5 Easy Ways to Turn a Sweet Potato into a Delicious Dinner (Plus a Bonus!)

No doubt about it — the new taco bar is the sweet potato bar. If you prep over the weekend, you can have easy, delicious and healthy meals ready every night of the week in 10 minutes flat.

Photo: Lauren Volo

No doubt about it — the new taco bar is the sweet potato bar. If you prep over the weekend, you can have easy, delicious and healthy meals ready every night of the week in 10 minutes flat.

While the potatoes are reheating, assemble the toppings. Choose from any of the varieties listed below for easy-but-delicious variations that will turn a simple, baked sweet potato into a balanced four-servings meal.

Base Ingredient:

4 small to medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed clean

1. Tex-Mex-Style

Photo: Lauren Volo

Toppings:

  • Whole Foods Market in-house guacamole

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Mild Salsa

  • 365 Everyday Value® Shredded Mild Cheddar & Monterey Jack (or a blend of the two)

  • 1 (15-ounce) can 365 Everyday Value® Organic Pinto Beans or 365 Everyday Value® Organic Black Beans, drained and rinsed

  • Radishes, thinly sliced

  • Hot sauce

  • Fresh cilantro, chopped

2. Mediterranean-Style

Photo: Lauren Volo

Toppings:

  • Whole Foods Market in-house grilled chicken breast, diced

  • 1 (15-ounce) can 365 Everyday Value® Organic Garbanzo Beans, drained and rinsed

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Pitted Kalamata-Style Black Olives or Whole Foods Market™ Castelvetrano Olives, pitted and torn

  • 365 Everyday Value® Feta Cheese Crumbles

  • Baby arugula

  • Bell peppers, chopped

  • Cherry tomatoes, halved

  • Fresh dill, chopped

  • Red wine vinegar

3. Vietnamese-Style

Photo: Lauren Volo

Toppings:

  • Napa cabbage, shredded

  • Watercress, tough ends trimmed

  • Carrots, cut into thin matchsticks

  • Red onion, thinly sliced

  • Fresh ginger, minced

  • Fish Sauce

  • 365 Everyday Value® Rice Vinegar

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Peanuts Roasted & Salted, roughly chopped

4. Barbecue-Style

Photo: Lauren Volo

Toppings

  • Whole Foods Market™ Rotisserie Chicken, shredded

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Kansas City Love™ Barbecue Sauce or 365 Everyday Value® Organic Memphis Madness™ Barbecue Sauce

  • 1 (15-ounce can) 365 Everyday Value® Organic Whole-Kernel Sweet Corn

  • Pickled okra and/or pickled green beans

  • Red cabbage, shredded

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Shredded Mild Cheddar

5. Thai-Style

Photo: Lauren Volo

Toppings:

  • Tofu, diced (your favorite variety)

  • Broccoli and/or snap peas, blanched

  • Water chestnuts, drained

  • Nori seaweed furikake

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Shoyu Soy Sauce or 365 Everyday Value® Shoyu Soy Sauce Reduced-Sodium

  • 365 Everyday Value® Toasted Sesame Seed Oil

  • Scallions, thinly sliced

Bonus: Greek-Style

Toppings:

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Whole-Grain Bulgur Wheat or 365 Everyday Value® Organic Italian Barley, cooked according to the package directions

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Baby Spinach

  • 365 Everyday Value® Crumbled Feta Cheese

  • 365 Everyday Value® Unsalted Pine Nuts, toasted

  • Fresh dill, chopped

  • Fresh mint, chopped

  • 365 Everyday Value® Organic Coriander Ground

  • Lemons, cut into wedges

Instructions:

First, cook sweet potatoes (you can do this all at once, ahead of time). Heat the oven to 400°F. Prick the sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Place on a rimmed, parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are soft and tender when squeezed (wear an oven mitt or use a clean dish towel to test this). Split sweet potatoes open down the middle. Serve warm with desired toppings.

Alternatively, to make ahead, do not split potatoes. Store in an airtight container for up to three days.

To reheat, heat the oven to 375ºF. Place the potatoes on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, flipping once, until heated through. Check to see if warm. Bake for an additional 5 minutes, if needed.

While the potatoes are warming, assemble the toppings and place them in different serving bowls. Serve buffet style and let people make their own!

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