Passover Recipe: Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

Last night marked the official start of Passover so I spent yesterday in the kitchen helping my mother with the cooking for the first Seder. My mom is pretty much a Seder pro at this point and has got the chicken soup and brisket down to an art so she left me in charge of the side dishes.

This dish was new this year, but will definitley become part of our regular Seder repertoire. It is served at room temperature which makes leftovers perfect to take to work for lunch instead of the typical matzah and cheese which ends up being crumbs by the time lunch hour rolls around.

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad
Serves 12 as a side dish

• 4 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
• 1 Tbsp. plus 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
• juice of one orange
• juice of one lemon
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1 cup Italian flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• 3 green onions, white and green, thinly slice
• 1 cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped
• 1 cup golden raisins
• salt and pepper
  

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, toss the sweet potato with 1 tbsp. of the olive oil and salt and pepper. Place onto a baking sheet and roast until golden and tender, tossing halfway through, about 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together remaining olive oil, maple syrup, orange juice, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
4. Remove potatoes from oven and slightly cool.
5. While still warm, toss potatoes with parsley, onions, pecans and raisins. Pour the dressing on top and set aside.
6. Serve warm or at room temperature.