Sweet Potato Swirl Frozen Yogurt Pops

The weather has been weird lately.  We almost did not experience winter except for two snow days early this year. Spring is just starting, but daytime temperatures have been unusually high -- almost like summer and I'm getting sunburned already!  The warm weather leaves me longing for healthy frozen treats. I'm in a celebratory mood too since my latest scans showed that my tumors are becoming less metabolically active. Since we have a stash of sweet potatoes, I decided to make Sweet Potato Swirl Frozen Yogurt Pops. They're really not too difficult to make.

Sweet Potato Swirl Frozen Yogurt Pops

1 small sized sweet potato, steamed and divided into two parts

     For the sweet potato swirl:

        1/4 c mashed sweet potatoes

        1-1/2 tsp raw honey

        1/2 tsp vanilla

     For the sweet potato:in the ice pops:

         Cut sweet potato into small cubes to make 1/4 c

1 small tub French Vanilla yogurt (I used Yoplait French Vanilla Yogurt)

Steam a small sized sweet potato for 20 minutes. Peel it and cut the sweet potato into two equal sizes. Cut one portion into small cubes and reserve for later. Use a fork to mash the other portion and measure out 1/4 c of mashed sweet potato and mix in the 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1-1/2 tsp honey to form a puree. 

Place the puree in a disposable piping bag or a ziplock with the corner of the bag snipped about 1/4 cm. Pipe the mixture into the inside part of 1 oz glass measuring cups/ 3 oz.Dixie paper cups using a swirling motion starting at the bottom and working up the sides of the cups. Freeze the cups for 30 minutes till the puree sticks to the walls. 

Fill inside of cups with vanilla yogurt, making sure there no air bubble trapped between the yogurt and glass. Drop small cubes of sweet potato into the yogurt and push gently into the yogurt. Push a popsicle stick or small plastic spoon into the center of each cup.  Place in freezer for 2 hours till yogurt ice pops are frozen solid. This recipe makes 2 frozen yogurt pops.

Sweet Potato Bison Meatballs

We've been trying to eat healthy so we've cut down on red meat, sugar and simple carbs.  When we eat meat, we try to get grass-fed beef, wild-caught fish and free-range chickens. That's why I feel so lucky our Farmers Market sells pasture-raised chickens, grass-fed beef and bison. The only downside is, they don't carry a regular supply and we sometime run out of meat.

Son was longing for beef last week. It was a busy day and I had no time to thaw sirloin. We were also out of grass-fed beef but I found a pack of ground bison meat in the freezer.  I hurriedly made bison meatballs for his lunch box the next day.   That night, he told me that the meatballs were good but they were dry.   I had forgotten that bison meat is leaner and tends to be too dry in burgers or meatballs. I made a mental note to put lots of onions or something to make it moister next time. 

During spring break, we stocked up on sweet potato as Son was working out at the Colvin Center."Sweet potatoes are good carb for workouts," he says. 

Today, Mr. Momgateway had to go to Arkansas for a meeting.  He asked me to pack him some lunch.  Guess what I made?  Sweet Potato Bison Meatballs! Basically, it's my meatball recipe but with diced sweet potatoes for moisture and a little touch of sweetness. Sweet potatoes were steamed first for about 15 minutes (so they were not mushy) then diced into tiny cubes. Here's the recipe.

Sweet Potato Bison Meatballs

1/2 c bison ground meat

1/4 c steamed sweet potato diced into small cubes (add more if you wish)

1/4 c red onions

1/4 t cayenne

1/8 t sea salt (I used Real Salt)

1/4 t pepper

1 T minced green onions

1 T Italian parsley

1/2 c bottled marinara sauce (I used Bertolli's Four Cheese Marinara)

1 t unsalted butter or Ghee (I used ghee from India)

Mix all ingredients above except for the marinara sauce and ghee/ butter.  Form into balls using two spoons. 

Place in a oven-proof glass container.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes (depending on your oven).

Add marinara sauce and ghee over the meatballs in the last 5 minutes of baking.