Baked Sweet Potato Fries With Sweet and Spicy Dip

Sweet potatoes face an identity crisis on the fall dinner table. The starchy tuber makes a spectacular savory side dish all by itself or with the help of garden herbs like thyme, garlic or rosemary. That might be the end of it, except that they also make a heck of a pie. Moving on to Thanksgiving dinner, you’ll find them served glazed with brown sugar or buried under mountains of fluffy, toasted marshmallow. While I remain staunchly anti-marshmallow when it comes to sweet potatoes, I can get behind a little sweet to go with this fall favorite. Even still, I can’t resist heating things up a bit with this spicy spin on sweet potato fries as a side or snack, at home on the dinner table or when parked in front of the TV watching the big game.

Spiced with cinnamon and paprika and baked in the oven, this easy finger food tastes like the season, but the addition of a silky sweet brown sugar dip  with a touch of jalapeno heat will grab your attention and warm your toes. Remove the seeds of the jalapeno before mincing for a mild warmth or leave them in to really turn up the heat. Sweet or savory, spicy or mild, sweet potatoes are a versatile veggie and this quick and tasty recipe just might make them a habit that requires no marshmallows, pie crusts or forks.

Baked Sweet Potato Fries With Sweet Jalapeno Dip

• 2 pounds sweet potatoes
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 jalapeño, seeded or unseeded and minced

Wash sweet potatoes and cut lengthwise  into ¼”-½” wide strips.

Place fries in a large bowl, add olive oil and toss to coat.

Add cinnamon, paprika and salt to bowl and toss to coat.

Arrange fries on a baking sheet without overlap.

Bake fries in a 425 degrees for about 25 min, flipping fries once after 15 minutes.

While fried bake, combine butter, brown sugar and jalapeno in a saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat.

Once boil is reached, remove from heat and allow to cool 10 minutes before serving.