roasted chili lime sweet potatoes

it’s honestly a stretch to call this a recipe, but here we are pretending anyway. let’s keep a secret between you and me - cooking doesn’t have to be revolutionary, and, as my boyfriend pointed out to me, most people like for things to be easy. i was truly dumbfounded by the revelation that yeah, in fact, people like to cook the way i generally eat which is the least fussy and fancy a gal could get, and it’s usually a scrapping of whatever i have in the cupboard and corners of my fridge, tossed together as quickly as possible so i can get back to all my autumnal activities (aka reading in semi-darkness and taking boiling hot showers.)

i suppose you could call this a sheet pan recipe, but again, stretch!, as it is really just a lone root vegetable tossed onto a… sheet pan. but i added fun spices and a spritz of lime to make it ~ fun ~ and yes that’s about as thrilling as things are these days. speaking of, minnesota already got dumped on with 8 inches of snow and the temperatures are now flirting with below-freezing and while it seems a hair early, i’m mostly just alarmed that two weeks ago i was going for walks in sandals. anyone have any tips-tricks-tidbits for what the heck we should do this winter? i’m beginning to compile a list because cozying up is truly my life’s dream, but recommendations are helpful in these don’tsayitdon’tsayitdon’tsayit uncertain times.

a few things about this recipe before we start:
- this is very easy to add or subtract sweet potatoes to. if you’re making more, double your spice blend. less, save the spice blend and add it to a chili or chicken.
- if you’re meal prepping and want these to stay crispy, wait for them to cool completely before you package them up, otherwise they will 100% get soggy (ew.)
- this would be a super fun side dish for an appetizer spread - i’m envisioning buffalo wings, spiced cauliflower, maybe a sweet and sticky meatball situation.
- if you dice your sweet potatoes or cut them fry-style, the cook time will vary. just keep an eye on ‘em.

roasted chili lime sweet potatoes
makes 2-4 servings
prep time: 5 minutes
cook time: 30 minutes

3 large sweet potatoes, quartered (leave the skin on - it gets extra crispy)
drizzle of olive oil
1 1/2tsp chili powder
1tsp cumin
1tsp garlic powder
1/2tsp paprika
1/2tsp red pepper flake
1tsp salt
juice from one lime
cilantro, scallions, and lime wedges for garnish

preheat the oven to 425.
drizzle the sweet potatoes in a little olive oil and the lime juice - not too much oil; we’re looking at this as sort of a dry rub. coat the sweet potatoes in the spice blend, then roast for 30 minutes of until the centers are puffed and the edges are crispy.

once the sweet potatoes are roasted, toss them in cilantro (if that’s your jam,) scallions, and more lime.