The Best Summer-to-Fall Seasonal Side Ever

Yotam Ottolenghi. The man. The myth. The vegetable legend. If you don't know him, look him up. His cookbooks will change your life. He does vegetables with soul. In meal form, vegetables are like Britney's backups, Maverick's Goose, Beyonce's Jay Z-- they play the supporting actress, backup singer, wing man roles. But not in Yotam's world. He puts veggies in diva mode. 

I love summer. I love fall. But I don't love fummer. Fummer is a bummer. Football season has kicked off, you can smell the pumpkin spice lattes, you break out in song and chunky sweaters... then you step outside in your boots, freshly dusted off after hibernation to quickly realize it's 90 degrees and 80% humidity. Fummer bummer. And food's the same way. I'm not ready for a full-blown bowl of chili. But I'm kinda over sliced heirloom tomatoes in everything. Enter this side dish: Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Balsamic Reduction, Chili Oil, Figs, and Goat Cheese. Yep, jot this down and go straight to the farmer's market. It's all in season. I served it with grilled chicken. Any protein would be delicious with this. Kisses, Yotam. I loved this one. From his cookbook, JERUSALEM.

No filter. Just delicious.

ingredients

• 4 small sweet potatoes (2 1/4 lb / 1 kg in total)
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• scant 3 tbsp / 40 ml balsamic vinegar (you can use a commercial rather than a premium aged grade)
• 1 1/2 tbsp / 20 g superfine sugar
• 12 green onions, halved lengthwise and cut into 1 1/2-in / 4cm segments
• 1 red chile, thinly sliced
• 6 ripe figs (8 1/2 oz / 240 g in total), quartered
• 5 oz / 150 g soft goat's milk cheese (optional)
• Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

preparation

Preheat the oven to 475°F / 240°C.

Wash the sweet potatoes, halve them lengthwise, and then cut each half again similarly into 3 long wedges. Mix with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt, and some black pepper. Spread the wedges out, skin side down, on a baking sheet and cook for about 25 minutes, until soft but not mushy. Remove from the oven and leave to cool down.

To make the balsamic reduction, place the balsamic vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat and simmer for 2 to 4 minutes, until it thickens. Be sure to remove the pan from the heat when the vinegar is still runnier than honey; it will continue to thicken as it cools. Stir in a drop of water before serving if it does become too thick to drizzle.

Arrange the sweet potatoes on a serving platter. Heat the remaining oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat and add the green onions and chile. Fry for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring often to make sure not to burn the chile. Spoon the oil, onions, and chile over the sweet potatoes. Dot the figs among the wedges and then drizzle over the balsamic reduction. Serve at room temperature. Crumble the cheese over the top, if using.