Ok, so they're not the prettiest things ever...but they sure do taste great! I've been making oven baked sweet potato fries for a long time. One thing's for sure--it's nearly impossible to get them crispy, but I have learned a few things:
a) They get crispier if you don't use foil. They just stick to foil, so use an oiled rimmed baking sheet.
b) Don't try to cook them on parchment (and this is probably the only time I'll say something negative about my beloved parchment paper). They end up as nothing but a soggy mess, lying in puddles of sweet potato juice. Nothing you'll want to eat, trust me.
c) The broiler helps, but you've got to watch them carefully. After the cooking time is up, I usually switch the broiler on to low, and give them a few minutes. This helps.
The method I usually use is to season them first with cumin, chili powder, garlic and onion powder, and sometimes, some adobo. Always coarse salt and pepper, but you decide--it's all up to you.
Toss them with olive oil and all the spices, then bake them. Good stuff.
But last week, I read Lori's post at Made Healthier, about Baked Garlic Fries. What? Toss them in oil and garlic after cooking? Genius! So naturally, I wanted to try it with sweet potatoes. Me likey! It worked great, like I knew it would! Here's my take on her recipe:
Oven Baked Sweet Potato Garlic Fries
Preheat oven to 400°.
You can either peel your potatoes, or give them a good scrubbing, which is what I did. Oh, and I used 3 sweet potatoes this time.
Cut them into wedges or like fries.
Put them on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive or vegetable oil, coarse salt and pepper.
Bake for about 40-50 minutes, flipping the fries over at the halfway point. When time is up, see if you want to turn the broiler on for a few minutes, but watch them carefully if you do.
About 10 minutes or so before they're done, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over low to medium heat.
When the oil is hot, add in about 3 (or more or less, depending on what you like) garlic cloves that you've chopped. Be careful not to burn the garlic, you just want to soften it, take the raw "edge" off, and flavor the oil.
Toss the baked fries with the garlic and the olive oil, and add more salt to taste.
Serve them now!
See? They won't win any awards for being beautiful, but they are delicious just the same.
