Sweet Potato Fries!

The first time I ever tasted sweet potato fries was at Marketplace when we moved to Conway. They were fried like french fries with a sweet honey cinnamon sauce and just a sprinkling of salt, and they were so so good. They have a crispy, salty exterior and a soft, sweet center, I was sold!! Most sweet potato dishes in the US are so full of bad-for-you ingredients (deep frying oil, brown sugar, butter, marshmallows) that is just cancels out all of the good stuff. And sweet potatoes are very very good for you. They're packed with vitamin C, fiber, and tons of antioxidents, just to name a few. They're also are lower in carbs than a regular potatoes. This is a great, healthy alternative to french fries and they taste fantastic. And if you're totally ignoring this post because you don't like the sweet potatoes on the Thanksgiving table, then think again. These are totally different. Aaron used to hate sweet potatoes, or so he thought, and then we had these and now they're at the top of his list!

Baked Sweet Potato Fries (Our Best Bites)

2 medium-sized sweet potatoes

2 T extra virgin olive oil

1/2 t cumin

1/2 t oregano

1/2 t coriander

1 t kosher salt

1 t parsley

fresh ground pepper (about 10 turns of a pepper mill)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet lightly with cooking spray. (Do you need to spray it? Probably not. But I feel safer doing it!) Don't use a silpat, or parchment, or anything like that. You want them right on the metal sheet pan. Slice your sweet potatoes into french fry shape and size. I like mine to be 1/4", or maybe a tad bit bigger. Below is a picture of the steps I take to make the most out of the potato. It's pretty self-explanatory. Cutting them larger, like steak fries will sometimes result in a big soggy mess, so stay small to get the best results.

It's important that all of the pieces are evenly sized to ensure even cooking. So toss any irregular pieces aside (or eat them in another dish). When you're ready you'll have something that looks like a pile of carrots and you might even be able to trick any picky eaters you have at your house.

Put the sweet potatoes in a bowl and drizzle the olive oil over them. Use your hands to make sure each one is coated. If you've got more than a pound of sweet potatoes, add a little extra olive oil. They should all be glistening, just eyeball it.Then sprinkle on all of the herbs and spices and continue to toss until well coated.Place the fries on the baking sheet.

Place cookie sheet in pre-heated oven and set the timer for 15 minutes. Don't open the oven door, not even for a peak! Let them do their thing. After 15 minutes take pan of oven and flip the fries. If you try to do it one at a time it will take forever, I take a long spatula and get a bunch at at time in the pic below. It's super quick. Just flip, and then make sure they're spaced out again. Be careful because at this point they're quite soft.

Put the pan in the oven and cook for another 15-20 minutes. Just keep an eye on them. They should be nice and golden brown. Take them out of the oven and serve immediately. They cool off very quickly so they're best eaten right away. Serves about 4.