a quest for the perfect sweet potato fries

so first off i'm really confused between a sweet potato and a yam.  looking at all these photos of sweet potato fries on pinterest, which side note - I AM OBSESSED WITH and spend way too much time on, anyways they have all these pics of sweet potato fries which look orange, yet all the sweet potatoes i cut open are whiteish, whereas all the yams i cut open are orange.  so are people really making yam fries and calling them sweet potato fries or what?  but enough about this confusion...if you know what is going on here please feel free to fill me in!  bahahah!

so coming back from seaside oregon i got a terrible craving for sweet potato fries...i'm just going to refer to them now as sweet yam potato fries (sypf for short), and i decided to go on pinterest and find an awesome recipe for some.  i was very successfull!  i found this amazing recipe baked chipotle sweet potato fries.

baked chipotle sweet potato fries

• 1 sweet potato/yam - peeled and cut into 1/4" fries
• 2 tsp olive oil
• sea salt - really any salt will do
• ground chipotle powder
• garlic powder

1. preheat oven to 425°
2. in a bowl, toss sweet potatoes/yams with olive oil, salt, garlic powder, and chipotle powder

3. spread potatoes on a baking sheet.  avoid crowding potatoes so they crisp up

4. bake15 minutes then turn and bake an additional 10-15 minutes

 

koda took over my spot when i got up to turn over the fries.  isn't he a cutie?  his hair is also quite a lot shorter...my mom gave him a haircut while i was away in new york.

these fries were some of THE BEST i've made!  they had just the right amount of seasoning and a little kick that left me craving more even after i was stuffed.  i'm not sure if it was the chipotle seasoning or just an extra perfect potato/yam, but it was exactly what i had been craving!  if you are ever in the need of good sweet potato yam fries and you don't have the trader joes ones sitting in your freezer, this is deff the next best thing!  especially if you enjoy a little kick to your fries!

also this weekend i had a chance to catch up with my friend becca.  becca is one of those friends who you can call up and have come over and literally spend the rest of the day together watching tv and pigging out on junk food.  it's absolutely great!  we enjoy pretty much all the same shows and i have no shame going for seconds or thirds on ice cream with her.  anyways we spent all yesterday afternoon watching movies on tv and catching up on some on demand shows.  after our intense afternoon of tv watching we decided to go out for dinner.  we both wanted to try something new and didn't want to travel too far.  after spending some time looking at yelp (side story - in oregon my friend and i were looking for a place to go and eat when we happened to run into some "locals" who told us to follow them to some restaurant they were planning on going to.  when said restaurant name was brought up i made a mention about some reviews i had read on yelp about there....the guy asked me what yelp was...immediate thoughts.."who doesn't know what yelp is...and where are we???" above restaurant was not very good...which had been expressed on yelp...lesson learned - trust yelp)  we decided to check out a local eatery - the wedgewood alehouse and cafe.

the wedgewood alehouse and cafe is adorable.  i'm thinking it's about to be one of my new favorite places!  everyone just seems like family there.  it had a great atmosphere and the staff was super friendly and welcoming.  one of the walls was lined with beautiful works of art, maybe by local artists or something, but they really made the place feel homey.  there was also a few pool tables in the back for the late night crowds.  i ended up getting the fish and chips, after taking a peek at the fish and chips the people at the table next to us had, and becca decided to go with the blt.

becca's blt

my fish and chips

my fish and chips were DELICIOUS!! the breading was flavorful and just the right crispiness.  and i know becca just couldn't get enough of her blt.  and the fries!  oh my goodness...i'm still dreaming about them!  you knew just by looking at them they were homemade and freshly cooked!  mmmmm by the end of the meal we both had joined the clean plate club!  i know i will for sure go back there and probably take my roommate theresa with me!  i know she would just love the place as much as i did!  as we were walking out i happened to notice a white board with live music and a list of events...very cool!  i am all for live music and good food!  i'll deff be checking out this place again soon and i recommend it to anyone in the area!  it's an awesome place to kick back and relax with friends or family! 

tomorrow is monday and the first day of spring quarter for all those uw students out there!  i wish you all good luck and a great quarter!  happy eats!