Scalloped Sweet Potatoes and Ham

Excellent flavors ~ this recipe is a keeper! Makes 2 to 3 servings; depending whether you serve a side salad or side dish, also. Photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Ingredients

• 1 medium to large sweet potato or yam - I had only 1 small to medium sized yam, and wished it had been a bit larger
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 1½ cups lean ham or turkey ham, chopped - I used about 2 cups of ham in the photos, which was more than needed
• 1 tablespoon trans-fat-free butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ cup onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon dry mustard
• ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup fat-free milk
• ¾ cup lowfat shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon lowfat grated Parmesan cheese, optional

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°. Spray casserole dish with nonstick spray. Set aside. 

Bring a pot of water to boil on stove. Add whole potato and boil for 2 minutes. Add chopped celery and boil until both are crisp tender—6 to 8 minutes longer. Drain when done, and remove skin from potato when cool enough to handle; slice thinly.

sauce

To prepare sauce: place butter and oil in saucepan over medium heat. I used the same pan I had boiled the vegetables in after I drained and removed them. Add onion and cook until soft. Stir in flour and seasonings. Stir in milk and heat to boiling. Boil and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat, and stir in ½ cup of the cheese until melted.

Layer ingredients in prepared dish: ½ yam, celery, ham, and then sauce. The casserole dish I have is a bit large, so the photos look like this makes a larger portion than it does. It would have been better, if I had a smaller, 2-person dish to prepare this in. Repeat layers.

first layer with ½ of yam and ham; all of celery

Top with remaining shredded cheese and Parmesan cheese, if using. If using a larger dish, like I did, it may look like there is not enough sauce with the ingredients spread out. I can assure you, there was plenty of sauce, and the sauce was not too thick after baking!

ready for the oven

Bake until cheese is bubbly and starting to crisp, about 30 minutes. Let set 5 minutes before serving.