Hawaiian Style Sweet Potatoes with Coconut Milk and Pineapple

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Sweet Potato - Hawaiian Style

Ever since the body building days, I have loved sweet potatoes. I still eat them as a regular part of a Protein Power Plate Meal: Grilled chicken or steak, broccoli and sweet potatoes.

Here is one of my very favorite recipes for Island Hawaiian Style Sweet Potatoes. Hope you enjoy them like I do!

Ingredients:
6-8 Sweet Potatoes (or if you are in a hurry-use canned sweet potatoes)
1/2 cup brown sugar or splenda brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 can crushed pineapple in pineapple juice (no sugar)
1/2 cup lite coconut milk

Directions:
Steam sweet potatoes for 20 minutes or boil. Peel and cut into 3/8 inch thick slices. Spray non stick buttered spray in casserole dish, layer 1/2 of sweet potato slices, brown sugar, butter (little thin dots of butter randomly placed), and pineapple. Repeat layers. Pour lite coconut milk all over. Bake 20 min. 350 degrees. If you want the sweet potatoes carmelized, use less coconut milk and top with added brown sugar and butter, baking 5-10 minutes longer until the sugar browns.  Aloha!

Food for thought:
According to nutritionists at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), the single most important dietary change for most people, including children, would be to replace fatty foods with foods rich in complex carbohydrates, such as sweet potatoes.

CSPI ranked the sweet potato number one in nutrition of all vegetables. With a score of 184, the sweet potato outscored the next highest vegetable by more than 100 points. Points were given for content of dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium. Points were deducted for fat content (especially saturated fat), sodium, cholesterol, added refined sugars and caffeine. The higher the score, the more nutritious the food.  Ref: http://www.foodreference.com/html/sweet-pot-nutrition.html

COCONUT MILK:
In Hawaii, my friends and I would get coconuts and drink the milk.  Then we would paint the coconuts like an island canvas.  Now I enjoy doing it with my little girls.  To increase the nutritional value of the foods and protein shakes I make, I love using Reduced Fat Coconut Milk. It makes it so creamy and boosts the nutritional value. I also use it in place of water when I make rice. Yum!

Coco: means " Monkey Face!"

Coconut water vs. coconut milk:
The difference between the two is that coconut water is taken from the coconut before it's ripened.  Coconut milk is taken from the coconut after the coconut is ripe and it is pressed from the meat of the coconut giving it a milky white consistency.

I love adding coconut milk to my protein drinks as it provides a quick source of energy.  For avid trainers, this magic milk reduces inflammation and supports tissue healing and repair. Coconut milk is very pure. Only water is more pure. Coconut milk is full of calcium, essential vitamins/minerals and hydrates the body. It has been known to fight digestive issues and helps fight vomiting. It settles the stomach and is a good thing to drink to help cure a hang over. Monkey face milk is high in electrolytes, helps strengthen the immune system by combating digestive issues and has anti bacterial properties.  Coconut milk is beneficial to the heart, it helps to keep your arteries clean.

Coconut Oil: has been called the "healthiest oil on earth."

Tip: It's best to cut your coconut right before you drink it.