Judy wrote:

> We don't care for yams and never fix them, but we really do like sweet
> potatoes, and like them baked whole in the oven, and then put butter and
> salt and pepper on them. I have several favorite casseroles using sweet
> potatoes also, that I often fix during the holidays.

I'm not certain what you mean by "yam" and "sweet potato". The word "yam"
has been horribly *******ized in the USA, so its true meaning has been
completely lost. True yams are big root vegetables which have rough
(sometimes hairy-looking) skin.

There are two common sweet-potato varieties: One has fairly light skin and
yellowish flesh. The other one has dark reddish-brown skin and dark orange
flesh. The word "yam" is used interchangeably between the two varieties.
When *you* say "yam", do you mean one of those?


> If you have any special recipe for them, please share.

Sweet potatoes can be steered in either sweet or savory directions. Last
Thanksgiving I made a sweet-potato tart with a toasted-marshmallow topping
for dessert. That was pretty good. For savory uses, I like putting sweet
potatoes into curries (Indian, Malaysian, or Jamaican) and tagines.

I posted recipes for Malay-Style Chicken and Sweet Potato Stew with Coconut
Milk, Ginger, and Chiles; for Beef Tagine with Sweet Potatoes; and for
Shrimp Tostadas with Sweet Potatoes in a single post back in 2009; the
Message ID is >

I make shredded-sweet-potato pancakes either for brunch or for a
drifting-toward-dessert course. They generally include some kind of chiles
(either powdered or fresh) and onions, and I like to serve them with a
lime-honey yogurt. There's no recipe; I just shred the sweet potatoes, mix
with chopped onions (or shallots) and either chopped chiles or powdered
chiles (I've used guero chiles, serrano chiles, powdered California chiles,
and cayenne. All are good, but different.) Form into pancakes and cook in a
skillet over medium heat until crisp outside and tender inside.

Sweet potatoes also go well with ham. I posted this idea May of last year:
"Cut some ham and onions into shreds and toss with some of the shredded
sweet potatoes and either curry powder or garam masala. Cook in butter,
preferably over medium-low heat in a cast-iron pan, until browned on the
bottom. Flip and continue cooking until browned on the other side."

In that same post, I recommended pairing sweet potato with shrimp: "Mix
shredded sweet potatoes with chopped raw shrimp, egg whites, ground
coriander, ground allspice, salt, and black pepper. Form into disks and fry
until crisp."

As a side dish to a fairly-tropical dinner I once served sweet potatoes with
cinnamon, butter, and lime juice.

Gloria posted about a Moroccan sweet-potato-raisin salad some time ago but
she never posted the recipe. Maybe she can be persuaded to post it now.


Bob