Maple-Sage Hasselback Sweet Potato

Damn, I eat well.

That was my Facebook status last night, written in the midst of cooking dinner for one.  I think I’ve mentioned here before that I’m not terribly fond of cooking for just myself, but after nearly two weeks straight of eating eggs and conversing with the dog I’m going a bit…whonky.  I wanted to cook last night; I also wanted to talk to someone, but since that wasn’t going to happen I contented myself with preparing a small, grass-fed filet, a salad of sliced lemon cucumbers and cherry tomatoes dressed with salt and kalamata olive oil, and this.

Since I’ve been submitting my photos, with varying degrees of success, to food photography sites like Tastespotting I’ve become much more aware of food trends – if something is trendy, like French macarons, you can be sure you’ll see a lot of it on these sites.  Lately, I’ve noticed a fair number of hasselback vegetables; mostly potatoes, but I’ve seen beets, carrots and even parsnips roasted in this manner.  The  preparation began to really intrigue me, and I have been tempted on more than one occasion to throw caution to the wind and purchase some of the delectable-looking new potatoes that are beginning to show up at the farmer’s market.  (We should be getting some potatoes and sweet corn from the CSA this year; most of those will be distributed to others, but we’ll keep a few and indulge in some seasonal delights.)

At any rate, I had a lone garnet yam (which, yes, is really a sweet potato) that has been sitting on my countertop for several days and decided it was time to make use of it.  And ohmigod, I am sooooo glad I did – this has to be the best preparation of roasted sweet potatoes I’ve ever had, and the presentation was simply stunning.  It was so good, in fact, that while I fully intended to eat only half (you’ll see the recipe serves 2), I gobbled the entire thing.  This may very well be the sweet potato dish on our Thanksgiving table this year.

Note:  To make slicing the sweet potato without cutting all the way through easier, lay a wooden spoon next to it.  When your knife touches the spoon, begin the next slice.  Also, I used goat butter in this recipe; while it gave the potato a wonderfully tangy touch that complimented the grade B maple syrup really well, feel free to use regular butter and grade A maple syrup.  It will still be fantabulous.

Oh, and make sure you wash and dry your sweet potato thoroughly before slicing.  Just sayin’.

Maple-Sage Hasselback Sweet Potato

Maple-Sage Hasselback Sweet Potato

serves 2 (or me during a feeding frenzy)

1 medium sweet potato
1 tablespoon fresh sage, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon goat butter, melted
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1 pinch kosher or sea salt

Preheat the oven to 425º F.

With a sharp knife, cut slits almost to the bottom, but not all the way through, the sweet potato. Each “slice” should be about 1/4″ thick. Insert a shred of the sage into every third or fourth slice, and brush the potato with the melted butter, then the maple syrup. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, then a few more shreds of the sage.

Bake the potato for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the interior is tender and the exterior is browned and crispy.

Brush with a little more melted butter and syrup, if desired, and serve.

Printable version (requires Adobe Reader)

Jen at Sprite’s Keeper gave us a “free” Spin this week; this is mine, since it contains nothing she doesn’t eat or can’t purchase.  : – )  I love you, Jen.