French Fry Diary 631: Sweet Potatoes Vs. Yams

Last week I posted some really cool pics from my friend Robin Renee of her Homemade Vegan Sweet Potato Pies. A conversation via text later indicated that Robin didn't think they were technically sweet potatoes, but yams instead. This got me thinking about what the real difference between sweet potatoes and yams actually was… and therein I discovered quite the conspiracy.

It would seem that what we think of in America as yams are really just sweet potatoes, just another variety of them. We've been calling them the wrong name for years. It's just like those French taking credit for fries from the Belgians, we've been giving yummy sweet potatoes the name yams when they are not yams at all. You can read about what's really what in the world of yams and sweet potatoes here.

And while we're sort of on the subject of Robin Renee and the holidays, you might want to check out these two YouTube videos, "Hare Krishna Christmas" and "The Yule Song." Enjoy!

Random Tater Pics of the Day #174 and 175

Homemade Vegan Sweet Potato Pies, a special pair of random holiday tater pics from my good friend and French Fry Diary contributor Robin Renee. Mmmmm...

The Power of Potatoes

Folks are always telling me how bad French fries are for me, and that potatoes are starches not vegetables. Well, ha, it turns out that they're not as bad for me (or you) as we all thought.

This article indicates that potatoes, especially sweet potatoes, are pretty fierce disease fighters. Check it out here.

Thanks to friend Lisa on the Facebook for hipping me to this.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #94

Benihana is not usually the place you think of when you think of French fries, but they do have potato product. Check out these sweet potatoes from a recent visit.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey Butter

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey Butter

4 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling potatoes after cooked
1/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Lay the sweet potatoes out in a single layer on a roasting tray.
Drizzle the oil, honey, cinnamon, salt and pepper over the potatoes.
Roast for 25 to 30 minutes in oven or until tender.
Take sweet potatoes out of the oven and transfer them to a serving platter.
Drizzle with more extra-virgin olive oil.

Orange Glazed Sweet Potatoes

Orange Glazed Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:
6 NC sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large cubes
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 teaspoons orange zest
1 cup apricot preserves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation:

Place the sweet potatoes in a 2-quart casserole, cover, and cook in microwave on high for 10 to 12 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Remove and set aside to cool slightly.

Combine the butter, brown sugar, orange juice, orange zest, apricot preserves, salt and pepper in a small microwave bowl and cook on high for 3 minutes, stirring each minute.

Add the orange mixture to the potatoes and toss lightly. Microwave on high for 10 minutes or until heated through. Baste with the sauce twice during final cooking. Garnish with the walnuts over the top.

Makes 8 servings

From the [just potatoes] Yahoo! Group.

Sweet and Celery from Sunny

On Food Network Fridays today we have Sunny Anderson, one of the cooler and more down to earth chefs on the Food Network.

On the "Masterpiece Burger" episode of her "Cooking for Real" show, she creates a wonderful spin on non-potato fries with her Sweet Potato and Celery Root Fries.

You can find the recipe here and also below:

Ingredients

* 2 large sweet potatoes
* 1 large celery root, peeled
* 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon Hungarian paprika
* 1/2 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice powder
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 3 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Cut potatoes and celery root into 1/2-inch thick matchsticks. In a small bowl, mix together cayenne, paprika, 5-spice powder, garlic powder, black pepper and salt. Spread matchsticks evenly on 2 sheet trays and toss with oil and spice mixture. Roast until golden brown, about 40 minutes, shaking pan occasionally. Serve immediately

Make sure you check out the actual video here. Mmmm... fries...

French Fry Diary 114: Brad’s Raw Chips

I saw this truck on a recent trip to Whole Foods to pick up, what else, Russet potatoes to make homemade French fries. I was instantly interested. Now while unfortunately I saw no Brad’s Raw Chips when I went into the store, I immediately checked out their website when I got home.

Brad’s Raw Chips are potato chips of a sort – it’s just that they are made from just about everything but potatoes. From their website:

Made from fresh vegetables and fruits, sprouted flax seeds, and buckwheat groats, Brad’s Raw Chips are dehydrated, not baked, to maintain the living enzymes your body was meant to digest.

This delicious snack comes in 11 flavors, all available through our online store... Brad’s Raw Chips are the snack you’ll feel good about eating.

The flavors include beet, red bell pepper, sun dried tomato, kale, sweet potato and even cheddar – but no potato. Check them out.

French Fry Diary 103: Outback Steakhouse, Marlton NJ

The Outback, significant by its Australian motif, for me, falls into a similar category as Tony Luke’s. If you’re going to the Outback, you’re going for the Bloomin’ Onion and/or the steak, not for the fries. And that’s a shame, because the fries could be good.

The resident favorite fried food at the Outback is the Bloomin’ Onion, no ifs, ands or buts. If you’re going there and not ordering one – it’s like going to Baskin-Robbins and not getting ice cream. This is the tastiest and spiciest of the breaded onion delicacies, and from what I hear, the dipping sauce isn’t bad either – but being a catastrophically picky eater I haven’t tried it.

The other reason to go to the Outback is the steak, it is a steakhouse after all, and indirectly the burgers as well. My burger was delicious, juicy and just right. The meat is always great with that extra spicy zing. But the meat is not what we’re here to talk about.

Secondary of the side dishes we would concern ourselves with are the Aussie Fries, regular natural cuts that usually also have that extra zing as well, pepper I think, but today’s batch lacked that. They were greasy, soggy and just not good. I think the photo included shows how many of them I actually ate.

John, the owner/manager (I’m not sure which or maybe both) came out to ask how our meal was. This usually happens when I start taking pictures of the food at the table. Hmmm... I wonder why. He also offered us a chance to fill out a survey as well. Good experience, all in all. The sister-in-law gives particularly high praise for the sweet potatoes. Food was great, except for the fries this time.

French Fry Diary 64: Memories of Mashed Potatoes

Potatoes have always been a huge part of Thanksgiving, and for a potato connoisseur like me, especially so. There are various casseroles, and sweet potato variations (even pies) and of course yams, but what I’ll be talking about today are mashed potatoes.

Many times during the year, as a time saver, or if she just wasn’t feeling up to it, my mom would do the easy thing – instant mashed potatoes. Usually these were the Idahoan variety. They weren’t bad, but you could tell when they weren’t home made. Also, those now-long-gone gigantic cans always bring back good memories. I can remember both wooden blocks and Tinker Toys being kept in those huge cans.

My mom’s home made mashed potatoes started with white potatoes skinned and boiled, then mashed with a fork before being sent to the mixer for a good whipping. Somewhere along the way equally mashed and mixed turnips would be added as well as butter. These smooth tasty mashed potatoes were a treat at many a dinner throughout the year and especially Thanksgiving.

Happy Holidays, folks!

How to Buy Potatoes for Thanksgiving

Grocery School gives us a lesson in buying potatoes just in time for Thanksgiving. Good luck buying them, enjoy the potatoes and have a Happy Holiday!