I have been feeling rather guilty lately as I have really been neglecting this blog, so I thought I would post this recipe for gorgeous twice baked sweet potatoes.
My neglect has come from my new love for crochet, knitting, sewing, refurbishing beautiful old furniture and interior design, all of which is taking up huge chunks of my time, but our lovely house has become a really cosy and welcoming home for us all to live in. I have saved Hubby a fortune with all my new talents, all self taught, mainly by using tutorials on YouTube, but it goes to show that it is never to late to learn and it is something that in the near future I hope to set up as a small side business.
I feel the same about cooking and baking, I really didn’t get into cooking until I was in my 30’s and baking much later than that, but with time and patience, if you love food I think that anyone can learn.
This recipe is a bit of a fiddle to do, but the taste is so worth the extra effort. We had this as a side dish to griddled pork chops and green beens, but I think it would make a very impressive starter, served on a crisp white plate with a little rocket, an arty trickle of the balsamic reduction and you have restaurant quality food.
The whole dish just bursts to life in your mouth, soft sweet potato, salty goats cheese and the tart but sweet balsamic are all to die for.
So we are only into February of 2014 and I have already achieved one of my tasks of the year, to learn to crochet, feeling pretty chuffed and now to move on to the rest of the list of things to achieve this year.
Buon appetito
(Photo of our house done using Waterlogue)
2 large sweet potatoes (look for ones that are shaped like a fat oval)
4 ounces cubed pancetta
2 ounces goat cheese, plus more for crumbling on top
2 tablespoons butter
1 heaping teaspoon of loosely packed sage leaves, finely chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries (I didn’t use these, but its entirely up to you)
1/4 cup single cream
salt to taste
1 1/2 cups balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar
In a small bowl, cover dried cranberries with hot water (if using). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit for about 10 minutes to rehydrate the berries. Drain them and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 180C, 350F. Poke each sweet potato several times with a fork and bake them on the oven rack (with a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any oozing) for 1 hour or until a knife will slice them easily.
While they bake, sauté the pancetta in a frying pan over medium-high heat for a 8-10 minutes or until crisp. Drain it on a plate lined with a paper towel.
Once they’re ready, let the baked sweet potatoes cool for 10 minutes before slicing the top third off of each. Use a spoon to carefully scoop out the flesh (leave about 1/8 inch of flesh in the skin to give it some sturdiness). Mix the sweet potato flesh in a medium bowl with the butter, 2 ounces of goat cheese, and single cream (add this slowly while mixing so you get the consistency you’d like). Once the mixture is smooth, stir in the cranberries, sage, and pancetta. Salt the mixture to taste.
Spoon it into a large zip top bag and cut the bottom corner off. Squeeze the mixture into the sweet potato skins.You can just carefully spoon the mixture in if preferred. (At this point you can cover the potatoes and refrigerate overnight or bake immediately. If you chill them overnight, just let them come to room temperature before you bake them the next day.) Bake the potatoes for 10-12 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack.
While the potatoes are baking, combine the balsamic vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and boil them over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is reduced to about 2/3 cup (this can take anywhere from 18-25 minutes). Be careful — vinegar fumes are strong! When the glaze is about ready, preheat the grill. Top each potato with a generous amount of goat cheese and grill, watching very closely, until the goat cheese is toasty brown and bubbly.
Remove the potatoes and drizzle on the balsamic glaze.
Serve immediately.
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