One Sweet Potato, Three Meals: Warm Fall Salad with a Yogurt-Cider Dressing

“Two words, eleven letters, say it and I’m yours”. S w e e t P o t a t o.

There’s something so comforting about sweet potatoes. They never fail to brighten up a dish. The subtle sweetness and the richness they bring to the plate always hits the spot for me. I absolutely love to add some roasted cubes to any salad I make, or as a simple side dish. They are great under any shape or form, and for this reason I decided to devote my next three posts to this delectable veggie. I’m so so excited about the next few posts I have in store for you, so get ready for that.

What got me started on this sweet potato mission, you ask? Well, I got a sweet potato from whole foods that could easily sustain three hearty meals all to itself and thought it would be a really fun concept. Welcome to “how to get the biggest bang for your yam 101”. I tried to come up with very different recipes using a minimal number of ingredients and really enjoyed the challenge. It’s difficult to be creative with limited supplies but it’s super entertaining. I decided to cut it in thirds, pre-roasting the first two and keeping the last one raw for later cooking. I strongly suggest doing that on the weekend or when you have more time, that way you can just quickly add the deliciously caramelized potatoes to any dish in a breeze.

This first recipe is a warm, heart warming fall salad that really highlights the potato. The yogurt-cider dressing really brings out the subtle sweetness in it, while adding in a little kick to the overall flavor profile of the dish. It’s a perfect recipe for the fall, when it’s cold out and you’re craving a comforting vegetarian dish. Bon appétit!

Total time: 15 minutes with pre-roasted sweet potato (or 40 minutes from scratch)

Ingredients:

1 sweet potato, cubed, roasted (for 40 minutes in a 400°F oven with olive oil)
about 1/2 cup shiitake mushrooms
a large handful of fresh spinach
a few fresh thyme sprigs
crumbled feta (optional)
2 tbsp plain yogurt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp cider vinegar
a drop of honey
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Start by making the dressing. In a bowl, whisk together the vinegar and the drop of honey. Add the olive oil, and finally the yogurt. Season with salt and pepper, whisk again, and set aside.
Next, thinly slice the mushrooms. Heat a bit of olive oil in a pan and sauté the mushrooms until golden brown. When they are nicely colored, add a splash of water and let it evaporate. This will further soften the veggies.
Add the spinach and let it wilt.
To serve start with the roasted sweet potatoes, top with the sautéed spinach and mushrooms and drizzle with the yogurt dressing. Garnish with a few thyme leaves, crumbled feta, and a final dash of salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Temps total: 15 minutes avec une patate douce pré-cuite (ou sinon 40 minutes)

Ingrédients:

1 patate douce, en cubes, cuite au four (pendant 40 minutes dans un four à 200°C)
environ 1/2 tasse de champignons shiitake
une large poignée de pousses d’épinard
quelques brins de thym frais
2 c.s de yaourt nature
1 c.s d’huile d’olive
1c.s de vinaigre de cidre
une goutte de miel
sel de mer et poivre noir fraichement moulu

Etapes:

Commencez par faire la sauce. Dans un bol, mélangez le vinaigre avec le miel. Ajoutez l’huile d’olive, puis le yaourt et fouettez le tout. Assaisonnez de sel et de poivre et réservez.
Ensuite, tranchez les champignons finement. Faites chauffer de l’huile dans une poêle et faites les revenir jusqu’à ce qu’ils soient bien dorés. Ajoutez alors un filet d’eau et laissez le s’évaporer. Cela rend les champignons un peu plus tendre.
Ajoutez les pousses d’épinard et laissez-les ramollir.
Pour servir commencez par les cubes de patate douce, ajoutez les épinards et les champignons, et terminez par la sauce. Garnissez de quelques feuilles de thym frais, de feta émiettée, et d’un dernier tour de sel et de poivre. Bon appétit!