Week 31: Recipe #3--Healthy Mexican Sweet Potato Skins

This recipe was made by mistake.  I had actually intended to make another similar recipe, started it, and left the finishing instructions for my husband.  When I came home, he had made these.  They were on the docket to try later and he thought they were the same thing.  The only thing we didn't have was the chipotle peppers in adobe sauce, so I'd add those next time.  These were pretty tasty though, and filling as well.  They are from a site called Pinch of Yum (see link below).  I served these with a green salad.  Makes 6 servings.

Photo from pinchofyum.com

You'll Need:

• 3 med. sweet potatoes
• 1 can corn, rinsed and patted dry
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 Tblsp. butter
• 1/2 yellow onion, chopped (We used 1/2 a red onion instead)
• 2-4 canned chipotle peppers in adobe sauce, minced or pureed (Didn't have these, so we left them out)
• 1 oz. light cream cheese
• 1/4 c. light sour cream
• 1 tsp. salt (+ more to taste)
• 1/2 c. cilantro, roughly chopped
• 6 Tblsp. shredded cheese (pepperjack, cheddar, colby jack...anything will work--we used cheddar)

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake the sweet potatoes for 45-60 minutes.
2. While sweet potatoes are baking, place corn in a heavy cast-iron skillet over med-high heat with no butter or oil.  Sprinkle with salt and other Mexican seasoning (as much as you want).  Do not stir!  Let corn roast for several minutes before stirring.  Let it roast for a few more minutes before stirring again.  Continue this for about 10 minutes, until corn is browned and roasted on the outside.  Set aside in a small bowl with the black beans.
3. Saute the onion in butter over medium heat until soft and translucent.  Set aside.
4. Remove sweet potatoes from the oven when fork-tender.  Let cool for 5-10 minutes.  Cut the sweet potatoes in half.  Scrape the flesh of the sweet potatoes out, leaving the skins intact.  Sometimes leaving a thin layer of potato inside of the skins helps them hold together better.
5. Mix the flesh of the potatoes with the cream cheese, sour cream, chipotle peppers, and salt.  You can use a mixer or just a spoon, depending on how soft the potatoes are.  When well-mixed, gently stir in the black beans, roasted corn, sauteed onions, and cilantro.
6. Scoop the filling into the skins and top each with 1 tablespoon shredded cheese.  Broil for about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Recipe and link:  http://pinchofyum.com/healthy-mexican-sweet-potato-skins?utm_campaign=Feed%3A+pinch-of-yum+%28Pinch+of+Yum%29&utm_medium=feed&utm_source=feedburner&utm_content=Google+Reader