Meatless Monday: Mexican “Baked” Sweet Potato
Did you hear about how Jay-Z and Beyonce went on a 22-day vegan diet to cleanse themselves spiritually and mentally? Well, I went on a 2.2 hour vegetarian cleanse last night and made this absolutely delicious, meatless, Mexican Baked Sweet Potato.
What? Cleansing yourself of meat for 2 hours doesn’t make any sense? Hmmmm… does 22 days make more sense?
I’m not trying to debate the merits of a vegan diet or say that it’s less healthy than a meatless diet, I’m just saying it’s pointless to cut something out of your diet for no real reason especially when you know you’ll return to it shortly after.
Regardless of how bogus their dalliance with a meatless diet was though, eating vegan or vegetarian is a great way to add diversity to your diet and it doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice protein. It’s also really tasty.
“Baked” sweet potatoes are one of my favorite quick & easy meals. They’re not technically baked (hence the quotation marks), simply microwaved for about 5-7 minutes, which gives them their “quick & easy” status.
I decided to dress up my boring old baked tater while home in Tucson over the holidays, giving it a Southwestern/Mexican feel.
This makes the perfect Meatless Monday meal because it provides an extremely balanced combo of carbs, healthy fat, protein, and a potato boat full of fiber.
Who would have thought you could pack 20 grams of protein into a meatless meal with whole foods? It’s amazing.
This dish isn’t technically vegan because I used greek yogurt as a substitute for sour cream, but you could leave it out if you have real dietary restrictions (or the 22-day kind, it’s your life).
The whole shebang takes about 10 minutes to make from start to finish.
Mexican Baked Sweet Potato
Ingredients:
1 Medium Sweet Potato
1/2 C. Cooked Lentils (or other beans)
1/1 C. Lettuce, shredded
3 oz. Fat Free Greek Yogurt
1/4 Avocado
2 T. Salsa
Directions:
1. Rinse sweet potato and puncture it several times with a knife.
2. Wrap it in a damp paper towel and microwave for about 5-7 minutes depending on size (I did 6).
3. Cut sweet potato in half and top with beans…
…and salsa, lettuce, and greek yogurt.
4. Top with slices of avocado, or make a quick basic guacamole: 1/4 of an avocado, tsp. salsa, squirt of lemon juice, 1/4 tsp. garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
5. Enjoy!
Total Calories: about 360 (20 g. protein, 13.5 g. fiber)
Btw, the very day J & B’s cleanse was over, they celebrated with a lavish meal full of seafood. Eek, I guess they need another spiritual flushing.
Note: before anyone jumps down my throat about microwaves being bad, read this article from Harvard.
This post is linked to Tasty Tuesdays and Strange But Good.
Marina @ Lazy for Diet says:
I adore Beyonce and I also was a vegan some time… So I completely FOR their cleaning. In my opinion, to try to replace a diet for 22 days – a quite good invention. So you can try something new and understand, whether this way suits you.
Whitney English says:
I LOVE Beyonce too, and I guess I can see why you might want to do a trial period of a diet if you’re considering changing for good. My gripe was mostly that they seemed to have no intention of sticking with it and their reasoning seemed a little bizarre. But to each their own, right?!
Davida @ The Healthy Maven says:
2.2 hours is just fine for me. I mean I like vegan food, don’t get me wrong I just couldn’t stick to it for 22 days! This looks super yum. Love that you added lentils. Have a great week, lady!
Whitney English says:
I love my sushi and egg whites too much to go vegan…and my chicken…and the occasional burger :)
Kristina @ Damn Ten Pounds says:
I totally cheat and stick my potatoes in the microwave. Ain’t nobody got time to bake in the oven!
Whitney English says:
Hahaha you took the words right out of my mouth!
Ashley @ Brocblog says:
I did a vegan thing for the entire month of January 2013 just to see if I could but it was more of a contest with a friend than a “spiritual cleansing” haha. This meal looks fantastic, I love something so easy and delish!
Whitney English says:
Did you win?!
Ellen says:
I’ve been a vegetarian since I was 12, so the whole “part-time” vegetarian thing bugs me. Either you are or you aren’t!
I appreciate your sense of humor about the “cleanse”, hehe.
Whitney English says:
That’s what I’m saying. And congrats to you on staying committed to a lifestyle choice that is important to you for so many years, and not just jumping on the bandwagon with whatever is trendy!
Ellen says:
Thanks! As a lifelong animal lover, it had actually gotten harder to stare a plate of meat in the far than to eat it, so being a veggie and not wearing leather has never been hard for me! It never had to do with health. If it did I’d consume far less ice cream, haha. But I eat so many raw vegetables compared to most people that I think my indulgences balance out.
Kathryn @ Illustrated Nutrition says:
I heard about their vegan cleanse! I don’t understand the significance of 22 days though, did they just make up that number or something? Do they think their bodies are magically cleansed after 22 days? I think your 2.2 hour baked potato cleanse sounds better! ;)
Whitney English says:
I think the premise is because psychologists say it takes 22 takes to form a habit. I just think it’s silly when you have no intention of sticking with that habit!
Bethann Wagner says:
Ha! You went on a 2.2 hour vegetarian cleanse and made these?
I was vegan for a year and I felt shitty the whole time. My gluten-free diet makes me feel wonderful though!
We do our best to observe ‘Meatless Monday’ (mainly because no meat usually means easier to cook), but aren’t overly strict. I’ll have to try this recipe out in the next week or two!
Whitney English says:
Haha yes, I needed a spiritual cleansing…and a quick meal.
Louise says:
This looks delicious! I was vegetarian for twelve years (now pescatarian) and am always on the lookout for hearty, healthy meals as opposed to eating just salad 24/7 :p Thanks for sharing!
Whitney English says:
Try it out and let me know what you think!
Dr. J says:
I like this!!
I’ll say it! Having a plant centered diet with perhaps a little meat is the healthiest way to live! Studies and examples of cultures that live this way prove it!
Whitney English says:
I agree. I think it’s best to eat a little bit of everything. Moderation and balance is the key!
Kierston @candyfit says:
Recipe looks amazing. It’s a great idea! I always microwave my potato first, before sticking it in the oven. Cuts down on the bake time hehe I think we should eat what makes our entire selves feel best :)
Whitney English says:
Great tip, I’ll try that sometime!
CJ says:
Looks awesome! Love it with the lentils and your 2.2 hours is hilarious. For the all-in vegans you can also get vegan sour cream that does the job pretty well.
I hadn’t heard about it before, but the 22 days seems arbitrary to me. I do support the “flexitarians” or other part timers and I’m all about the meatless Monday trend. Plant-focused, yes, veganazi, no.
Whitney English says:
Veganazi?! Wouldn’t want to run into one of those after my six egg white breakfast :)
I’ll have to try the vegan sour cream sometime!
Alex @ Kenzie Life says:
Mmm that looks great! I love lentils! I’ve been a vegetarian for almost a decade now and a vegan on and off. I’d say about 70% of my diet is vegan, sometimes it’s more and sometimes it’s a little less. I like a little bit of cheese on my pizza (ok, a lot of cheese) and greek yogurt as a sour cream substitute, but those are pretty much the only things I make concessions for. Oh and frozen yogurt. I don’t care if it’s “not as healthy” as ice cream because it’s artificial. I like the taste!
Whitney English says:
Haha, yeah you gotta have cheese on a pizza, right?! And froyo…I’d rather starve than go without :)
Cathy says:
Yum! Never thought of putting mexican style food on top of a sweet potato! Thanks for sharing up at Tasty Tuesdays. Can’t wait to see what you link up next week! Pinning!
Cathy
APeekIntoMyParadise.com
Whitney English says:
Yay! Thanks for pinning :)
Sawyer says:
Just made this for dinner! Delicious! Thanks for the post!
Whitney English says:
You’re welcome! Glad you enjoyed.
j says:
Why did you think it was suitable join a ‘ Strange but Good’ link-up with this post?
Whitney English says:
How is putting salsa on a sweet potato NOT strange but good?
j says:
Definitely good.
But I’ve seen it, and done it , about a million times.
It is not strange at all.
Whitney English says:
Ok, well not everyone has. Not sure why you feel the need to be the #strangebutgood police. Here’s the definition of “strange but good” straight from Laura’s site:
“A lot of things healthy living bloggers/readers eat wouldn’t be considered strange inside this community; however, your co-workers, friends, and families probably give the strange looks when you load up your sweet potato with almond butter, for instance. Those things count as Strange But Good!”
If you don’t like the recipes I post, feel free to NOT click on my pictures when I post them in the link up.
j says:
Just seems like some bloggers join up with link-ups, even when the posts aren’t relevant, as a means to increase blog traffic.
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I really like it when folks come together and share ideas. Great blog, stick with it!|
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