Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Cranberry Chipotle Dressing

A. MAY. ZING!!!! I dreamed about this manna allll night long after we had it for dinner last night. What a crumby photo of a fantastic dish. Don't let the fact that it looks like tandoori chicken in my picture dissuade you from making it. :-)

Chances are, if you get invited to our house for dinner, you'll have to eat this. Because I'm planning on making it a million bazillion more times before I die.

It's rare anymore that a recipe from Cooking Light magazine jumps out at me as something I'd be a freak for, but Mark Bittman's recipe did just that. Bookmarked it the day before, made it last night. There will be no going back.

I used frozen whole cranberries and organic sweet potatoes (love this because we eat the whole nutritious peel too). Didn't make the whole batch (kicking self for not having leftovers), but I'll post the whole recipe that is supposed to serve 8...yeah right! I did toss some feta on after taking the photo, to up the protein a bit, but it's awesome without it too. Served up with braised kale, made for two happy tummies in this house.

Just an fyi, I tend to not use all of the dressing on the sweet potatoes, finding the whole amount makes them a bit too soupy.  Leftover sauce is great on any number of things though!  

Update: I've started just roasting whole sweet potatoes wrapped in foil @400 til soft (~1 hr), then topping with the dressing, pepitas, cilantro, and onions.  Saves using all that oil, if you're needing to eat a little lighter!  Great both ways, regardless.

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Cranberry Chipotle Dressing:
(Mark Bittman's recipe in Cooking Light magazine)

2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces (go for organic and don't peel)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons honey
1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (you won't use them all so just put the leftover chipotles and sauce in a freezer bag and store for laters)
1/2 cup raw unsalted pepitas (pumpkinseeds)
3/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves

Preheat oven to 450°.
Place sweet potatoes on a large jelly-roll pan. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Bake at 450° for 30 minutes or until tender, turning after 15 minutes.
Place remaining 1 tablespoon oil, cranberries, water, and honey in a saucepan. Remove 1 or 2 chiles from can; finely chop to equal 1 tablespoon. Add chopped chipotle and 1 teaspoon adobo sauce to pan (reserve remaining chiles and sauce for another use). Place pan over medium-low heat; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and cook 10 minutes or until cranberries pop, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Mash with a potato masher or fork until chunky.
Place pepitas in a medium skillet; cook over medium heat 4 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan frequently.
Combine potatoes, pepitas, onions, and cilantro in a bowl. Add cranberry mixture to bowl; toss gently to coat.