Sweet potato jackets.

I have tried sweet potatoes in the past, a very long time ago whilst I was attempting a strict, week long detox diet (which epically failed, by the way).. I really didn't like them though. But I recently decided to give them another go, and I actually love them! Such a unique, sweet (but not too sweet) flavour. Very delicious! I tried it in the form of a jacket potato. I really do not like jackets made with regular potatoes - they just taste too potato-y (sounds stupid, I know), but I was eager to try one made with sweet potatoes instead. And I was not disappointed! It's a good comfort food and is very filling! It's quite calorific though.. The way I made it below (including the cherry tomatoes) is approx. 558 kcal - faaaar too many calories for my liking. Next time I'd use a smaller potato and a less fattening filling.

All you do to make this is:
Pick a good sized sweet potato (the one I used was a bit too big and I ended up wasting some of it..). Prick the potato with a fork/knife lots of times - make sure you do it all the way around! Then put it into the microwave for about 5-10 minutes, depending on the size, until the potato is soft. Pick and, if necessary, prepare your favourite filling(s). I chose sundried tomatoes, green pesto, mozzarella and Linwoods flaxseed for my jacket. Once the microwave *dings* take out the potato, cut a line down the middle of the jacket, or slice a cross into it and squeeze it at the base to "pop" the top. Fill it with your chosen filling and serve! As a little side for my jacket, I cooked 4 cherry tomatoes still on the vine. They were lovely - sweet and slightly tangy.

Personally, I think the toppings I picked sound lovely, and alone they do taste great.. But if I were to use these exact fillings in a sweet potato jacket again, I would definitely leave out the mozzarella. It just didn't taste right with the sweet potato. They did not compliment eachother at all. And also it did not melt as much as I would have liked.. As it all starts cooling the mozzarella starts stiffening, so it doesn't mix in with the potato like the tomatoes and pesto did. But that's what experimenting is all about - working out what works and what doesn't. :)

Other filling ideas I have and really want to try are:
- baked beans
- low-fat cheddar
- low-fat butter
- tinned tuna with light mayonnaise, sweetcorn and red onion
- extra light philadelphia with herbs
- flaked steamed salmon with light mayonnaise
- salsa

If any of you think of or know of any other yummy filling ideas, please let me know!