These baked spinach stuffed sweet potato skins topped with bacon and a sprinkle of cheese are a hearty, delicious and vitamin-rich treat!
They make a great appetizer but really could even be a straight up dinner option they are so filling. Best to share. 😉
Shout out to my sweet potato skins recipe inspo.
I was inspired to make these loaded potato skins using sweet potatoes after I found a recipe by Pinch of Yum, probably my all time favorite food blog. If I had no job and unlimited cash flow to sustain life for like a year or two, then I would totally make every single one of the recipes on that site.
But alas, I do have a job and a pretty limited cash flow at the moment so I have to be a little choosy about which recipes I make. Anyway, I'd never thought to use a sweet potato instead of a regular potato to make potato skins. Such a simple little swap but it really changes thing up!
My Alterations
I eliminated the chickpeas from the original recipe, added bacon crumbles to the top and used the reserved bacon drippings to cook the shallots instead of butter. Next time I make these, I may try adding artichokes because spinach and artichokes are one of my favorite combos!
These sweet potato skins are pretty easy to make too.
Check out this video that shows step by step how to prep and cook them:
So, are you a fan of sweet potatoes?
Can I tell you something? I'm not normally a big sweet potato eater. So if you're on the fence, let me just reassure you that the sweetness mixed with spinach and topped with salty bacon... oh my, yes it's as good as it sounds.
And by *good* I mean... like heavenly good. They are topped with bacon so, hard to go wrong there. The spinach and all the vitamins in the sweet potatoes makes me feel totally justified in topping them with bacon crumbles.
Sweet Potato Obsession
So my little introduction to sweet potatoes apparently kicked off an slight obsession with them. I've accrued quite a collection of sweet potatoes recipes. Browse all my sweet potato recipes now!
Serving these as an appetizer?
You could totally make and eat these for dinner or lunch but they make a great appetizer too.
If you're into entertaining, check out these striped bamboo cutting boards that would double as an adorable way to serve these sweet potato skins. Since I have limited space in my kitchen, I love these types of cooking accessories that serve multiple purposes. But really, though, it's all about the stripes.
The spinach stuffed sweet potatoes were featured on Melt in Your Mouth Monday and South Your Mouth.
Spinach Stuffed Sweet Potato Skins
Ingredients
- 3 sweet potatoes
- ½ package bacon reserve drippings
- 1 large shallot minced
- ½ bag fresh spinach leaves
- ¼ cup cream cheese
- ¼ cup sour cream
- salt to taste
- 3 tablespoon shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Bake sweet potatoes on the middle rack of oven set to 350˚. On rack directly below middle one, place separated strips of bacon on a baking sheet. Bake bacon for 40 minutes. Bake sweet potatoes for 55-60 minutes.
- When bacon is done, remove from baking sheet and place on a paper towel to absorb grease. Place remaining bacon drippings into a skillet. Heat to medium and cook shallots until translucent. Add fresh spinach leaves to skillet and cover. Cook for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally until all spinach has reduced in size. Once cooked, turn off heat and leave semi-covered.
- Remove potatoes from oven when they are tender to touch. Cut in half and scrape insides into a large bowl leaving a thin layer of potato on the skins. Optional: For extra crispy skins, brush the the skin side of each potato with bacon drippings. Place potatoes skin-side down back on the baking sheet.
- Mash the potatoes in the bowl then add sour cream, cream cheese then spinach mixture. Stir well and salt lightly to taste. (Don't forget the bacon will add saltiness)
- Stuff sweet potato skins with spinach mixture. Top each with a few sprinkles of mozzarella cheese. Chop bacon then add bacon bits on top of cheese. Bake for another 10-12 minutes or until cheese is melted. Enjoy warm and fresh out of the oven!
These look amazing. Can they be frozen and reheated?
This recipe was easy and delicious! It takes a while due to the baking time for sweet potatoes but I could walk away and do other things. I used light cream cheese and plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream because that’s what I had m. It turned out great and I think would be even better with sour cream and regular cream cheese (would be a bit richer and creamier). Will make again!
Thanks for the awesome feedback and tips about your substitutions, Rache! So glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
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