Supremely Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Since the whole world seems to be on a health kick, most restaurants seem to be offering sweet potato fries as an alternative to regular idaho potato fries. While the idea seems to be that sweet potato fries are more nutritious, I know many people (myself included) who adore the taste of them much more than regular fries.

Unfortunately, one reason that I love the taste so much is the crispy crunchy coating that the fries have, adding a salty kick to the (in my opinion) overly-sweet potato flesh. And that coating is hard to recreate in your home if you don't happen to have a deep-fryer lying around.

In my attempts to remain under 300 lbs, I have refrained form purchasing a deep fryer, and, like most people, opt to bake my sweet potato fries. Much to my disappointment, baked sweet potato fries often come out mushy, limp, and anything but crispy. Through multiple trial-and-error processes, I've come up with a simple 3-step process to ensure your time and effort will reap the benefits of crispy baked sweet potato fries.

You will need:
1 Large sweet potato
1 egg
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
Salt

Start by preheating your oven to 450 degrees F and chopping your potato into thin strips.

Next, grab a large plastic bag. Using an egg separator (or your hands), break the egg over the bag allowing the whites to drip down into it.

DOUBLE YOLK!! (such a shame since I had to throw it out...)

At this point, I'd also like to note that my friend Maria was the "guest photographer" today during the shoot of this recipe. It certainly saved me time, and she couldn't stop snapping pics. I think I know what to get her for her birthday this year....a camera!

Next, place your potato strips into the bag, zip it up, and shake it around, allowing the egg white to coat the fries.

Next, add your cornstarch to the bag, zip it up, and shake again.

Spread them out evenly onto a non-stick baking pan, leaving as much room between each fry as possible.

Then pop your fries into the oven for 10 minutes.

After the 10 minutes, take the pan out and flip your fries.
Now, I warn you, the egg whites will cook quickly, so they will be difficult to flip (that's what the non-stick was for). But I promise it's worth it, because the same thing causing the flipping difficulty (the egg whites) are also causing the fries to crisp.

Leave your fries in for another 5-10 minutes until golden brown and crispy. When you're done, scoop them off of the pan and into a bowl.

I recommend dipping them in spicy mayo dip - find the recipe here.

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