Candied Sweet Potatoes are delicious, and easy to make for a simple dinner or a holiday feast! Soft, caramelized, & baked in an amazing sauce, you’ll love ’em!
Whoa! If you’re looking for an easy, delicious side dish for dinner, may I suggest these amazing candied sweet potatoes? You don’t have to wait until Thanksgiving or other traditional holidays to enjoy these buttery, soft delicious veggies.
And guess what? This recipe uses FRESH sweet potatoes… and they are a CINCH to make!
Fresh sweet potato slices are coated in an amazing butter, brown sugar, and maple syrup sauce, which is seasoned with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, vanilla, and orange zest!
I’m not joking… the sauce is AMAZING. The candied sweet potatoes are then baked, coated in all that yummy sauce until they become soft and tender, and practically perfect in every way. YUM! Here’s how to make them:
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Prepare The Sweet Potatoes
The first thing you will need to do is peel the copper-skinned sweet potatoes with a vegetable peeler or knife, and take a small slice off both ends of each potato. You can use either 3 medium sized sweet potatoes or 2 large ones, as I did.
Once the sweet potatoes are peeled, cut each potato into 1/2″ thick round slices. Don’t cut them too thick or they will take too long to bake.
If you cut them too thin, they will take less time to bake. I even drug out a tape measure to get an idea of just what 1/2″ thickness was! You know… for quality control! Ha Ha!
Spray an oven-safe (approx. 1½- 2 quart) baking dish with non-stick spray, and place the sliced sweet potatoes in the dish.
Sprinkle the potatoes lightly with salt, and then set dish aside while you make the yummy sauce.
Make The Sauce For The Candied Sweet Potatoes
Place the butter in a medium saucepan, and melt on low heat. Once melted, add the water, maple syrup, brown sugar, orange zest, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger (do NOT add the vanilla), and stir to combine.
Turn the heat up to medium. While stirring, bring the sauce to a low boil. Once it begins boiling, remove the spoon and let the sauce boil (gently) for 2 minutes (without stirring at all).
When it has gently boiled for two minutes, remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the vanilla extract.
Pour the hot (and yummy smelling) sauce over the sliced sweet potatoes. Stir or use tongs to coat the slices well with the buttery sweet sauce.
Time To Bake The Candied Sweet Potatoes
Okay, now the candied sweet potatoes are ready for the oven. Bake in a preheated 375°F. oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Remove the potatoes from the oven, and give them a quick, gentle stir to keep them coated in sauce.
Before placing them back in the oven, cover the dish with aluminum foil, and pop ’em back into the hot oven.
Bake for an additional 20 minutes, then remove and stir again to coat the slices. At this point, stick a butter knife into one of the slices to check for tenderness. The candied sweet potatoes were perfectly tender, so I knew they were done!
If the knife cannot be easily inserted and removed (like butter!), pop ’em back in the oven again for another 5-10 minutes, then check again (mine took 45 total). They should be slightly caramelized on the outside, but creamy and soft on the inside!
NOTE: If you are doubling the recipe and using a 9×13″ baking dish, it may take up to an hour to bake all the sweet potatoes evenly. Just be sure to check on their tenderness after the 40 minute mark.
Time To Serve Candied Sweet Potatoes
Once the sweet potatoes are done, remove the pan from the oven. Spoon a bit more sauce on top when serving. If desired, lightly sprinkle the top of the sweet potatoes with flaky sea salt (optional, but it’s a good contrast to the sweet sauce).
You can also garnish the dish with sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemary, if desired.
My husband and I absolutely LOVE these flavor-packed, tender, candied sweet potatoes! The sauce is soooo good, I could eat it right out of the pan (maybe I DID!). It tends to thicken just a little bit as the sweet potatoes cool slightly.
The candied sweet potatoes were a delicious side dish (along with my home canned green beans) for our grilled lemon chicken breasts.
I really hope you will take the opportunity to try this delicious veggie side dish. The recipe can easily doubled to serve 8-10 people, which makes this a GREAT holiday or large gathering veggie side dish. I know you will love it.
Take care, thank you for stopping by, and have a GREAT day!
Looking For More VEGETABLE SIDE DISH Recipes?
You can find all of my side dish recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have quite a few veggie side dishes, including:
- Pecan Praline Yams
- Roasted Curry Sweet Potatoes
- Au Gratin Potatoes
- Broccoli Cauliflower Bake
- Orange Glazed Carrots
- Sweet Potato Apple Bake
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Recipe adapted from: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/candied-sweet-potatoes/
Candied Sweet Potatoes are delicious, and easy to make for dinner or a holiday feast! Soft, caramelized, & baked in an amazing sauce, you'll love 'em!
- 2 large sweet potatoes , or 3 medium
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup butter , equals 4 Tablespoons (½ stick)
- 1½ Tablespoons water
- ⅛ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ cup brown sugar (packed)
- 1½ teaspoons orange zest
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- sea salt (optional, to sprinkle as garnish)
Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray a 2 quart baking dish with non-stick spray (sides and bottom).
Peel sweet potatoes , then cut each one into 1/2" thick round slices. Place slices in prepared dish. Sprinkle potatoes with salt, and then set dish aside.
MAKE SAUCE: Melt butter on low heat in a medium pan. Add water, maple syrup, brown sugar, orange zest, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger; stir to combine. Turn heat to medium. While stirring, bring sauce to a low boil. Once it begins boiling, remove spoon and let sauce boil for 2 minutes (without stirring). Remove pan from heat; stir in vanilla extract. Pour sauce over sweet potatoes. Toss gently, to coat slices well.
Bake, uncovered, in 375°F. oven for 20 minutes. Remove potatoes from oven, and gently stir, to keep them coated in sauce. Cover the dish with aluminum foil, and place dish back into oven. Bake for an additional 20 minutes; remove and stir again. Insert a butter knife into a slice to check for tenderness. If knife cannot be easily inserted and removed (like butter!), pop 'em back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes, then check again (mine took 45). They should be slightly caramelized on the outside, but creamy and soft on the inside! NOTE: If you are doubling the recipe (5-6 potatoes) and using a 9x13" baking dish, it may take up to an hour to bake all the sweet potatoes evenly. Just be sure to check on the tenderness after the 40 minute mark.
When done, remove pan from oven. Uncover pan; let cool for about 10 minutes before serving. To serve: Spoon a bit of sauce on top. Lightly sprinkle sweet potatoes with flaky sea salt (optional, but a good contrast to sweet sauce). Garnish with sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemary, if desired. Enjoy!
TIP: According to the original recipe author, this dish can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator. When ready to re-heat, cover dish with foil, and reheat in 350°F. oven for 25-30 minutes (or until fully heated through).
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!