Sweet Potatoes with Tahini Butter

I started watching some Top Chef in these quarantine times, which I have not done in at least 5 years, and am finding it delightful. It's a nice switch from such copious quantities of news. Maybe it will help me transition to reading some more, which eludes me thus far in pandemic land. Though I have a nice stack of Sun magazines accumulating for when the inspiration hits. Anyway - Top Chef is calling my attention to ingredients and sauces, and some creative food wonderings. I've been on a bit of a tahini kick lately - spreading it on my sourdough teff toast with butter and jam, and yesterday when I was heating up previously frozen pancakes I made a topping of tahini/syrup/coconut milk that turned out really good. I always want a syrup-like topping that is not so sweet, that helps moisten the pancakes, and this was perfect.

The tahini-love lead to these sweet potatoes from a Bon Appetit recipe I flagged sometime in the last few weeks, and wow. I already knew tahini WITH butter was delicious from aforementioned toast, but this kicks it up another level (more butter than tahini). The recipe makers assure us that the tahini butter will all mix together, despite what seems incredibly too many liquids. I stirred for many minutes, and didn't get all the way there. Maybe my butter wasn't quite soft enough, or because my lime juice was too cold from being in the fridge? Or maybe I added a little too much lime, because I just squeezed in all of one? Anyway, I used my somewhat lumpy tahini butter and it was still delicious. The creaminess of the butter and the sweet potato, with a little crunch of seeds and the tang of the lime = Amazing.

I followed the recipe, except I baked my potatoes rather than steamed them, and I put some parsley on top. Link to the original recipe if you want their steaming method; I also reduced their recipe to 4 from 6.

Sweet Potatoes with Tahini Butter (serves 4)

2 lb. sweet potatoes, any color (4 small to medium)

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature

2 Tbsp fresh lime juice

1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp tahini

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

Flaky sea salt

Toasted sesame seeds and lime wedges (for serving)

Chopped fresh parsley (opt, also for serving)

 

With chicken and a beet salad

1. Roast sweet potatoes in the oven at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes depending on their size.

2. Meanwhile, smash together butter, lime juice, tahini, soy sauce, and sesame oil in a small bowl with a fork until smooth, about 3 minutes. Season tahini butter with kosher salt and lots of pepper.

3. Arrange sweet potatoes on a platter or a large plate. Let cool until you can just handle them, then split open and generously spread tahini butter over. Season with sea salt; top liberally with sesame seeds. Serve with lime wedges.