This sweet potato salsa is made with blackberries and pomegranates. The best of summer and winter in this versatile salsa.
Salsa in the middle of winter?
You can thank Mexican blackberries for $1.99/1.5 lbs. and my husband’s idea to therefore buy two packages of them for this recipe.
There’s only so many berries one can eat in their breakfast.
The blackberries aren’t actually the focus of this salsa though, it’s all about the sweet potato.
Specifically, those sweet potato chips from Trader Joe’s.
They may have been the inspiration for this as I mind numbingly ate one chip after the next straight from the bag.
So good.
Craving a salsa in the middle of winter is kind of tough when tomatoes generally taste like chalk and most of your typical salsa add ins are way too pricey.
So, I compromised.
Roasted sweet potatoes with cinnamon for the winter element with pomegranate and blackberries for the sweet, fruity, tangy part you’d normally get in a summer salsa.
I just love pomegranates in salsa this time of year.
These are the pomegranates that wouldn’t go away.
This is the last of the arils from when I made pomegranate chocolate bark almost a month ago.
I was getting incredibly sick of seeing the container of arils in the fridge.
The best part about this salsa is that it’s light enough to eat on chips as a snack, but also hearty enough to serve as a side for dinner. In fact, it’s great paired with this blackened mahi mahi recipe.
Same thing with this mango black bean salad which I love as well.
I ate it both ways.
In the same day.
Now I just need to figure out a way to use up the remaining 2.5 lbs. of blackberries.
Strawberries and blueberries were also on sale.
We have 7 different containers of berries in our fridge right now.
H.e.l.p.
Sweet Potato Salsa
Ingredients
- 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 1 large shallot, sliced
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 red pepper, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup pomegranate arils
- 1/2 cup blackberries
- 2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil
- 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.
- Toss potatoes, olive oil, cinnamon, nutmeg and a generous amount of salt & pepper together in a large bowl.
- Spread the potatoes out onto the baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, flip potatoes and add sliced shallots to the pan. Roast another 10-12 minutes.
- While potatoes and shallots are roasting, whisk together grapeseed oil, vinegar, honey and a dash of salt & pepper in a small bowl, set aside.
- When potatoes & shallots are done, transfer to a large bowl.
- Add red pepper, pomegranate, blackberries and parsley and toss together gently.
- Pour dressing into bowl and toss again.
- Season with salt & pepper to taste.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
This sounds really interesting. Have you tried it on Salmon or grilled chicken? I’m going to see if I can find some blackberries at the market and try it. It sounds delicious!