LOADED TEX-MEX SWEET POTATOES

I’ve had loaded baked potatoes at restaurants before and, as delicious as they were, I wanted to create something at home that was nutritious and just as delicious. I used sweet potatoes as the base here, and topped it with ground turkey. Then I piled on some pico and diced avocado- SO good!

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱:

-2 medium sweet potatoes

-1 lb of ground turkey

-1/2 medium onion diced (divided)

-4 cloves of garlic, minced

-¾-1 cup of strained tomatoes or crushed tomatoes

-¼ cup of milk

-1-2 tsps chili powder

-1 tsp of ground coriander

-1 tsp of ground cumin

-1 tsp salt

-1 tsp onion powder

-½ tsp dried oregano

-½ tsp dried parsley

For serving:

-texmex cheese, homemade pico de gallo, and diced avocado

𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 F.

2. Use a fork to poke holes all over the sweet potatoes. Then microwave for 5 minutes on each side. Then set aside to cool.

3. In a skillet over medium high heat, cook the onions for 2 minutes then add the garlic and cook for another minute until the onions are soft and translucent.

4. Add the ground turkey, break up the meat finely. Cook for 7-10 minutes until the turkey is fully cooked and the water has evaporated.

5. Add the salt, chili powder, cumin, coriander, oregano and parsley. Let this cook for 1-2 minutes, until the spices are fragrant.

6. Add the strained tomatoes- the mixture should have a good amount of tomato sauce, but should not be wet/soupy.

7. Slice the sweet potatoes in half and scoop out the flesh, carefully so that you do not tear the skin. Put the flesh in a separate bowl and mash with a fork or potato masher. Add some salt to taste, freshly cracked black pepper, and then the milk. Mash again until creamy.

8. Stuff the mashed potato back into the potato skins, top with the turkey mixture, then add a sprinkle of cheese on top. Bake for 5-7 or until the cheese has nicely melted.

9. Top with pico and diced avocado. Sour cream would have also been great to add, but I didn’t have it on hand. Don’t skip the pico- the freshness and the acidity/brightness perfectly balances the flavours in this meal!

10. Enjoy right away!