The final Recipe ReDux challenge of 2016 is the annual Grab a Book & Cook. The idea is to pick a recipe located on a page that’s any combination of 2016, such as 16, 201, 62 – you get the idea. I have numerous cookbooks on my Kindle but only one with me that’s actually bound. In it, I found this incredible Jamaican Baked Sweet Potato recipe that you will love! It’s a little bit sweet and a little bit spicy, with a hint of citrus.
The recipe comes from one of those compilation recipe books. They are often full of regional recipes and offer a glimpse of popular ingredients and techniques popular in the region and year the book is printed.
Mine was published by the Hospice of Queen Anne’s (Maryland) and given to me by my Aunt who volunteered with them. I shared a cheesy broccoli potato casserole from this collection two years ago. The Jamaican sweet potato recipe was a welcome find. Rather than the usual sugary sweet potatoes, these are seasoned with spices and citrus as well as a brown sugar rum glaze.
Sweet potatoes are gaining popularity here in Spain (they’re called boniatos or batatas), but they can be tricky to find. However, there’s an organic grocery store near our new apartment and they always have some available. For this recipe I used a huge tuber that probably weighed close to two pounds.
Thinking that Jamaican Sweet Potatoes could be a flexitarian main meal, I supplemented with sliced onion and green pepper. I also halved the amount of brown sugar used for the glaze. In addition, I altered the seasoning somewhat in line with my understanding of Caribbean food.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs sweet potatoes washed and diced
- 1 medium onion peeled and sliced into petals
- 1 medium green pepper cut into strips (use hot peppers if you prefer)
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice or nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder add more if you like
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
- chopped parsley or cilantro for garnish
For the glaze
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter or vegan spread
- juice and zest of one lime
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1/4 cup dark rum substitute orange juice if desired
Instructions
- Bake the sweet potatoes for about an hour at 400°F. Remove from the oven and reduce the heat to 350°F. When cool enough to handle safely, peel the sweet potatoes and cut into cubes.
- While the potatoes are cooling: Mix the allspice, ginger, salt, pepper and chili powder together in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Measure the contents of the glaze into a small saucepan and bring to a boil while stirring regularly. Remove from heat.
- Place the potatoes, onions and peppers in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle with half the seasoning. Stir to combine. Add the glaze and the remainder of the seasoning.
- Bake for an additional 20 - 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are cooked to your liking. Stir occasionally to distribute the glaze.
- Garnish with the cilantro before serving. Serve with rice if you like.
When I’m cooking for the blog we typically eat a portion right away and finish it off the next day. Not so with this recipe. Rick and I both kept returning for another helping until it was all gone. It’s fitting that one of the last posts for 2016 is sure to be one of our favorites in 2017!
Best wishes to you and your family! We look forward to cooking with you next year!
Head over to The Recipe ReDux to see the other gorgeous recipes our bloggers have chosen!
Do you have an idea about making this recipe for a large crowd?
Hi Janine, for a crowd I think I would use 13 x 9 inch pans (or larger, depending on what you have available) for the vegetables.
You could bake the sweet potatoes ahead of time, as in this recipe, or peel and cut them and roast them separately from the other veg as they’ll take the longest and combine everything with the glaze towards the end of cooking. (I’ve done this a couple times for just me and my husband, using a sheet pan. He prefers his sweet potatoes this way as opposed to twice cooked.)
Good luck!
I’d like to make this, but I confused. Are you baking the potatoes whole, or roasting diced potatoes?
I roasted it whole, cut it up into smaller pieces, and finished the recipe.
Love the citrus taste in it. Delicious
Hi Maxine! Thanks for taking the time to comment. I’m glad you enjoyed the sweet potatoes. We like the citrus, too! Have a great week 🙂
I tried this recipe tonight and it is delicious. I substituted with Jamaican sweet potato which is less sweet and it was a perfect combination. I’ll be making this again.
I’m glad you liked it. I think it’s a good recipe, too. Thanks for taking the time to let me know!
I bet this smells amazing when it’s cooking!
We enjoyed this for dinner tonight. I reduced the white pepper and chili powder in half, because we are a bit wimpy when it comes to heat. Very tasty and easy, I love that combination! 5 stars!
Glad you enjoyed it, Nancy! There’s a lot of leeway for the peppery stuff 🙂
You’re a brave woman, Lydia! I just had cataract surgery, so won’t be cooking. After you have it, you can’t see a book, a temote, or a phone w/out readers. I can’t imagine trying to see a recipe or cook! It’s cold cuts or eat out this yr, altho I did put fresh turkey in the freezer!
Rick had that surgery in both eyes (not at the same time). He needs glasses now, too.