“Save Me A Bite” Pomegranate Sweet Potatoes

The gang’s all here—simple, high-quality ingredients make the cooking process and outcome a hit.

“I saved you a bite” is what I texted Steve after lunch. I regretted it immediately. By the time he arrived home six hours later, there was still a bite.

A bite, as in a morsel.*

This LAFF pomegranate sweet potato dish has it all: looks, flavor, texture, and nutrients. Plus, the timing of the different steps flows together seamlessly.

You can turn this dish into a salad by adding greens and making extra sauce as the dressing. Or, bake the sweet potatoes as a whole (instead of cubing them) and then top with the LAFF-pecan-pomegranate mixture.

Ingredients (ostensibly enough for two large servings)

Highland County Maple syrup is worth every cent.

1 cup LAFF protein crumbles 2 sweet potatoes (or 1 large sweet potato) 1 pomegranate (or about 1 cup pomegranate arils) ½ cup chopped pecans 2 tablespoons maple syrup (here’s my favorite) 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar 1 teaspoon lime juice ½ teaspoon sea salt Fresh mint Salt, pepper Olive oil, avocado oil, or cooking spray

Method

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. Scatter the cubes on a parchment-lined baking tray. Spray with oil and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes (stirring after 15 minutes).

While the potatoes are roasting, remove the pomegranate seeds (i.e., the arils) from the pomegranate. I use the water bowl method because I find it relaxing, but the whacking method is also effective and therapeutic in its own way. Set the seeds aside in a dish.

Stir the sweet potatoes.

Everyone wants a bite.

While the potatoes continue roasting, toast ½ cup of chopped pecans in a saucepan over low-medium heat. When the pecans are lightly toasted (i.e., just a bit crunchy and fragrant), add 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon lime juice, and ½ teaspoon sea salt. Keep the heat on low and stir in 1 cup LAFF protein crumbles. Continue stirring until the the mixture is thoroughly combined and warm.

The potatoes should be ready! Remove them from the oven and transfer them into one large serving bowl or two individual dishes (pasta bowls or salad plates). Pour the LAFF-pecan mixture over the sweet potatoes and gently stir to combine. Sprinkle with sea salt and stir again. Add the pomegranate seeds. Top with fresh, chopped mint. Serve warm.

Notes:

Glamorous enough for a holiday, easy enough for quick Wednesday night.

Cooking for a crowd? Doubling, tripling, or quadrupling this recipe works like a charm.

For even more decadence, toss the cubed sweet potatoes with olive oil, sea salt, and a touch of maple syrup before roasting. (Stir more often to prevent burning.)

You can prepare part or all of this dish the day before. I recommend keeping the pomegranate seeds separate until it’s time to serve. (And, of course, add the fresh mint at the last minute.)

As mentioned above, you can turn this dish into a salad. For a salad, I recommend dicing (rather than cubing) the sweet potato. For the dressing, prepare another batch of the liquid ingredients used in the LAFF-pecan mixture: 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, and 1 teaspoon lime juice. Consider 2-3 tablespoons of avocado oil or olive oil. I estimate that this recipe would make 3-4 servings of salad depending on whether the salad is a side dish or the entree.

If you’re not a fan of mint, you can add rosemary and thyme to the roasting sweet potatoes and finish the dish with more rosemary and thyme, or a bit of Italian parsley.

Use high quality sweet potatoes! Potatoes from Glade Farm Growing are, as Tina Turner sang, simply the best.

*This was nearly a William Carlos Williams plums situation: “This is just to say I have eaten the sweet potatoes that I made and which you would probably have loved for dinner. Forgive me, they were delicious so sweet and so warm.”

The links provided above are intended as resources, not advertisements. I’m linking to products that I used but am not sponsored by other companies. I’m trying to sell LAFFkitchen protein crumbles, of course, but do not make money or receive discounts/products from other food businesses.