Sweet Potato Salad

I prefer to use sweet potatos over regular white potatoes whenever I can. They are a low glycemic index food which means that it doesn't create that sudden spike followed by a quick drop in your blood sugar level like regular potatoes. Why is this so important, you may ask. Low glycemic foods release sugar into the blood stream at a more even rate than high glycemic foods which are broken down quickly and its sugars released almost all at once. This sudden spike in blood sugar level results in higher than normal insulin levels in the blood stream. Many researchers have agreed that this reaction leads to complications in weight management, not to mention the link to diabetes, colorectal cancer, cardiovascular disease. Unfortunately, this is by no means a comprehensive list.  I am not trying to advocate a strict low Gi diet. My goal here is to increase people's awareness of how some foods affect our health and well being. This is not to say that I would not eat regular white potatoes; but everything in moderation.  

Now that I have bored you with my review of biochemistry class, (I'm surprised I even remembered that much) let's talk about this salad. So that the flavor of the potatoes wasn't masked, I used ingredients that would highlight it. Nutmeg and celery are the two that really play up the sweet potato flavor here. To contrast the textures, red onions and green beans were added to provide a refreshing crunch. The creaminess comes from a mixture of greek yogurt and cream cheese. Strange choices for any potato salad but they provide a level of creaminess close to mayo.  In the end, this salad can be a meal on its own. 

 

Sweet Potato Salad

5 cups cubed sweet potatoes (about 2-3 large ones)
2 eggs
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 cup chopped green beans
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/3 cup dark raisins
1/2 cup non fat greek style yogurt
2 tbsp fat free cream cheese
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
salt and pepper

1. Add diced potatoes, and eggs (whole) to stock pot. Cover with water, add thyme, season with salt and pepper and boil over medium high heat for 15 to 20 minutes until potatoes are fork tender. The eggs should also be hard boiled by then. At this point, add green beans to the  pot for 30 seconds. Drain everything. Peel the eggs and chop finely. 
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, cream cheese, ground nutmeg,  and season with salt and pepper. Add all the cooked potatoes, greens beans and eggs along with the raw vegetables and raisins to the yogurt mixture and combine well. Refrigerate and serve.