up egg and add to mixture.
7. Add juice and mix to a stiff consistency that would leave the bowl clean.
8. Roll out pastry on a floured pastry board, to about 1/4" (0.5 cm) thick.
9. Cut into fancy shapes and prick with a fork.
10. Put onto a greased baking tray, glaze with water and sugar and bake.
11. Serve on a cake plate or tray.

Ingredients (serves four)

8 oz (200 9) sweet potato flour
3 oz (85 9) sugar
Juice and rind of 1 orange
3 oz (85 9) margarine
1 egg

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Chao Fan Su Ye - Sweet Potato Leaves Stir-Fried with Garlic [Cooking]


A very simple recipe suitable for beginning cooks on up, this dish contains only three ingredients, and is considered one of the signature dishes of Taiwan. The focus of the dish is the taste of the sweet potato leaves, which should be as fresh as possible. Sweet potato leaves are available at certain Asian markets, although they're decidedly rare. I get mine every Saturday morning from a stall run by a family of Taiwanese farmers at the Irvine Farmers' Market. Sweet potato leaves are a summer vegetable, so may not always be available. If you're unable to find sweet potato leaves in your neck of the woods, you can substitute full-grown western spinach. Baby spinach is not an acceptable substitute. Please be aware that should you choose to use spinach, while the texture of the resulting dish will be similar, the flavors will not. If at all possible, try this dish using sweet potato leaves.


Gear:

1 large wok or stainless steel skillet (A wok is recommended.)
1 pair of stainless steel kitchen tongs


Ingredients:

1 lb of fresh sweet potato leaves on stems
1 tbsp of finely minced garlic
1 tbsp of vegetable oil (I prefer rice bran oil.)


Seasonings:

1/4 tsp of kosher salt (You can add more to suit your taste, but that's the amount I usually use.)


Prep work:

Leave the leaves on their stems, since we're going to be eating those as well. Thoroughly wash the plants in cold, lightly salted water. I always lightly salt the water when washing greens. A number of the harmful the bacteria and other organisms found on greens are destroyed by contact with salt molecules. Make sure that no dirt or grit remains on the plants. Drain the plants and pat them dry with some paper towels. Trim the ends off of the stems, and chop the stems and leaves into two inch long segments. Place in a large bowl or plate with a few paper towels on the bottom to sop up any excess moisture. Set aside.

Peel your garlic and finely mince it. Set it aside.


Instructions:

Heat your wok on high heat for several minutes. You want the metal as hot as your stove can make it. I wouldn't recommend anything with plastic handles or a Teflon coat for this style of cooking. Add the oil and use the tongs to spread it around the bottom of your wok.

Once the oil starts smoking, you'll need to work fast. Add the garlic and toss it in the oil for a few seconds to flavor the oil. Before the garlic starts to brown, add the sweet potato leaves. Timing is important since, at the level of heat you're working with, the garlic will burn very quickly. Toss the sweet potato leaves rapidly, using your tongs to control them. Make sure that nothing stays in contact with the wok for longer than a few seconds. This step is critical, since prolonged exposure to the heat will destroy the cell walls of the leaves, causing them to release their moisture. Too much liquid will result in stewed greens, which is not the effect we're going for here. If you toss the greens quickly enough, and your wok is sufficiently hot, the garlic infused oil will sear the juices into the greens. What little moisture escapes will be evaporated by the heat of the wok.

Continue tossing the greens in the wok for three to five minutes until the stems are tender. You want to soften the fibers of the stems, but to preserve their crunchiness. The timing will vary based on the shape of your wok, and on how hot you managed to get and keep it. It’s tough work, but think of it as a workout and a meal, all in one. Add the salt to the greens and toss a few more times to distribute. Plate and serve immediately.

Good eating!