Recipe: Pesto Sweet Potato Casserole

From the Vitality Food Feature ‘WINTER COMFORT FOODS‘.

Just in time for holiday celebrations, here is a vegetarian casserole that is sure to please all of your guests! The combo of sweet potato, lentil, and pesto is so yummy it might become your new family holiday tradition.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs organic sweet potatoes or yams, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup dairy- and nut-free pesto (use previous recipe or try Sunflower brand pesto)
• 1/4 tsp grey sea salt, pink rock salt, or potassium salt substitute
• One 15 oz can lentils

1) Put the sweet potatoes and garlic in a large saucepan and add cold water to just cover.

2) Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low.

3) Simmer covered for 20 to 25 minutes, until potatoes are tender.

4) Drain off the cooking water (storing it in a glass jar for a sweet vegetable broth later).

5) Add the pesto, coconut milk, and salt substitute. Mash roughly with potato masher (making a sort of ‘pesto-yam-mash’).

6) Place 2 Tbsp of heated lentils in the bottom of a standard ceramic casserole dish.

7) Top with ‘pesto-yam-mash’ and broil in oven for 10 minutes on the low broil setting to create a crispy browned topping.