Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite vegetables. They’re so versatile and tasty, it’s nearly impossible to mess them up. And they’re full of nutrition as well. What’s not to love here? I’m gearing up this year to add more vegetarian dishes to our meals, I’m not vegetarian, believe me I cannot give up bacon, but that doesn’t mean I have to eat meat all the time either. The other day I bought Yotam Ottolenghi’s cookbook Plenty, all vegetable recipes with lots of great mediterranean spices. I’m totally loving this book, from the way it’s organized with sections on root vegetables, mushrooms, eggplant, salads, grains - to the layout itself, beautiful large photos of the dishes accompanied with ingredients and recipe on a single page (I find it annoying when recipes are split with ingredients on one page and you have to flip the page for instructions on another) Some ingredient amounts are vague, like 1 inch of fresh ginger, that can really vary depending on the size of the root, but then it’s like any recipe, you really need to taste and adjust, even if someone gives you an exact amount of spice, you might prefer more or less. In any case I’m devouring this book and you will see many dishes come this way. And speaking of devouring, you will definitely wolf down these sweet potato wedges. They’re so simple to make, the combination of flavors is just amazing. If you don’t have creme fraiche for the dip I can see this easily working with yogurt instead.

Also I updated my about page and added some info about camera equipment and some general FAQs.

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Sweet Potato Wedges with Lemongrass Dip

(adapted from Plenty)

3 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 lbs)*
4 Tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 fresh red chile, finely diced
1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Dipping sauce

1/2 lemongrass stalk
3/4 cup creme fraiche
Grated zest and juice of 2 limes
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Preheat oven to 400°F. Wash the sweet potatoes leaving the skins on. Cut each lengthwise in quarters then again for 8 long wedges. Place them in a roasting pan or baking sheet lined with parchment paper, brush the oil on the wedges on all sides, then sprinkle with a mixture of the coriander and salt. Roast for about 25-35 minutes until they are tender and golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool down a little. (the wedges can be eaten warm or at room temperature.)

To make the dipping sauce, finely chop the lemongrass, whisk with all other ingredients for the sauce and set aside.

When ready to serve place the wedges on a large platter, sprinkle with cilantro and red pepper, serve with sauce on the side.

Serves 4.

*I recommend weighing the sweet potatoes, mine were large and weighed about a pound each!