Roasted Sweet Potatoes with spinach and bacon | Peace and Love in the Kitchen

ROASTED SWEET POTATOES TOSSED WITH SPINACH AND BACON: EATING FALL

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Serves 6-8

adapted from Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin

Sweet potatoes can be naughty or nice. Nice-wise, the sweet potato is nutritious as well as satisfying. It is chock-full of antioxidants, beta carotene, potassium, iron, fiber, and vitamins. The sweet potato is delicious cooked simply. Roasted with olive oil and herbs or baked in its skin and eaten with a dab of butter, salt, and pepper, it remains a healthy dish. Yet, the sweet potato can be so much more. When people swoon over sweet potatoes, it is the naughty variety to which they are referring; not the nice.

The sweet potato, which is actually not a potato at all, but a tuber, is versatile. It pairs well with sweet, salty, and even savory flavors. Since their season is Fall to Winter, they are often included on holiday menus where their virtues are cast aside; their sweetness enriched with more sugar; and their density made richer with copious amounts of butter. They often appear in pies or casseroles. My own praline sweet potato casserole is swoon-worthy; a fine example of how naughty the sweet potato can be. A concoction of sweet potatoes, butter, pecans, brown sugar, and bourbon, my casserole could be dessert, but it is served as a side. I might share that recipe another time.

Today, I want to share a savory sweet potato recipe. Playing on a combination of sweet and savory with salty, smokey, and crunchy thrown in, there is no way this will ever be mistaken for dessert. Here, cubed sweet potatoes are doused with a combination of butter, brown sugar, sherry, and herbs and then roasted to a golden brown. Then, they are tossed with crisp apple-smoked bacon and baby spinach: sweet + salty + savory. It is an irresistible combination; swoon-worthy for sure.

roasted sweet potatoes tossed with spinach and bacon served with smothered pork chops and steamed broccoli

1 cup sherry

1/3 cup brown sugar

4 lbs sweet potatoes (about 7), peeled and cut into 1 1/2 – inch cubes

salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 tsp dried sage

1 tsp dried thyme leaves

3/4 lb apple smoked bacon, cut cross-wise into 1/2-inch wide strips

1/2 lb baby spinach, washed and drained

1. PREP THE SWEET POTATOES WITH SHERRY AND SUGAR: Preheat the oven to 450 and place the rack in the upper 1/3 of the oven. In a small saucepan, bring the sherry to a boil over HIGH heat. Lower the heat and simmer until the sherry is reduced by half. This will concentrate the flavor. Now, add the brown sugar and stir. Place the sweet potatoes in a large mixing bowl and toss them with the brown sugar/sherry mixture until the sweet potatoes are evenly coated with it.

2. PREP THE SWEET POTATOES WITH BUTTER AND HERBS: In a medium skillet, melt the butter over MEDIUM HIGH heat. Let it cook until it looks brown and smells nutty. Browned butter adds incredible flavor, but you have to watch it carefully. You don’t want it to burn. When your butter is brown, remove it from the heat and let it cool a little. Add the sage and thyme and then pour the butter over the sweet potatoes. Combine everything with a large wooden spoon. Be very careful not to splatter the hot butter on yourself. Season with 1 Tbsp salt and 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper and toss again.

3. ROAST: Pour the sweet potato mixture into a large roasting pan. Bake until the potatoes are browned/caramelized and tender, about 50 minutes – 1 hour. You want the potatoes to absorb as much of the sherry/butter/herb sauce as possible and come out caramelized and crunchy on the outside and tender inside, so while they are roasting, stir them every 15 minutes turning them to roast all sides and spooning the sauce over them.

4. FRY THE BACON: While the potatoes are roasting, heat a large skillet over MEDIUM heat. When the skillet is hot, add the bacon strips and cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer the bacon onto paper towels to drain. 5. SERVE: When the potatoes are done, put them into a serving bowl. Gently toss the potatoes with the bacon and spinach. Adjust the seasonings and serve.