Deliciously Ella’s Vegan Spiced Peanut Sweet Potatoes

I think this is my favourite recipe in the book; I’m completely addicted to it. The sweet potatoes are roasted with ginger, cinnamon and cumin until they’re perfectly tender, then they’re tossed with sesame seeds, dates, parsley and a smooth peanut butter dressing while still warm. They’re heaven! I eat these on their own, because they’re just so good, but they are a great side too. At the deli, we sometimes serve this with chopped radicchio, garnished with micro herbs, which is a delicious addition and adds some more colour to the dish.

Spiced Peanut Sweet Potatoes

Serves 4 as a side

Ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground cumin
handful of parsley, chopped
45g dates, pitted and chopped
1 heaped tbsp black sesame seeds (normal sesame seeds also work – you’ll just need to toast them)
salt and pepper

For the dressing
2 tbsp date syrup or maple syrup
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp smooth peanut butter
juice of ½ lemon

To serve
handful of peanuts, toasted and chopped (optional)

Method
Preheat the oven to 240°C/220°C fan/gas mark 9.

Place the sweet potatoes in a large baking tray and drizzle with the olive oil, add the spices and some salt and pepper and mix well, ensuring everything gets coated. Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes, until they’re really soft.

While the sweet potatoes are cooking, make the dressing, whisking everything with some salt until smooth.

Next, place the parsley and dates in a large bowl with the sesame seeds. Once the sweet potatoes are cooked, add them to the bowl with the dressing and mix everything together. Sprinkle with toasted peanuts, if using, serve and enjoy.

Tip
This dish is most delicious served hot straight out the oven but it also works well at room temperature.

Extracted from Deliciously Ella The Plant-Based Cookbook by Ella Mills (Hodder & Stoughton, approx €28).
Photographs by Nassima Rothacker © Hodder & Stoughton

Meet Ella Mills in Dublin and get your book signed
Join Ella Mills for champagne and canapés (vegan, of course!) on Tuesday, September 4 at Medley Dublin as we learn more about Ella’s career path from food blogger to successful entrepreneur. Ella will share with us her amazing story as well as her wealth of knowledge on healthy eating and veganism. To book tickets click here. For general enquiries, call 01 271 9609.