Vegan Holiday Sweet Potato Bake
This sweet potato bake screams COZY! It’s a vegan take on all the holiday spices mixed with all buttery goodness you can handle to elevate your sweet potatoes, with a nutty cinnamon crunch.
The top layer is a little crunchy and loaded with cinnamon and cardamom. The bottom layer is creamy and and buttery with a hint of lime and a splash of coconut. It’s such a lovely mix of flavors and goes really well with many traditional holiday flavors.
The Sweet Potatoes
You are going to start this recipe with clean sweet potatoes that you will bake in the oven, in their skins for around 40 minutes until you see the tips begin to blacken a little. You want them to begin to caramelize a bit inside the skin. A lot of the extra good flavor comes from baking them long enough, so make sure to bake them long enough for that caramelization to happen.
Cardamom
You want to make sure you use cardamom powder and not seeds for the recipe. If you can’t get your hands on it, it’s not the biggest deal, the recipe can still hold it self up without it, but it hands an extra nice layer to the traditional cinnamon.
Coconut Sugar
Coconut sugar has a more mild flavor. If you can’t find it, you can us regular sugar, but just use 2 tbsp instead of 3 so it’s not too sweet.
The Nut Crunch
The nut crunch on top is a mixture of hazelnut and walnut, blended into a slightly chunky meal and mixed with seasoning. This combination of nuts are my favorite for this side dish, but you can easily replace with pecans or another hard nut if you wish. The key to a good crunch is leaving a few bigger pieces in with the finer ones.
I throw in a few tablespoons of the nut meal with the potatoes to make it a little heartier. I find that you can add a nice thick layer of the nut crunch on top with you add some in as a stabilizing filler to the sweet potatoes. It always holds up better.
This can easily be made in a dehydrator or oven. If you are choosing a dehydrator, set to 117* F for 1-2 hour then flip and continue for another 30 minutes to an hour. The reason this range varieties so much is different dehydrators have given different outcomes – so you need to babysit your crunch.
I like to do the oven, so I can make one large sheet and it goes a bit quicker. I also use 117* F for about 45 minutes to an hour and then flip and dehydrate for another 30 minutes. It’s ok to break up your pieces when you flip.
What To Serve This Sweet Potato Bake With
I call this a holiday side because it pairs so well with so many holiday flavors. You can easily serve this during Thanksgiving or Christmas as a potato dish. If you want to make this side for a typical non-holiday dinner, it would pair well with a nut roast, a vegan wellington, and even something simple like grilled tofu.
Vegan Sweet Potato Bake
Creamy, nutty, and packed with all the holiday feels, this sweet potato bake is perfect for your next gathering!
Ingredients
- 4 medium sweet potatoes, cleaned with skins on
- 3 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1/2 of lime juice
- 1 minced garlic clove
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 3 pinch cardamom
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 1/2 + 3 tbsp cup coconut milk
- 1/2 cup walnuts, ground into meal
- 1/2 cup hazelnuts, ground into meal
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
1. Take your cleaned sweet potatoes and poke a few holes in them in a fork and place them in the oven at 350* F
2. Let them bake for around 40 minutes, or until tips begin to blacken a little.
3. Once the potatoes are baked enough, let cool and remove skins.
4. Add potatoes to a bowl and mix in coconut sugar, 1/2 cup of coconut milk, butter, 2 tbsp of the nut meal, garlic, salt and pepper to taste and mash until you reach an even consistency.
5. Spread the mixture evenly into an oven safe deep dish.
6. Bake at 350* F for 30 minutes.
7. While the potatoes are baking, mix together the rest of the ingredients in a bowl.
8. Add the nut mixture to the top of the potatoe bake and spread an even layer with a spatula.
9. Sprinkle with some cinnamon.
10. Return to oven and bake for another 30 minutes or until the nut muxture starts to brown and harden a little.
11. Remove from heat and let cool for about 10-15 minutes before serving.
If enjoyed this meal let me know what you think by leaving a ★★★★★ star rating and comment below with any questions or feedback. These are two small things that add up to a ton of support, which I really appreciate. Also show off your pics to me on instagram by tagging @theveganholidayblog and #veganholidaypic – I am excited to see your meals!
