Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Standard sweet potato fries get a violet twist with the addition of a Japanese sweet potato. The mauve exterior and pale buttery flesh pair up beautifully with the rust orange of the traditional sweet potato we see so frequently in the south. The nuances in flavor and texture make this combination of warm hues even more tangible to the senses.

Preheat oven to 400°F

Cut sweet potatoes into desired fry shape
Place on cookie sheets and drizzle generously with olive oil
Sprinkle with pink salt, fresh crushed pepper (mortar and pestle style!), and any other preferred seasoning
Spread evenly on sheet pan, ensuring the fries are in an even layer and not touching, otherwise they will steam and not get a nice bubbly char
Bake for 30 minutes
At each 10 minute interval, remove pans from the oven and move the fries around and rotate which pans are on the top and bottom racks
The goal is for fries that are crisp on the outside, but fluffy as a pillow on the inside

Eat these baked lovelies on their own, or arrange them around a hunk of fatty grilled salmon seasoned by my resident Grill Man with pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and ghost pepper salt. Sauté Fresh spinach and baby kale with an abundance of garlic and top the platter with fresh chopped parsley.

Many restaurants insist on suffocating the sweet potatoes with powdered sugar and cinnamon butter. I opt for classic ketchup, but for a special treat I go for Gourmet Warehouse Kickin’ Strawberry. Sweet with a dash of spice, this unique sauce also tastes great on the salmon! No I am not a spokeswoman, I just really love this BBQ. Their Cherry Jalapeno is also divine.