Monday, January 18, 2010

Sweet potatoes

Sweet potatoes are my new fave food. I used to avoid them because they have such a high calorie count. But it turns out that 1/4 of a large one is very satisfying, and only .5 points!

Yesterday I got a large one and microwaved it. This was a messy process, since I had assumed it would cook like a regular white potato - I poked holes in it and nuked for 3 minutes, then turned over, nuke for another 3, let sit for 3. Result - center was not done, outside was perfect. So, I cut it in half, put cut side down, and did another 3 minutes. Perfecto!

The really surprising thing is how dense the potato is, and how filling. And very tasty. Yesterday I was able to eat no meat at all, which is rare.

I heard Michaael Pollan (Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants) speaking about how calories in food are measured, with a bomb caloriometer, but the body does not consume food that way. I think sweet potatoes are a perfect example of this. They taste SO good (ok, I know not everyone likes them, too bad!) and feel so nourishing, but a lot of the bulk is simply not digested and so not used for energy or to store fat.

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