Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Spices
Farmer John gave me some of his homegrown sweet potatoes, so I decided to make roasted potatoes as a side dish for dinner. I love to cube and roast sweet potatoes with spices in the oven on high heat. Roasting them in the oven caramelizes and crisps the outside of the potato while keeping the inside soft and creamy. They are delicious with just salt and pepper but I wanted to amp it up a bit with spices. What a difference homegrown produce makes in cooking. The first batch I made with Farmers John’s sweet potatoes was delicious, but then I made another batch with store bought sweet potatoes and the difference was enormous. Farmer John’s were superior by far in flavor! They had lots of flavor and were sweeter and creamier when roasted. Homegrown wins hands down, way to go Farmer John. It proves buying local and organic is better (not only for us but in taste).
Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Spices
4 cups scrubbed and cubed sweet potatoes (peel if desired)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon cumin seed
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flake
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried whole thyme leaves
2 teaspoon minced garlic
Preheat oven to 450°.
Place sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet, drizzle with oil and toss with hands until potatoes are evenly coated.
In a small dish combine, cumin, cumin seed, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and chili powder; mix well. Sprinkle over sweet potatoes and toss again with hands until evenly coated; spread out on pan. Cook in preheated oven for 10 minutes. With a spatula toss sweet potatoes, add thyme leaves and garlic; toss again. Place back into oven; cook an additional 10 minutes or until browned, caramelized and tender. Serve immediately.
Serves 4
