The accordion-cut baked potato is equally delicious as Hasselback Sweet Potatoes. This recipe includes a topping of caramelized onions, pecans and raisins. Sponsored by Sun-Maid Raisins.
Yesterday, I was telling my friend how I had some last minute shopping to do for Thanksgiving. She freaked out, “Last minute? I haven’t even started shopping yet!”
Okay, so I’m done with my food shopping (except for some oops, I ran out of this or that…) and I’m busy with cooking and baking.
I am happy to be hosting the big meal this year, because well, I am rather fond of my own cooking! But for those of you who haven’t quite finished your menu or your shopping, I have a Hasselback Sweet Potato recipe for you.
Why this recipe is so awesome
If you haven’t tried Hasselback potatoes, you are missing out. Basically, it is a whole potato that is thinly sliced like an accordion, and then baked. This accordion cutting technique can be done to regular potatoes, sweet potatoes, zucchini, butternut squash and even fruit, like apples and pears.
They look fancy schmancy but really aren’t difficult to make. You can make one or a dozen. And they would be a fabulous addition to your holiday dinner!
Ingredients you need
- Sweet potatoes: I used orange sweet potatoes, but you can also use the white or purple varieties.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Yes, you can bake and roast with extra virgin olive oil. Taste the oil and make sure it is isn’t rancid. Learn more about how to choose an olive oil here.
- Salt and pepper
- Thyme: You can also use oregano, marjoram or rosemary.
- Onion: The onions will be cooked slowly and caramelized. You can use regular brown onions or sweet vidalia onions.
- Raisins: Use any of your favorite raisins or try dried cranberries or chopped dried apricots.
- Pecans: If you don’t like pecans, use walnuts or cashews instead.
Step-by-step directions
1. Wash the potatoes and, if necessary, cut a section from the bottom so the potatoes can sit flat on the cutting board.
2. Place wooden chopsticks on either side of the potato and using a sharp knife, slice the potatoes approximately 1 centimeter thick without cutting all the way through. The chopsticks will help prevent this from happening, but you will need to be more careful on the ends as the chopsticks may not be high enough.
3. Gently fan open the potatoes and place in a baking dish. Drizzle olive oil over the potatoes, making sure you brush oil between the potato slices. Season salt, pepper and thyme.
4. Bake at 375ºF until fork tender, but not mushy, about 1 hour.
5. While potatoes are baking, place a skillet over medium high heat and add olive oil. When oil is hot, add onion slices. Sauté until onions soften and then reduce heat to low. Continue cooking and stirring onions until they brown and start to caramelize, approximately 30-45 minutes.
6. When onions are caramelized, stir in raisins, pecans, salt and thyme.
7. About 15 minutes before the potatoes are done cooking, sprinkle the onion-raisin mixture over the potatoes and resume cooking until potatoes are done. Serve immediately.
Expert Tips and Recipe FAQS
Hasselback fruits and vegetables can be stuffed with all sorts of goodies, like cheese and bacon. And what’s good for the Russet Potato is equally good for the Sweet Potato. Here are some of my favorite stuffings for your special sweet potato:
- Hard cheese or soft like cream cheese
- Caramelized onions
- Jalapeños
- Brown sugar
- Buter
- Bacon
To cut a vegetable in hasselback technique, you are basically making slices into the vegetable but not cutting all the way through. This creates a fan like effect where you can stuff goodies in between each slice and then bake.
This cutting technique can be to potatoes, sweet potatoes, zucchini, eggplant… almost any oblong vegetable.
Once you have sliced your potatoes, place them in the air fryer and brush with oil. Season with salt and pepper then air fry at 350°F for 20 minutes then add garnishings.
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Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Caramelized Onions, Pecans and Raisins
The accordion-cut baked potato is equally delicious as Hasselback Sweet Potatoes. This recipe includes a topping of caramelized onions, pecans and raisins.
Ingredients
- 4 large sweet potatoes
- 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil, divided
- ¼ teaspoon salt, divided
- ⅛ teaspoon ground pepper
- 2 teaspoon fresh thyme, divided
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- ⅓ cup raisins
- 2 TBS chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF
- Wash the potatoes and, if necessary, cut a section from the bottom so the potatoes can sit flat on the cutting board.
- Place wooden chopsticks on either side of the potato and using a sharp knife, slice the potatoes
approximately 1 centimeter thick without cutting all the way through. The chopsticks will help prevent this from happening, but you will need to be more careful on the ends as the chopsticks may not be high enough. - Gently fan open the potato and place in a baking dish. Repeat with the rest of the sweet potatoes.
- Brush and drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the potatoes, making sure you brush between the potato slices.
- Season with ⅛ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon pepper and 1 teaspoon fresh thyme.
- Bake until fork tender, but not mushy, about 1 hour.
- While potatoes are baking, place a skillet over medium high heat and add 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.
- When oil is hot, add onion slices. Sauté until onions soften and then reduce heat to low. Continue cooking and stirring onions until they brown and start to caramelize, approximately 30-45 minutes.
- When onions are caramelized, stir in ⅓ cup raisins, 2 tablespoon pecans, ⅛ teaspoon salt and 1
teaspoon fresh thyme. - About 15 minutes before the potatoes are done cooking, sprinkle the onion-raisin mixture over the potatoes and resume cooking until potatoes are done.
- Serve immediately
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 291Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 212mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 7gSugar: 20gProtein: 5g
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Disclosure: As part of the Kitchen PLAY Community, I was paid a stipend to develop a recipe for Sun-Maid. All of the opinions I expressed here are my own. If I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t blog about it.