Review: Health Food, Texan Style
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 13, 2013
Texas Jack's Famous Sweet Potato Recipes is the third book in the Texas Jack's brand of the bestselling series of recipe books.Texas Jack's Famous Caramels Secret Recipe BookandTexas Jack's Famous Pralines Secret Recipe Bookhave been selling like hot cakes; this book holds the same promise.This book is all about the sweet potato. We have all seen it in stores--it's that weird-looking thing that looks like an overgrown orange-ish potato with a little sting on one end. Yet, very few of us know what to do with this curiosity, at least here on the West Coast.By the looks of it, Texans have tamed this tuberous root, and are making enough dishes out of it to serve a wedding. This book has recipes for sweet potato pies, casseroles, cupcakes, cornbreads, biscuits, and mashed and hashed sweet potatoes; in other words, you name it, it probably has it.All the recipes are simple to follow and the preparation process is detailed, including the guide on how to select potatoes while you buy them and how to prep them for cooking. My favorite recipe in this book is the Southern Style Hash Brown Sweet Potatoes; and yes, it is the simplest. I am a guy, whatever.One important thing to note here is that the sweet potato is one of those so-called "super-foods" that are really good for your health. It has just about the highest level of beta-carotene, that is a precursor to vitamin A, a very important vitamin that many of us lack. Sweet potato also has a very special protein called "sporamin" that prevents oxidative damage to our cells. Basically, what I am getting at, is that sweet potatoes are good for us. Just make sure you add a little bit of fat (oil or butter) to it when you are cooking or serving it, just like in these recipes; it will help with the absorption of all this good stuff.As usual, a great Texas Jack's brand recipe book. Recommended.