Sweet Potatoes, as most of us are aware, are typically served at the holidays. These are an edible tuber belonging to the morning-glory family. They are great source of vitamins A and C and the better news is they are on sale from time to time. You can get a great side dish at a real bargain to help with the budget. Sweet potatoes are delicious with ham, pork, turkey and chicken. Sweet potatoes actually come from the tropical areas of the Americas and are often confused with yams. True yams are rarely sold in the United States. The two most popular varieties of sweet potatoes are the deep orange with dark skins and a lighter version with a paler skin. It appears that those with the brighter orange color were called yams to help differentiate them from the whiter variety of sweet potato. Most of us are familiar with that dark orange color and the ingredients that go into their preparation like brown sugar, pecans, sometimes pineapple and of course, marshmallows.

The following recipe is a simple roasted version which I love. Roasting allows the carmelization of the natural sugars and intensifies the flavor. For added variety, once these are roasted, you can sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or your favorite spicy seasoning mix. This side dish goes great with the recipe, Pork Chops and Sauerkraut with Apples.

2  pounds sweet potatoes with dark skin
2  tablespoons butter or olive oil
1/2  teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 425 F. If using butter, place on a 10 X 15 X 1 inch sheet pan and allow to melt in the oven for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, wash sweet potatoes and cut in half horizontally, then cut into lengthwise wedges, slicing wedges into 3/4 inch chunks. Once butter has melted, add sweet potatoes to the pan and toss. Sprinkle with salt and roast for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally until golden and tender. Makes 4 servings. Enjoy!