My mother often makes a dish featuring cubed sweet potatoes, cranberries, pecans, cinnamon and orange juice. While I enjoy her recipe, sometimes I yearn for something a bit less sweet. As part of this month’s Farmers’ Feast cooking fest on behalf of the Ottawa Farmers’ Market, I got to thinking about new ways to combine some of my favourite fall flavours in a dish. I realized that sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts might just be a great match….and I was right. This dish would be a great vegan or vegetarian buffet option as well as being an excellent side dish for turkey or roast pork.

Elevate your baked sweet potatoes by topping them with sauteed Brussels sprouts, dried cranberries and pecans.

 Ingredients

• 2 small to medium-sized sweet potatoes
• 10 – 12 Brussels sprouts, roughly chopped in 1/3” (.7 cm) pieces
• 1 shallot, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) butter (or butter substitute for vegans)
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) dried cranberries, coarsely chopped

 Method

• Preheat the oven to 400F.
• Wash the sweet potatoes and pierce the skin several times on with the tip of a sharp knife. Bake for 45 – 60 minutes, until tender in the middle when tested with a knife. Note that you can cut the roasting time in half by par-cooking the pierced potatoes for 2 minutes per side on high power in the microwave before transferring to the preheated oven.
• Just before the potatoes are finished roasting, put the olive oil, Brussels sprouts and shallots in in a heavy frying pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 10 – 15 minutes until wilted and leaves are beginning to crisp. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Remove cooked potatoes from the oven and let cool 5 minutes. Slice lengthwise and open them up like a book.
• Spread butter over cooked potato flesh then top with sautéed Brussels sprouts, pecans and cranberries.

Serves 2; recipe can easily be multiplied.