Sweet Potato Fries

I'm going to call these 'fries' even though they're oven-baked.

Sweet potato fries seem to be ubiquitous in Charlottesville these days, so I figured I'd give it a try at home - hopefully these satisfy your cravings and are a lot healthier for you, too! 


These are definitely not as crispy as FRIED fries, but they are much more guilt free :)

Ingredients:

:: 2 sweet potatoes

:: 3 tbsp olive oil

:: 1-2 tbsp sugar

:: 1/2 tbsp salt

:: spices.  Whatever you want.  Seriously.  I wanted my fries to be savory, but to also pair well with honey OR ketchup, so I opted for some chili powder, paprika, and a dash of cayenne for spiciness.  

Other combinations you could try:  

\\ pumpkin pie or apple pie spice (or some combination of cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, ground ginger, clove)

\\ Garlic powder, onion powder, grated cheese

\\ Cajun seasoning

\\ Old Bay seasoning

\\ Curry or garam masala

\\ Rosemary and garlic powder

My only recommendation would be to stick with dry herbs and spices, but that's only because moisture will affect the crispiness of the baked potatoes. 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  You have 2 options on how to bake these.

1)  Bake the potatoes directly on a foil-lined baking sheet.

3)  Bake the potatoes on a wire cooling rack, also on a foil-lined baking sheet so that the hot air circulates and you have the least chance of a soggy fry, and you also don't have to turn the fries halfway through.

Sweet potatoes have a good deal of sugar in them naturally, and will drip and burn at 450 degrees - I highly recommend the foil for easy clean-up!

Either peel or rinse and pat the sweet potatoes very dry.  Cut the sweet potatoes into either wedges or 1/2" thick fries. Put into large mixing bowl.

Drizzle oil over sweet potatoes.  They should look glossy, but not dripping with oil.

 

Combine salt, sugar, and dry spices together.  Sprinkle over the potato mixture.  Toss spices around in the bowl, or get in their with your hands to mix everything in thoroughly.

For baking options 1, you will bake the fries for 15 minutes, then flip the fries and bake for another 10.

For option 2, you will bake the fries for 25 minutes without flipping.

What spice combos did you try?  How did it turn out?