This is my first sweet potato ever, I swear!

I have never been a big fan of sweet potatoes because I thought their taste was to sweet so I have never even tried to prepare them by my own. When I came to London I discovered how delicious and nutritious sweet potatoes are. Many people might think that the only thing that is different compared to normal potatoes is the orange colour,  however there is much more. Even though they are still potato, they are much more nutritious, containing more vitamin A.

The sweet flavour and creamy texture- after roasting- is what I like the most in sweet potatoes. You can even eat them without anything, only spices, enjoying their delicious taste. They are brilliant for depressing, cold weather to make us happier and warm up our body inside.

Moreover they are simple to prepare, easy to buy and really cheap! Students, this is a perfect idea for you to have a comfy and delicious dinner or lunch!

How you want your roasted sweet potato stuffed really depends on you!

You can put whatever you want or currently have in the fridge 🙂

It is good to include a few vegetables like cherry tomatoes, spinach, roasted paper but also grains like quinoa and proteins, for example, lentils, beans or chickpeas. You can also make tasty avocado dressing or pesto and eat the sweet potato solely with this, but try to be creative and put something more inside to have a full meal.

My delicious and colourful proposition is roasted sweet potato stuffed with tricolour quinoa, black beans, spinach, topped with avocado and fresh cilantro.

INGREDIENTS:

• Sweet Potato
• Tricolour Quinoa (it can be also white)
• Black Beans (Soaked overnight and then cooked)
• Spinach
• Avocado
• Fresh Cilantro
• Roasted Black Sesame
• Spices (Cayene Peper, Salt)
• Plant oil
• Olive Oil
• Lemon

METHOD:

Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees celsius. Prepare the potato and then slice it through the center but do not half it at all. Sprinkle with the plant oil (try to avoid olive oil, it doesn’t like high temperatures) and spice with a pinch of salt and cayene paper if you want. Place it in the oven and bake for 45-60 min, it depends on the size of your potato. If a knife can go through the middle easily it means it is soft and ready.

Meanwhile, cook the quinoa. First, rinse it, put it in the pot with added hot water from the kettle and a pinch of salt. Let the water evaporate and try it if it is soft, if not add more water.

You should have your black beans ready, soaked overnight and then cooked for one hour (in a pot with kettle water and salt). If not you can use canned ones, but believe me it is easy to prepare your own instead of buying preprepared, it will be healthier and you will see the difference in taste 🙂 Try it!

Prepare the toppings; chop the avocado and cilantro finely and gather the rest of your ingredients.

Remove the sweet potato from the oven and let it cool for a while. Now it is a time for stuffing your potato.

TO SERVE:

Stuff your potato with a few leaves of spinach, add cooked quinoa and black beans. Top it with chopped avocado and cilantro. Sprinkle it with a pinch of roasted black sesame seeds and cayene paper to break its sweet taste a bit. At the end sprinkle your nearly ready sweet potato with a lemon and olive oil.

*If the whole stuffed potato is too big for you to eat at once, half it and put the rest in the fridge and you have your next lunch or dinner ready 🙂 It is better to prepare bigger portions and store them in the fridge. You can roast more than one sweet potato, cook more quinoa and black beans and have them for your next dishes, it is really convenient!

Enjoy your meal! Hope you love this recipe!