Roasted sweet potatoes, along with wedges of fresh figs, are piled onto a plate, drizzled with a green onion-chile sauce and a balsamic reduction then dotted with generous pats of goat cheese. It's to die for. Do plan ahead, as this recipe does require a bit of preparation, but it's easy work that's more than worth it.
Ingredients
- 4 small sweet potatoes (1kg in total)
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 40ml balsamic vinegar
- 20g caster sugar
- 12 spring onions, halved lengthways and cut into 4cm segments
- 1 red chilli, thinly sliced
- 6 fresh and ripe figs (240g in total), quartered
- 150g soft goat’s cheese, crumbled (optional)
- Maldon sea salt and black pepper
Directions
- 1Preheat the oven to 220°C. Wash the sweet potatoes, halve them lengthways and then cut each again similarly into 3 long wedges.
- 2Mix with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, 2 teaspoons of salt and some black pepper. Spread the wedges out on a baking sheet, skin-side down, and cook for about 25 minutes until soft but not mushy. Remove from the oven and leave to cool down.
- 3To make a balsamic reduction, place the balsamic vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 2–4 minutes, or until it thickens. Be sure to remove the pan from the heat when the vinegar is still runnier than honey; it will continue to thicken as it cools. Stir in a drop of water before serving if it does become too thick to drizzle. Arrange the sweet potatoes on a serving platter.
- 4Heat the remaining oil in a medium saucepan and add the spring onions and chilli. Fry on a medium heat for 4–5 minutes, stirring often, making sure not to burn the chilli, and then spoon the oil, onions and chilli over the sweet potatoes.
- 5Dot the figs among the wedges and then drizzle over the balsamic reduction. Serve at room temperature with the cheese crumbled over.
