We've already established that sweet potatoes are a magical root, and of course we've covered the fact stuffing one delicious food into another delicious food is usually a good idea. What really takes this dish to another level, though, is the vinaigrette. Flavor explosion, guys!
The smoothness of the maple syrup, the bite of the chili, and the tang of the lime all perfectly complement the sweet potatoes and their stuffing. The result is an incredible combination of sweet, spicy, sour, and salty that can easily be adjusted as necessary to achieve your personal version of a perfect vinaigrette.
Inspired by Maya at Alaska from Scratch
Serves 2 as a main dish, or 4 as an appetizer
2 medium sweet potatoes
¼ onion, diced
½ cup corn, rinsed and drained
½ cup black beans, rinsed and drained
juice from 1 lime
1 tablespoon maple syrup
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon chopped cilantro
salt and pepper, to taste
olive oil, to coat your pan
Preheat your oven to 450 F and line a medium baking pan with aluminum foil. Wash your sweet potatoes really well, then prick them all over with a fork and grease them up with a little bit of olive oil. Then wrap them up in some more aluminum foil so that they look like lumpy mini burritos. Pop them onto the pan and into the oven for about 40 minutes, or until you can easily pierce the potato with a fork. When they're done, take the spuds out of the oven and open up their foil jackets so that they cool off a bit before you put your paws all over them.
Once the potatoes are cool, cut them in half and carefully scoop out their delicious orange innards, making sure to leave enough attached to the skin so that the whole potato half doesn't completely collapse. Toss the into a bowl and mash up a bit so that there aren't any massive chunks. Put the skins back into the baking pan and set aside for a minute while you make the stuffing.
Grab a large saucepan, drizzle some olive oil on it, and cook the diced onions over medium heat for about 2 minutes. As soon as they start to smell nice and oniony, add the corn and black beans. Cook just until they're heated all the way through, then add the sweet potato flesh and stir everything around vigorously to make sure all the goodies are evenly spread through the mixture. You can add a little salt and pepper at this point if you'd like, but it's not necessary - the vinaigrette will provide plenty of flavor.
Use a large spoon to scoop the stuffing into the waiting sweet potato skins, filling them all the way up until they look like little orange mountains. Back into the oven they go! Set your timer for 15 minutes. While your stuffed potatoes are roasting away, it's time to make the vinaigrette. Just pour the lime juice, maple syrup, chili powder, garlic powder, and chopped cilantro into a small bowl and whisk it all up. Add salt and pepper to taste. I tried to take a picture but there's literally no way to make this vinaigrette not look like bits of grass floating in muddy water...so if that's what you're looking at in your own kitchen, you're on the right track.
At this point your timer should have about 5 minutes left for the potatoes, right? Perfect. Drizzle that delicious vinaigrette over each potato half, then stick the pan back into the oven. Wait patiently for 5 more minutes, and then you're done! You can top your stuffed sweet potatoes with chopped green onions, more cilantro, or sliced avocado - enjoy!
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