Looking for a way to spice up your favorite tuber? Just use a little knife trick and some literal spice to make these hasselback sweet potatoes!
If you’ve never had a hasselback potato or sweet potato before, it’s a potato that has had slices cut into it, but not all the way. This allows the edges to crisp up while baking. It’s basically like eating a log of potato chips, which is something I would not turn down.
These hasselback sweet potatoes may look daunting at first, but they are surprisingly easy to make! They also make you look like a pro chef who used their $700, Japanese, name-engraved knife to cut them. So, win-win there. But you don’t need an imported knife to slice these spuds. You just need a sharp knife, a few sweet potatoes, and, my all time favorite utensil: chopsticks.
Placing the sweet potato in between the chopsticks while you slice it will help to avoid cutting all the way through.
I used Japanese sweet potatoes for this recipe because they’re in season at the moment and one of my favorite varieties. They’re a bit firmer and nuttier than orange sweet potatoes, so they’re a great addition to a fall or winter meal. If you cannot find them at your supermarket, regular orange or white sweet potatoes work just as well.
Also, just a side note about the excess honey mixture you’ll find at the bottom of the baking dish while baking these potatoes. DO.NOT.THROW.IT.OUT! That stuff is the food of the gods. When you're done baking the potatoes, spoon it over the top of them. Trust me, you won’t regret it. Promise me you’ll do this! If you don’t, I will hunt you down, break into your kitchen, and drink it straight out of the baking dish with a reusable straw. Okay, I probably won’t do that, but just do it anyways.
If you make this recipe or any others from my blog, tag me on Instagram @figisisters. I would love to see it!
Recipe:
Hasselback Japanese Sweet Potatoes
Makes 2 Potatoes
Ingredients:
2 - Small-Medium Sized Japanese Sweet Potatoes*
21 g - Hot Honey*
10 ml - Olive Oil
170 g - 5% Greek Yogurt
14 g - Roasted, Salted Pumpkin Seeds
2 tsp - Cinnamon
1 tsp - Sea Salt - Optional
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 425F.
Wash and scrub sweet potatoes.
Place them between two chopsticks on a cutting board*. The chopsticks will help avoid cutting all the way through the potato. Carefully make a series of deep slits down the potato. Get as close as you can to the bottom of the potato without cutting through it.
Place the potatoes into a grease-lined baking dish.
In a small bowl, mix honey, olive oil, and cinnamon together. Brush or spoon mixture over potatoes. Make sure the mixture gets into the slits.
Cover potatoes with tin foil and bake for 45-55 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender*.
Remove from the oven. Spoon the excess honey mixture from the bottom of the baking dish over the potatoes. Top them with pumpkin seeds and sea salt and serve them with a generous dollop of Greek yogurt.
*Notes
- Orange or white sweet potatoes can also be used.
- If you cannot find hot honey, mix together honey with ½ tsp of cayenne pepper
- If your potatoes are too round to sit up on their own, slice a small piece off the bottom to flatten it.
- If potatoes begin to dry out during baking, drizzle more olive oil on them and return them to the oven.
- This recipe makes a great breakfast, side dish, or dessert. If you want something a little sweeter, replace the Greek yogurt with vanilla ice cream. Yum!
If you’re hosting a party and looking for a savory side to go along with these sweet potatoes, you could while up a batch of these cheesy broccoli tots.
