Simplicity Saturday – It’s BBQ Season

*PHOTO CREDIT: Strong Fitness Magazine

Who doesn’t live for long weekends in the summer? It’s the perfect time to get together with friends and family, soak up some sunshine and get your grill on. As a nutritionist, I am always looking for healthy barbeque recipes, both for serving at my own backyard parties and for bringing to other people’s homes as well. In a recent article of mine for Strong Fitness Magazine, I’ve put together a delicious and completely clean menu (cocktail included) so that you can enjoy social events all summer without having to stress about staying on track.

This week for Simplicity Saturday, we wanted to put the highlight on something that has become an all-time favourite and a staple in the Simplicity kitchen – the sweet potato. Sweet potatoes are amongst the most versatile vegetables, easy to incorporate into breakfast, lunch or dinner and below I have provided a delicious BBQ season recipe that has become a hit for family BBQs – Sweet Potato Burgers.

Here in Canada, our window for growing sweet potatoes is small. Because we have a shorter growing season, we can usually find local sweet potatoes at the farmers market for just a few short months out of the year. Because of this, Canada is the #1 export market for American sweet potatoes. After sweet potatoes are harvested they are cured for 7 days in environmentally controlled warehouses and this gives them their distinct sweet taste. Curing is a natural process that converts the starch into sugar, giving the potato more flavour. The curing process also helps to ensure that we have sweet potatoes in Canada to eat all year long. YUM! Did you know American sweet potatoes are not yams! Many grocery stores supply both of these tubers, and often use the names interchangeably. However, a true yam has a thick, woody skin and is white inside. A sweet potato is similar in shape, but is rather thin skinned and when you cut it open it has a bright orange inside.

I love working with sweet potatoes for two main reasons: one, to satisfy my plant-based peeps and two, I have a serious love for them! They provide a rich colour and balanced flavour to any meal by adding a bit of sweet into savory dishes. Did you know they are rich in B6, vitamin C, iron, magnesium, potassium and carotenoids? They are the perfect base for a hearty, great-tasting, grill-friendly meat alternative.

Sweet Potato Burgers​​​​​​​

• 1 ½ pounds American sweet potatoes (peeled and cut in 1-inch cubes)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic (peeled and minced)
• 2 Tbsp tamari sauce
• ½ red onion (peeled and finely diced)
• 1 cup organic chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
• 1 ½ cups organic rolled oats
• ½ cup cashews (finely chopped)
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil

1. Preheat oven to 400º F. In a large bowl, toss sweet potatoes and garlic with olive oil and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place on baking sheet and roast for 35-45 minutes or until tender. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly
2. In your food processor pulse to combine sweet potato, tamari, onion, and chickpeas.
3. Remove mixture to a large bowl, add the rolled oats and cashews and mix to combine. Form into five patties.
4. Heat grill to medium-high heat. Add patties and cook until golden brown (about 4 minutes) flip and cook another 4 minutes. Remove and keep warm.
5. Serve on fresh greens or a whole grain bun top with sliced tomato and fresh guacamole.

Want the recipes for my Turkey-Feta Burgers, Homemade Guacamole, Rainbow Crunch Salad, and a Lavender Cocktail? Check out the full article here.