Every year for Thanksgiving I like to throw in some curveball dishes wherever I can. The turkey is set in stone as well as dessert, but I usually can get creative with a new side dish. This year I am adding a twist to the classic sweet potato casserole. Turning a classic dish into individual hasselback potatoes makes them the perfect side to bring to any Friendsgiving! Or an easy single serving side dish for your family Thanksgiving dinner. You get the best of both worlds in these Candied Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Toasted Marshmallows by combining classic sweet potatoes casserole flavors with hasselback style roasted potatoes.
It all starts with a delicious brown sugar spiced compound butter. Feel free to double the recipe and slather some of the butter on some warm rolls! Otherwise slap it all over the sweet potatoes to candy while roasting. They are perfectly finished off with toasted marshmallows for a side dish that you will start saving a spot on the dinner table for.
Ingredients
Compound Butter
1 stick of butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
Hasselback Potatoes
6 small to medium sweet potatoes
1 cup mini marshmallows
How to Make Candied Hasselback Sweet Potatoes
The day before or at least an hour in advance you want to make the compound butter. Mix together a stick of room temperature butter along with the other compound butter ingredients until combined. Form the butter into a log and wrap it in parchment paper. It is best to not handle the butter directly with your hands. Wood utensils are best for this job or you can use the parchment paper to form the log. Pop the compound butter log into the freezer for at least an hour until the butter has set. Or pop it into the fridge if you are making it farther in advance.
When you are ready to cook grab the sweet potatoes. One at a time, set a sweet potato between two chopsticks or wood spoons that are around 1/4 inch thick. These tools will act as stoppers to hopefully prevent you from cutting all the way through the sweet potatoes. Cut slits into the sweet potatoes 1/4 inch apart while leaving a 1/4 inch uncut at the bottom to keep the potato together. If you are using my tip above you shouldn’t have to worry about not cutting through because the tools will stop your knife. Repeat these steps until all 6 sweet potatoes are prepped.
There are 2 ways that you can add the butter to the sweet potatoes. The first way you can add the butt is by slicing the compound butter into thin discs and carefully placing a disc into each slit. This way does take some time to do correctly and not rip through the sweet potato.
The other way to add the butter is way easier and honestly how I will be doing it in the future. Cut the butter into 6 chunks and mound it on top of each sweet potato. This is much faster than the way above and you don’t run the risk of breaking off slices of the sweet potatoes.
Once all of the sweet potatoes have their butter, place them apart on an aluminum lined sheet pan. The sugar that doesn’t stick to the potatoes will burn on the pan, so it will be much easier to clean up if you have parchment or aluminum underneath the potatoes.
Pop the tray into an oven preheated to 375 degrees and cook for 45-55 minutes. The time will vary depending on the size of the sweet potatoes you are using. I also recommend for extra deliciously candied sweet potatoes to spoon over the melted compound butter at 10 and 15 minutes in to cooking. Do not do this extra step if the sugar has started to burn.
Once the sweet potatoes are fully cooked and you can easily pierce them with a fork pull them from the oven and switch it over to high broil. Carefully, since the sweet potatoes are hot, add the marshmallows on top. I found it easiest to push the sweet potatoes together and then top them with the marshmallows. Pop the potatoes under the broiler to brown the marshmallows for about 2 minutes. Make sure to keep your eye on them while broiling because things can burn easily if they are not watched!
Also to note-If you are pushing the sweet potatoes together before adding the marshmallows, make sure to remove the burnt sugar before doing so. Otherwise you can wait until the marshmallows have browned and then transfer the potatoes to a different platter making sure not to transfer the burnt sugar with them.
Candied Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Toasted Marshmallows
Ingredients
Compound Butter
- 1 stick of butter
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
Hasselback Potatoes
- 6 small to medium sweet potatoes
- 1 cup mini marshmallows
Instructions
- At least an hour in advance mix together a stick of room temperature butter along with the other compound butter ingredients. Form the butter into a log and wrap it in parchment paper. Pop this into the freezer for at least an hour
- When you are ready to cook grab the sweet potatoes. One at a time cut slits into the sweet potatoes 1/4 inch apart while leaving a 1/4 inch uncut at the bottom to keep the potato together. Do this to all 6 sweet potatoes.
- Slice the compound butter into thin discs. Carefully place a disc into each slit you cut into the sweet potatoes. Place them apart on an aluminum lined sheet pan. Pop the tray into an oven preheated to 375 degrees. Cook for 45-55 minutes
- For extra deliciously candied sweet potatoes spoon over the melted compound butter at 10 and 15 minutes.
- Once the sweet potatoes are fully cooked carefully add the marshmallows on top. Switch the oven to high broil and pop the potatoes in to brown the marshmallows for about 2 minutes.
