Roasted Vegetables: Spicy Sweet Potatoes

Foodies have their obsessions: foods they are prisoner to, enchanted with and cannot stray from… though I doubt any of us try. Clotilda from Chocolate & Zucchini loves, well, chocolate and zucchini. Deb over at Smitten Kitchen has a ‘thing’ for artichokes. And if you are thoroughly enthralled with a particular food or food genre: your blog is named for and equally dedicated to a singular culinary passion or adventure. So we hail blogs like Cheryl’s Cupcake Bakeshop, Anita’s Dessert First and Iheartbacon.

It made me wonder: what is my food passion? What foods do I get a royal kick out of, time and again? I am taken with olive oil and a sucker for coarse/herbed/interesting salt. And it goes without saying that TOMATOES will waltz their way into one dish after another, cloaked in any variety of personality, style or vogue endeavor. No doubt prosciutto thinks it owns my kitchen, is king and has no challenger. I am passionate about many foods though a most regular, familiar visitor to my kitchen is roasted vegetables. This will not be the only time you will hear from me on the enchantment of roasted vegetables. Be certain you will see numerous variations of roasted veggies pop across your computer screen, begging to adorn your oven.

Just the other night friends came to dinner and I roasted carrots and turnips; often I roast new potatoes with shallots and wedges of fennel. You will see me lube up squash with olive oil, cut beets into uniform chunks and find thyme and fancy salts to sprinkle all over tomatoes, cauliflower or long, thick wedges of rustic potatoes. Roasting veggies often gives them a certain sweetness that my children adore. In summer I may turn off my oven just as soon as I turn on the grill—and then it is one big oil-lubing, salt-smattering veggie fest once again. Here is the first of many ideas for quick, easy, delicious roastable veggies:

Spicy Sweet Potatoes
2-3 Sweet Potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks (I use 16 oz bag from Trader Joes already in uniform chunks)
2 T olive oil or enough to just coat
1 T chopped, fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Kosher salt & coarse pepper (KS&CP)
2 tsp coarse sugar

Place potatoes on cookie sheet or in baking dish, aiming for single layer. Lube with olive oil, sprinkle with remaining ingredients. Mix up again if necessary. Roast at 350 for 40 minutes or 400 for 30 minutes, depending on your timing/oven needs.

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