“Please eat your dinner,” I begged my 6 year old for what must have been the millionth time.
“NO! I hate chicken! It tastes like fish and I hate fish. And sweet potatoes are orange. I hate orange food. I don’t want this stupid dinner!” She slumps in her chair crossing her arms.
Not another night of this. I don’t think I could deal with another conversation at the dinner table about how much my daughter hates everything I cook.
“You know what, I bet those sweet potatoes are your favorite food, but you will never know because you wont even try them. You are really missing out on something special. These are like dessert for dinner. They are baked sweet potato french fries sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. Take two bites to try it then if you still don’t like them you don’t have to eat them tonight.” I mentally cross my fingers for luck.
At the mention of french fries and sugar she looks up. “These have cinnamon and sugar on them? Like french toast? French fries with cinnamon and sugar sounds kinda gross.”
“No no not regular french fries. These are sweet french fries.” I suddenly feel like the pushy old farmer at the farmers market who is always trying to get me to buy extra produce at the checkout. “Try these, they are the best. You will love them.”
She looks at me for what seems like an eternity before taking the tiniest nibble. Then another, then a larger one, “Hmm, I think they are ok.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. One battle down 1,678,453 to go. Well, at least she liked something tonight.
Baked Sweet Potato Fries
- 3-4 med-large sweet potatoes
- a handful of sugar or brown sugar
- 2-3 teaspoons of cinnamon
- olive oil, enough to coat fries
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Slice potatoes into fries.
3. Add about an 1/8 cup olive oil and a teaspoon or two of cinnamon, depending on how much you like, to a gallon sized zip top bag with the potatoes. Close and shake vigorously until all the potatoes are covered adding more oil if needed. Spread on an ungreased cookie sheet.
4. Bake in a 450 F oven for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender and golden brown.
5. Drain potatoes on paper towels and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar as desired. Enjoy!
(Click on recipe card to save and print. It is designed to be printed on 5×7 photo paper and stuck in a card file, on the fridge or given to a friend.)
Shoots and Roots 