Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Mustard

Sweet potatoes, tossed with dijon mustard and maple syrup and herbs, then roasted with shallots and bacon until they are creamy and caramelized. A perfect side dish any time of year!

📝 Ingredients

• 2 slices bacon (diced (optional))
• 1 1/2 lbs mini sweet potatoes (un-peeled, quartered (or regular sweet potato, scrubbed and unpeeled recommended, and cubed))
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 medium shallots (halved then sliced (about 1/4 cup) or onion)
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 1 Tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (less if using dried leaves)

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Preheat oven to 425° F. with rack in centre of oven.
2. 2If not using bacon, simply grease your pan with some olive oil instead, so the sweet potatoes don't stick. If your skillet isn't oven-proof, you can brown the bacon on the stove-top and then transfer to any shallow oven-proof pan that has been greased with olive oil or a bit of bacon fat.
3. 3In an oven-proof skillet (preferably cast iron), cook bacon until starting to brown. Remove bacon from skillet and set aside. Discard fat from pan, but don't wipe pan.
4. 4Meanwhile, place cut potatoes in a large bowl and toss with olive oil. Add shallots and toss again Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper and toss to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, maple syrup and thyme leaves. Pour over potatoes and toss well to combine and evenly coat the potatoes.
5. 5Pour potatoes in to skillet used to brown the bacon. Spread out evenly. Roast in pre-heated oven for 40 minutes. *Do not stir potatoes while cooking, as they may fall apart! Remove from oven and sprinkle reserved bacon over-top. Again, do not stir. Return to oven for an additional 5 minutes or until potatoes are soft (*Be sure to taste test for doneness, as these can look done but are still a little hard. You want them to roast to creamy softness :). Garnish with fresh thyme.