Baked Sweet Potato Fries Anyone?

The time has come, Sweet Potato Fries is now getting some attention.  A few weeks back I shared with everyone a quick and easy way to whip up a batch of healthy homemade french fries.  This crunchy plate of goodness received a lot of positive response.  With that came requests and references for sweet potato fries.

Krista over at Kristas Kravings said she loved sweet potato fries done in a very similar process. Juliet from Think Inside the IceBox said that she had sweet potato fries on her to do list.  As well, Nick over at PeanutButterBoy said he also like to make a batch of sweet potato fries in the oven.  Also Clayton from Furiousfoodies asked if I could whip up a batch of sweet potato fries. Needless to say with all these requests, I had to oblige and put these on the Zesty Menu.

Now I have been experimenting with sweet potato fries for a couple of years now.  To be honest, I find the most successful way to make excellent sweet potato fries is to deep fry them.  However, I opted for the healthier alternative and went baked.  When baking sweet potato fries, you have to be very alert and on your toes because of all the sweetness in the potato they tend to burn very quickly if not attended to properly.  Because of that reason, I tend to cut the potatoes a little larger than a traditional french fry to avoid burning.  This is only valid when using the oven method.

So follow along  - as it doesn’t really get any simpler!

Ingredients

2 Large Sweet Potatoes
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Tsp Nutmeg
1 Tsp. Cumin
Black Cracked Pepper
Salt

Method

Preheat oven to 400 F degrees.

After peeling and cutting the potatoes to your desired size  - I like to soak them in water and release some of the starch which will allow them to crisp up a little more.
Once soaked for about 30 minutes, be sure to dry them really well.  Do not leave any water moisture on the potatoes.

Transfer to a bowl and toss with the oil and spice combination.

Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: Sweet Potatoes are way for delicate than a regular potato and can burn very easily.  Do not go in the room to watch your favorite tv show…. just stay in the kitchen  - turn on your favorite tunes and dance around for a while.  You will need to flip these little guys 3 or 4 times to get them just perfect.  Stay close and keep smiling.

Now that you have a delicious plate of baked goodness, what does everyone love to dip these into?  Last night I chose a spicy ranch dip with a hint of Jalapeno Pepper to kick things up.  Normally I just go straight ranch… but I felt adventurous.  Let me know your favorite dipping sauce for sweet potato fries.

Happy Tuesday everyone…. I can’t wait to hear your response.

Zesty