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Last Updated: Jul 2nd, 2008 - 21:15:22 |
(ARA) – The Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission and Louisiana Cookin’ magazine have concluded the first Sweet Rewards Recipe Contest For Canned Sweet Potatoes, naming four first place winning recipes and one grand prize winner.
Over 400 entries from 38 states nationwide were narrowed down to 10 winning recipes in four categories: soups, sides, desserts, and breads and breakfast. These 10 dishes were then prepared for judging by students in the Culinary Arts program at Delgado Community College in New Orleans, La.
Grand prize winner Carole Resnick from Cleveland received $1,000 for her Baked Sweet Potatoes with Banana-Cranberry Chutney side dish recipe.
Four first place winners in each category were determined based on overall flavor, visual appeal, and creativity. Each received $500. Karen Gulkin from Greeley, Colo., placed first in the breads and breakfast category for her Pineapple Sweet Potato Muffins recipe. In the soups category, Stephanie Edwards from Portland, Ore., placed first for her Southwestern Yam Bisque recipe. Mary Ann Lee from Clifton Park, N.Y., placed first in the sides category for her Down Home Yam Soufflé recipe. In the desserts category, Lorie Roach from Buckatunna, Miss., placed first for her Sweet Potato Crepes with Honey-Praline Sauce and Brown Sugar n’ Spice Whipped Cream dish.
Judges for the competition in each category were Holly Clegg, Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission spokesperson and nationally known cookbook author; Marcy McCall, editor of Louisiana Cookin’; Tommy Simmons, food editor for the Baton Rouge Advocate and Tom Fitzmorris, New Orleans’ leading restaurant critic and daily columnist on the popular Web site NewOrleans.Com. Instructors from Delgado also helped judge the competition. The grand prize winner was selected by Mary Bartholomew, director of culinary arts and hospitality management at Delgado.
“I was overjoyed when I learned that I won the contest. Just the day before I had received news that I am cancer free, so that weekend was full of good news. I have been preparing new recipes and am anxious to enter next year’s recipe contest,” Resnick said. Next year’s contest will be held, in conjunction with Louisiana Cookin’ magazine, in spring of 2006. Louisiana Cookin’ has temporarily relocated to Baton Rouge after Hurricane Katrina, but plans to return to New Orleans, its home base, soon. The following recipe for Resnick’s prize winning Baked Sweet Potatoes with Banana-Cranberry Chutney is a perfect side dish to accompany any meat, poultry or fish. For more information about the contest or Louisiana sweet potatoes, call Bryce Malone, executive director of Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission, at (225) 922-1277. Free recipes and nutritional information about sweet potatoes are available on the commission’s Web site at www.sweetpotato.org.
The sweet potato is ranked No.1 as the most nutritional vegetable and is rated significantly higher in nutrients than the Idaho potato, spinach or broccoli, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). The sweet potato was ranked highest at 184. All other vegetables studied by the CSPI were ranked in nutritional value between 83 and 24.
Of its many nutritional attributes, the sweet potato is an excellent source of beta- carotene. The US Department of Agriculture and the National Cancer Institute recommend diets that provide 6 mg of beta-carotene a day. Sweet potatoes contain four times the recommended amount.
* Baked Sweet Potatoes with Banana-Cranberry Chutney
(makes 4 to 6 servings)
Ingredients:
3 cans (15 ounce) cut Louisiana canned sweet potatoes, drained
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
4 tablespoons rice vinegar, divided use
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons red onion, finely diced
2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1 large ripe banana, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 tablespoons dried cranberries
1 large orange, peeled and separated into sections, halved
Orange slices, for garnish (optional)
Dried cranberries, for garnish (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 2 quart buttered casserole dish, combine the sweet potatoes, butter and brown sugar. Stir until well mixed. Bake until heated through, about 10 to15 minutes. In a small bowl, combine 3 tablespoons of vinegar, juice, light brown sugar, nutmeg and cloves. Mix well and set aside.
Heat oil in a small, nonstick skillet, until hot but not smoking. Add banana, cover and cook until golden brown (stirring often), about 3 to 4 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of vinegar, cover and cook until liquid is almost absorbed, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in juice mixture and cook, over medium heat, until mixture begins to thicken, about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in butter, cranberries and orange sections. Mound cooked potatoes in the center of a serving platter. Top with chutney. If desired, garnish platter with orange slices and/or cranberries. Serve immediately. Courtesy of ARA Content
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