Simple Sweet Potato Apple Casserole Recipe

Sweet Potato Apple Casserole is a favorite dish in our family. I discovered a recipe a couple of years ago and made it for Thanksgiving dinner. It’s been a fall/winter mainstay ever since.

Come October, it makes it’s way onto our menu plan and stays there until Spring. Seriously, it’s so good, we make it for dinner and then make it again for breakfast the next day. Yum, yum, yum.

And for good measure, sometimes we add bacon to it and just call it a meal. Oh, and there was the time we added fresh whipped cream and bacon. Is your mouth watering yet?

Mine is. Which makes me sad because we just finished off a dish of this stuff (oh, about two hours ago) and I’m all out of apples and sweet potatoes. Sigh. Until next time.

Before I get to the recipe (sorry for the suspense), I thought I’d share the benefits of the main ingredients. Because this casserole tastes so good, you might feel the need to prove to yourself that it’s healthy (because you’ll probably go back for seconds).

Here’s why it’s so good

Apples: Chock full of nutrients, including iron and fiber, these wonderful little orbs do not last long in our house. Which I suppose isn’t a bad thing – until I’ve got a craving for some apples and almond butter.

Apples also help lower cholesterol, improve bowel function (thanks fiber & pectin) and reduce the risk of cancer. They are on the Dirty Dozen list, though, so buy organic if you can.

Sweet Potatoes: These lovely little tubers are rich in vitamins (A,C,B) and minerals. They’re also full of carotenoids, which are full of antioxidants. Studies have shown them to balance blood sugar levels and reduce insulin resistance.

Sucanat: This sweetener is made from crushed sugar cane and boasts iron, calcium, vitamin B6, potassium and chromium. If you’re substituting raw honey, read about it’s many benefits here.

Cinnamon: One of my favorite spices, it helps lower cholesterol, balance blood sugar and inhibits bacterial growth when added to food.

Butter: We use organic butter, from grass-fed cows if we can (like Kerrygold butter). Real butter is a great source of essential vitamins and helps fat-soluble vitamins get absorbed into your body. And it tastes delicious! If you’re substituting coconut oil, read about the benefits here.

And now, the recipe!

Ingredients:

• 6 medium apples, peeled
• 5 small sweet potatoes or yams, peeled
• 1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
• 3/4 cup Sucanat or 1/2 cup raw honey (you can always try using less if you’re trying to eat less sweets)
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tbsp nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp cardamom
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Juice of 1 lemon

Slice the apples and sweet potatoes into even pieces. We slice our apples pretty thin by using the apple corer/peeler that we borrowed from my mom. Then we slice the sweet potatoes to the same thickness. Place them in a large mixing bowl.

Add cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, sucanat or honey, vanilla and lemon juice. Stir it up until it’s all mixed together.

Melt the butter or coconut oil then drizzle over the mixture. Stir it all up, then pour it into a baking dish. We use one that’s 9 x13 inches and I advise not stirring in that dish – it makes a big mess. Well, it does when I try it.

Cover and put in your oven, heated to 375 degrees. We set the timer for an hour and stir every 15 minutes or so. Check to see if it’s done at 45 minutes – if you’re sweet potatoes are sliced thinly enough, it will be done by then.

This is enough to feed our family of six for one meal. We always plan on using the leftovers, but our kids have other plans.

Enjoy!

This post has been entered in Old-Fashioned Fridays.

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