Recipe:
These soft sweet potato bean cakes are filled with broccoli and scallions and are coated in crunchy and nutty walnuts. Sweet potatoes and walnuts are two of my top ten beauty foods and serving the cakes over a tomato spinach salad will add another two beauty foods from my top ten list!
Sweet potatoes are loaded with beta carotene which may help keep skin smooth and supple by protecting against wrinkles.
Walnuts are a great source of omega-3 fatty acids, which help increase circulation to skin to give you a beautiful glow. Omega-3s may also help protect skin from damaging sunburn. Broccoli provides vitamin C, an anti-aging antioxidant that helps stimulate collagen synthesis.
Ingredients:
2 medium-sized sweet potatoes
1 15 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 head broccoli, finely chopped
2 scallions, finely sliced
1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
Optional: side salad to serve the cakes over
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place sweet potatoes on the lined baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until soft. Remove sweet potatoes from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large bowl, mash beans fully. Add sweet potatoes and mash until smooth. Stir in salt, garlic powder, broccoli, and scallions. Form this mixture into 8 cakes and coat each cake in the walnuts. Place cakes on the baking sheet used to bake the sweet potatoes and return to the oven for 20-25 minutes, until walnuts are slightly golden.
Yields: 4 servings
Per serving: 363 calories, 13.3 g protein, 37 g carbohydrates, 13.3 g fiber, 5.1 g sugars, 19.7 g fat, 1.9 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 500 mg sodium, 151 mg calcium, 2.8 g omega-3 fats, 9410 IU vitamin A, 29.9 mg vitamin C, 0.4 mg vitamin E, 3.2 mg iron, 1.3 mg zinc
Lisa Drayer, M.A., R.D.,
is the author of THE BEAUTY DIET and STRONG, SLIM, and 30! For more of Lisa’s Beauty Bites, visit www.lisadrayer.com.