These healthy sweet potato skins! They’re baaaaack!
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I’m officially obsessed with this recipe! It is soooo good… I’ve already made it three times! It’s super filling, easy to make, and my husband makes it. Perfect!
These little guys were my first “viral” recipe originally published in October of 2011 – and today, April 25th, 2015, I’m bringing them back to life and dying with food happiness all over again. It’s the circle of food life.
These healthy sweet potato skins are one of my all-time blog favorites – and they’re a reader favorite, too! We love sweet potato skins around here (see also: this delicious spicy chipotle variation!)
They’re stuffed with a creamy sweet potato shallot filling with spinach and chickpeas to bump up the yummy health factor and then they are topped with a tiny bit of melty cheese and baked to sweet potato skin perfection.
Yeah – theeeeese are goooood.
HOW TO MAKE OUR SWEET POTATO SKINS (1 MIN):
In case you love throwbacks, this is how they looked originally:
Do you know that I’ve actually never done this until now? Today is the first time I’m going back to an older post and re-shooting the pictures and re-sharing it fresh on the blog.
I am doing this because a) it’s nice to update the images for a recipe with something that’s more “now”, and b) it’s also really awesome to get some of my all-time favorite and most popular posts back to the front of the blog, and c) it gives me an excuse to make an old favorite again. I mean, come on. If nothing else, there’s that.
I updated the pictures, but I decided not doing anything with my old writing from the original post — I’ll just put a line in so you know when Young Me takes over the writing. You might actually just be able to tell.
Haha / yikes.
Old stuff starts now.
Well, it happened.
I bought my first pair of jeggings.
(jeans+leggings= superstretchy skinny jeans that are questionable for people older than 19)
As a… 25 year old, I was skeptical. But unlike my sophisticated-looking pencil skirt that I never get around to wearing, I have a feeling that these $12.99 jeggings are going to be my new BFF. My boots fit over them like a dream, and I have an excuse to buy more long sweaters that feel like pajamas.
I even got a compliment from one of my fourth graders.
Although maybe that isn’t such a good thing.
But whether you think jeggings are good or evil, there is no debating that these healthy sweet potato skins are a veryveryvery good thing.
It’s like combining the best of all superfoods – sweet potatoes and spinach, obvs. – and making it into something that’s warm and cozy and filling and not a salad. Salads are hibernating right now.
PS. Did I mention that your future jeggings will fit perfectly after eating these toasty cheese boats? Yes. Sometimes it happens, and this is one of those times. We must celebrate with a delicious dinner and a new pair of jeggings.
Healthy Sweet Potato Skins
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 mins
- Yield: 2-3 1x
Description
These healthy sweet potato skins are stuffed with mashed sweet potato, chickpeas, spinach, and Mozzarella cheese. So delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 medium or large sweet potatoes
- 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 bag fresh baby spinach
- 1/4 cup light sour cream or Greek yogurt
- 2 ounces light cream cheese
- 1 cup chickpeas
- 1/4 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Bake sweet potatoes at 350 for 45-60 minutes, or until fork tender.
- Cut sweet potatoes in half and let cool for 5-10 minutes. While sweet potatoes are cooling, saute the shallots with the butter over medium heat until translucent. Add fresh spinach and heat for 2-3 minutes, until spinach has cooked down. Set aside.
- Scrape the sweet potato out of the peel, leaving a thin layer inside with the skin so that it can stand up on its own. Mash the sweet potato with the cream cheese and sour cream. Stir in chickpeas, spinach, and plenty of salt and pepper.
- Coat potato skins with a drizzle of oil and bake for about 5 minutes to get a crispier outside. Remove from oven and fill each skin with the sweet potato mixture and top with shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake again for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and filling is heated through.
Notes
I’ve also topped these with bacon!
For less stringy, more melty cheese, try Gouda!
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 60 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: sweet potato skins, sweet potato recipe, healthy sweet potato skins
You know, I’ve never been a huge sweet potato fan, but just looking at how wonderful those are, I think I could dive in head first. Putting the spinach in there for extra nutrition is genius.
I don’t know how you could not love sweet potatoes! I’m addicted! 🙂 Maybe you’ll change your mind after you try these!
I bought some jeggings the other week. Although I felt a bit of shame, you’re so right. They are just perfect with boots and long sweaters. Even worse though, my mom bought a pair too…
Potato skins are one of my favourite treats and I love the idea of being able to healthy them up (and therefore eat them more often!)
It makes me happy to know that you are a fellow jeggings wearer 🙂 And your mom! Too cute!
I want these AND jeggings!!! I tried on one pair and couldn’t do it….I’ll have to try on another. 🙂
Try again – you’d love them if you had the right pair.
We need a photo of the jeggings? Maybe you will start a new trend 🙂 Otherwise, I look forward to making these. Anything new I can do with a sweet poatato is A-OK by me! Thanks for sharing this great recipe!
Oh dear. A photo of the jeggings? This is getting out of control. 🙂
I adore potato skins! I’ve never made them with sweet potatoes though, that’s a great idea. Scallions would be great with the cheese too!
I actually added some as an afterthought, so they didn’t make it into the picture! They were tasty.
We are so on the same page! I have been eating sweet potatoes almost every day lately, and Alex mentioned making potato skins the other day 🙂 These look awesome!
I thought you were going to say you were on the same page with the jeggings. Darn. 😉
Ooo, I’m totally in on the jeggings too! I’ve stopped buying pants that aren’t leggings / skinny jeans (except for work pants, of course…and pencil skirts!) 🙂
love love love these, especially that there are chickpeas in them. i don’t have jeggings yet, but i did buy my first pair of skinny jeans this year. progress!
Me, too! And my jeggings are WAY more comfy than my skinny jeans. You should give them a try!
Do you cook the chick peas beforehand? I have a can of chick peas waiting to be used… do I just open, rinse, and use, or do I need to do something with them beforehand?
Yup, just open, rinse and use!
Wow, Lindsay! Perfect fall dinner. 🙂
Definitely a compliment from your fourth grader…they know what’s in for sure! 🙂 And I bet you’re so darn cute in your first pair of jeggings…now I need to get a pair!
Well, I don’t know about that, but they are super comfortable!
I need to try these, love potato skins and it’s almost crazy I never tried them with sweet potatoes!
Haven’t got any jeggings, maybe turning 25 will do it to me as well. We’ll see in a few months;)
Do it, do it, do it!
I’m an immediate convert to anything with the words sweet potato and healthy. I love the addition of chickpeas! (ps- I’m 30 and adore jeggings!)
Yay! Glad to find a fellow jeggings lover (older than 19)!
definitely saving this! thanks 🙂
Please make this for Christmas…
If you make sushi. We’re bringing the variety to the buffet table this year.
I agree with Grant!! and I wonder who pointed out those jeggings to you?? 😉
I was going to mention that! All credit goes to the 19 year old.
The kewl 19 year old.
lol kewl
please don’t call me kewl… 🙂
I didn’t love these. I think it was the chickpeas. Just not the right mix…I’d add chicken maybe instead. Less spinach for sure and maybe Gorgonzola on the top? Jusy needed a little more flavor. I wasn’t in love but I am hopeful. 🙂 my kids (who eat everything!) gave it a thumb sideways. 🙂
Try doing it without the chickpeas. I made them with vegan cream cheese/sour cream and 1/2 bag of spinach, no shallot, no butter, no chickpeas. Added a little nutritional yeast, dried basil and chives for flavor. Topped with daiya vegan mozzarella. It was so good!
Nice! Great vegan modifications. I have yet to try nutritional yeast… maybe this will get me to do it. 🙂
i love skinny jeans but can’t do jeggings. maybe that’s because i’m a grad student and see all these freshmen wearing them….but they look cute on them! and i’m sure on you. 🙂 regardless, these sweet potato skins look great.
p.s. sweet potato fries make an excellent dinner in my book! 🙂
You and I should eat dinner together then. 🙂
These look incredible! I’m kicking myself for not buying sweet potatoes this week. I know I will love these. The chickpeas and spinach sound especially delicious, but topped with cheese? Perfection 😀 Plus they look so pretty… I don’t know what it is about your first picture, but it’s sooo nice to look at(I had to go back to it a couple times, haha). I think it’s the colors 🙂
Aw, thanks. I love it when food is easy to photograph, and this was one of those times!
I LOVE jeggings, they are the best! These sweet potato skins look SO good! I
Looks so good and super healthy too!
Thanks Natalie!
I basically love anything that makes me feel like I’m wearing socially acceptable pajamas–leggings with jersey dresses might be the best combo ever! These look really great! I love sweet potatoes and am always looking for new ways to eat them.
So true! Socially acceptable pajamas are the way to go.
Good for you and your jeggings. Wear them and enjoy them while you can. You are at the perfect age for anything fashion wise! Those potatoes look fantastic. Thanks for sharing. Come visit and check out our three way lasagna.
These look awesome! Great idea…look forward to trying them.
Awesome – thanks!
These look delicious! I will definitely have to try them! Also, random question, but what nutrition analyzer do you use?
Thanks!
This sounds great! But you simply must try some Himalayan pink salt. I get mine from Sustainable Sourcing https://www.himalasalt.com/. The flavor is so much better than regular salt! Thanks for sharing this recipe—I can’t wait to try it!
Totally making these and SOON, great idea and healthy! Thanks for the inspiration!
Where did you get your jeggings?…I’m usually not a skinny jeans type of girl but I’d love to test the waters…esp if they are super comfy! I’m all about the comfort 🙂
These look delicious! I do have a question, though. How can you call something with 20g of fat (10g of which is saturated) healthy? Especially if you top with bacon after the fact? These just seem like more of an indulgent food to me… just wondering! Thanks. Great photos, by the way!
True, they’re not necessarily light. 🙂 But with spinach and chickpeas and sweet potatoes… they seem a lot healthier than regular potato skins to me!
Okay–I see. They definitely are healthIER than their original counterpart!
I love that you included the nutritional info with the carb count! My husband is Diabetic (type 1) therefore he needs to know the carb count of foods he eats so he knows how much insulin to take. A lot of recipes I find online don’t have the carb count posted so sometimes I pass on those recipes unless they are low carb.
I use this great website to make the nutritional labels: https://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calculator.asp
I’m glad you appreciate them – they take time to make, but I personally use them so I thought I might as well post them, too!