I missed this week’s Tuesday call about North Carolina’s economy and real estate, and Debe Maxwell, CRS’s presentation. However, I caught up by reading the recap blogs from other members — and I especially loved Kathleen Daniels, Probate & Trust Specialist’s post “Welcome to North Carolina.”
One thing I learned from those posts really surprised me: sweet potatoes are grown in North Carolina!
Sweet potatoes happen to be one of my favorite vegetables — though, a few years ago, I didn’t even know they existed. Growing up, I had only read about them in books and assumed they were something eaten mostly in South America.
That changed one October day when my husband came home from the Prepared Foods counter at Whole Foods with a container of something that looked like potato salad — except the chunks were orange, like pumpkin. He said, “I thought you should try something different. Even if you don’t like it, no big deal — it was on sale.”
Well, I tried it, and that little container turned into one of my favorite meals of all time.
Here’s my homemade version, inspired by that day:
Ingredients
Sweet potatoes (smaller ones are more tender)
Olive oil
Julienned red bell peppers
Fresh ginger root
Cilantro
Black pepper
Sea salt
(Optional: a little jalapeño for spice)
Preparation
Peel the sweet potatoes, toss them with olive oil and black pepper, and bake for about 30–40 minutes. When ready, mix in the red bell peppers, grated ginger, and cilantro. You can enjoy it hot or cold — though, honestly, I can never wait for it to cool.
Warm, colorful, and a little bit unexpected — kind of like the stories we share each week on our ActiveRain Tuesday calls.
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