These amazing Vegan Sweet Potatoes are cooked in plenty of vegan butter and stock so they suck up all of that lovely flavour before roasting themselves to golden, sticky perfection. They are a fantastic side dish to serve with your holiday feast or Sunday roast!
PREP TIME: 15 minutesminutes
COOK TIME: 55 minutesminutes
TOTAL TIME: 1 hourhour10 minutesminutes
Servings: 4to 5 servings
Ingredients
2lb (907grams)orange fleshed sweet potatoes , or yams
¼ cup (60 grams)vegan butter
2teaspoonsdried thyme
1teaspoonground cinnamon
½teaspoonfine salt
½teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
1cupvegetable stock
For the candied pecans
1 cup (100grams)raw pecan nuts, shelled
2tablespoonsdark brown sugar, or coconut sugar
2tablespoonsmaple syrup, real maple syrup not pancake syrup
¾teaspoon smoked paprika, or chipotle powder
¼teaspooncinnamon
¼teaspoon fine sea salt
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 475 °F (246 C).
Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into rounds about 1 inch thick.
Using clean hands, rub the butter generously all over each potato and lay them in a single layer on a rimmed metal baking tray. It must be a metal tray and not glass or ceramic and it needs to have a rim because you will be pouring some liquid on later.
Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the thyme, ¼ teaspoon of the pepper, ½ teaspoon of the cinnamon and a little salt, then flip the potatoes and do the same to the other sides with the remaining thyme, cinnamon, pepper and salt.
Put the potatoes in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove. Flip each one over and return to the oven for another 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven again and pour over the vegetable stock. Return to the oven and cook until the liquid has just disappeared. It should take around 20 to 25 minutes.
While the potatoes are cooking, put the pecan nuts in a small non stick pan. Add the sugar, maple syrup, smoked paprika, cinnamon and salt then stir to coat them. Put the pan over a medium heat, and let the nuts cook for about 4 to 5 minutes until bubbly and sticky. Keep them moving frequently. Don't leave them unattended as they burn easily.
Turn off the heat and carefully spoon the nuts onto a parchment paper or silicone mat lined plate. Spread them out in a single layer with a spoon and leave to cool. They will get hard and crunchy as they cool down.
Sprinkle the potatoes with the nuts and serve. Some fresh thyme is nice if you have some too.
NOTES
Store leftover cooked potatoes in a covered container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. To reheat, place in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for about 15 minutes or until hot. It's probably wise to pick the pecan nuts off before you put them in the oven so they don't burn.