-ATHLETE HEALTH TK

May FIBER FOCUS

Sweetpotato Pretzel bites

SOCIAL POSTS Americans are only getting about half the fiber they need each day for good health. Sweetpotatoes are an easy and delicious way to add more fiber to your diet. Try these Spiced Sweetpotato Overnight Oat Parfaits to add more fruits, vegetables and nutrients to your diet. Increase your fiber intake with sweetpotatoes. Super versatile sweetpotatoes can be added to any meal and snack to help you increase your fiber intake. Here are a few excellent ways to increase your fiber intake with sweetpotatoes: y Bulk up your breakfast. Make your breakfast potatoes or hashbrown casserole from sweet- potatoes. Use mashed sweetpotatoes in your morning parfait, oatmeal or overnight oats alongside oatmeal and spices with any number of toppings including nuts, seeds and fruit. This Sweetpotato Blueberry Coconut Oatmeal Is a tasty nutrient-packed way to start your morning. For a savory breakfast, you will love this Sweetpotato Breakfast Bake. y Add sweetpotatoes as a topping. Although they typically they take center stage in dishes, sweetpotatoes can also be used as a topping for salads, casseroles and other dishes. Cube sweet potatoes and cook them anyway you like. Cool them off to refrigerator temperature if adding to a salad or other cold dish. y Snack on sweetpotatoes. Sweetpotatoes make a fantastic snack or mini-meal. Bake them or air fry and top with cottage cheese and broccoli for a mini meal. Or cook and purée sweetpotatoes and cool them off in the refrigerator. Once cooled, you can mix the purée into plain yogurt for a sweet potato yogurt. If you need additional sweetness, add a little honey or date paste. For recipe inspiration visit: ncsweetpotatoes.com #FiberFocus #HealthyEating #ncsweetpotatoes

TALKING POINTS y Fiber has a multitude of benefits for the body. Fiber supports digestive, immune and cardiovascular health. And a healthy gut and immune system homeostasis are important for performance and recovery. y Due to widespread underconsumption, dietary fiber is considered a dietary nutrient of public health concern for the general U.S. population. 1 In fact, most Americans are getting less than half of the fiber they need each day for good health. 2 y Sweetpotatoes are an excellent source of dietary fiber containing over 20% of the daily value for fiber in one cup of cooked sweetpotato. 3 Sweet- potatoes contain both soluble and insoluble fiber. NEWSLETTER COPY Many Americans will benefit from focusing on fiber. Although the human body cannot digest or absorb fiber and it passes through the body intact, fiber has a plethora of important functions. Fiber is important for digestive and cardiovascular health and plays a crucial role supporting immune system homeostasis. This is critical for athletes given the immune system is needed to heal wounds and injuries and remove damaged muscle tissue helping set the stage to lay down new muscle tissue. Insoluble fiber forms a gel-like material and is helpful for lowering blood cholesterol and glucose. It is found in a number of fruits and vegetables as well as oats. Insoluble fiber promotes the movement of food through the digestive system and also increases stool bulk. Cereal grains, nuts beans, vegetables are good sources of insoluble fiber. Sweetpotatoes have a great mix of both soluble and insoluble fiber. It is important to eat a wide variety of high fiber foods each day for good health.

Ingredients

Pretzel Ingredients •

Topping Ingredients • 8 cups water • ½ cup baking soda • 1 egg • 1Tbsp water • Course Sea Salt to taste

4 cups all-purpose flour

•

2 tsp instant yeast • ½ tsp garlic powder • ½ tsp salt • 3 Tbsp melted butter • 1¼ cups water • 1 large sweetpotato cooked and mashed

Directions 1. Add dough hook attachment to KitchenAid and mix flour, yeast, garlic powder and salt for 15-20 seconds, until mixed evenly. Next, add in melted butter and warm water, and mix on low for 2-3 minutes. . 2. Increase speed to medium and mix for 3 more minutes. 3. Transfer dough to bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit for 2-2.5 hours, or until dough has risen and doubled in size. 4. Break dough into 35- 40 small bite sized pieces. 5. Cook your sweetpotato. I like to microwave for 6-7 minutes, or until cooked. Once it cools, separate into 30-40 small circles to stuff in the dough. 6. Take your dough and press it around each little piece of sweetpotato, to create a sweetpotato stuffed dough bite. 7. Preheat oven to 400° 8. Line sweetpotato dough bites on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 9. Mix 8 cups water and baking soda in large pot and bring to medium high heat. Heat until the baking soda is dissolved. 10. Using tongs or a large spoon, dip each sweetpotato pretzel bite into baking soda water mixture and hold for 20-25 seconds. Then transfer back to parchment lined baking sheet. 11. In a small bowl, mix egg with 1 tablespoon of water to form egg mixture. 12. Brush egg wash over each bite and then top with sea salt or coarse salt, to your taste. 13. Put baking sheets with bites in the oven and bake until the bites are golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes. 14. Let cool at least 10 minutes and serve warm with mustard or marinara sauce, for dipping.

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