all hail the sweet potato

Until I was about 22, sweet potatoes grossed me out.  I don't know why.  I think it has roots (no pun intended) in my disdain for certain sweet and savory combination foods.

For example, chocolate-covered pretzels?  Nasty.

Maybe since sweet potatoes were always a side dish served with my Mimi's pot roast, I just couldn't get over that personal quirk?  I don't know.

But these days?  Oh, how I love a sweet potato.  I almost always roast them, and while they usually take on the form of a sweet potato fry, I haven't mastered a sweet potato fry crispiness, which I regret.

As roasted s.p.'s go, though, you can season them up a thousand different ways.  So versatile, those s.p.'s.  This particular recipe happens to use one of the most boring standard flavor combinations ever, but it has so many other things going for it.

• It's super simple.  (Anyone can cube up potatoes and chop garlic.)

• The potatoes' color really shine in a white baking dish.  (Even a weeknight meal deserves some flare now and again.)

• It calls for rosemary.  (I have rosemary bushes that are bordering on kudzu-status.  It's everywhere, people.)

Give these a go when you need a simple side, especially as fall weather approaches (yes, Jesus, yes).

Rosemary Roasted Sweet Potatoes

3 sweet potatoes, cubed into one-inch pieces (peel or don't peel, whichever you prefer)
3 Tbsp. EVOO
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 branches of fresh rosemary, chopped
1/4 tsp. kosher salt (or to taste)
1/4 tsp. course ground pepper (or to taste)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
 
2. Whisk together EVOO, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl.
 
3. Add sweet potatoes to the EVOO mixture and toss to coat.
 
4. Pour potatoes into a baking dish (I used an 8 x 8 square, but anything comparable in size is good).
 
5. Bake for 25 minutes, stir, and bake for 25 more minutes, until potatoes are tender.