Cinnamon Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Apples
Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Apples, a delicious sheet pan roasted fruit and vegetable recipe that combines the naturally sweet flavors of sweet potatoes and apples. All it takes is 5 ingredients and 35 minutes and you’ll have a seasonal side dish to share this fall!
Love sweet potatoes? Love apples? Roast them together! Between the crispy roasted sweet potatoes and tangy apples, this tasty roasted vegetable recipe is perfect as a side dish or topping for salads. It’s so simple to prepare and is ready to eat in just a few steps!
👉 Here are 3 reasons why you should roast sweet potatoes and apples together:
- It’s as easy as it gets. Simply toss cubed sweet potatoes and apples together with oil and spices on a sheet pan. Roast for 35 minutes until crispy and golden brown. That’s it!
- You can make it your own. This recipe is easy to adjust. Add your favorite spice combinations, mix in another type of vegetable, or keep it simple with salt and pepper.
- You can make it ahead. Need to bring a dish to an upcoming holiday or party? Make this recipe in advance! The veggies can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Simply take out and reheat when you’re ready to serve.
Ready to learn how to make roasted sweet potatoes and apples? Let’s do it!
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🥣 How to make (step-by-step photos)
1️⃣ Step One: Preheat oven + prep veggies and apples
Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees F (200 C), then wash and cut the sweet potatoes and apples.
- To cut apples: Slice the apple into quarters, then cut the slices into 1/2 inch cubes (you do not need to peel them before roasting).
- To cut sweet potatoes: Cut off the ends, then cut potatoes into small 1/2 inch cubes for roasting (you do not need to peel them before roasting).
👉 Pro tip! We like to cut the sweet potatoes and apples into smaller pieces so they’re easier to eat. The smaller the sweet potatoes cubes, the crispier they will be!
2️⃣ Step Two: Spread vegetables on a baking sheet
Season sweet potatoes and apples by drizzling with oil in a mixing bowl, then sprinkling with ground cinnamon and a pinch of salt.
👉 Tip! We like to keep the sweet potatoes and apples separated on the roasting pan because sometimes the sweet potatoes take longer to bake and you can easily scoop the apples off the pan when they are ready and keep cooking the potatoes.
Next, place sweet potatoes and apples on a roasting pan. To save a bowl, you can also season right on the pan.
3️⃣ Step Three: Bake in the oven until golden brown
The last step is to put the veggies in the oven and roast until tender and brown around the edges. This will take approximately 35 minutes, more or less depending on your oven.
To make sure the sweet potatoes and apples brown on all sides, flip and stir them halfway through cooking. If the apples are cooking faster than the sweet potatoes, then remove and set aside, then continue to cook the potatoes until they’re done.
When done cooking, remove the veggies from the oven and serve right away as a side dish, or you can let them cool and serve on top of salads or bowls.
❓ Recipe questions + quick tips
Sweet potatoes taste delicious when combined with sweet or savory flavors. Herbs and spices like garlic, rosemary, thyme, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and cilantro are all great pairs for sweet potatoes. They’re also extra tasty when roasted with other types of produce, like Brussels sprouts, apples, onions, and carrots.
You do not need to peel sweet potatoes and apples before cooking. The skins are high in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. We suggest keeping the skins on sweet potatoes and apples for their health benefits!
Apple varieties that are firm, crisp, and juice are the best for roasting. Try Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, Fuji, Golden Delicious, Gravensteins, or Jonagolds for the best results when roasting. These types of apples tend to hold their shape and flavor when baked.
Apples taste great when combined with warm, savory spices. Cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, sage, and rosemary are popular options. You can also try eating apples with mint, garlic, or allspice.
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🌿 Herb + spice combination flavor ideas
We used a simple seasoning of warming cinnamon and savory salt for this recipe. You can add your own take on roasted sweet potatoes and apples by adding different flavors and textures. Here are some ideas:
- Cinnamon and maple syrup: add a sprinkle of cinnamon and drizzle of maple syrup over sweet potatoes and apples before roasting for an extra delicious and naturally sweet flavor.
- Sliced onion and garlic: roast with onion and garlic for an extra burst of flavor.
- Pomegranate seeds and dried cranberries: a seasonal, fruity combination that brings more natural sweetness to this recipe.
- Fresh rosemary and thyme: combine sweet potatoes and apples with rosemary and thyme before roasting for a note of freshness.
- Combine with nuts and seeds: sliced walnuts, pecans, or almonds adds a crunchy element to roasted vegetables.
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♻️ Sustainable kitchen + cooking tips
Reducing food waste is an important step toward a sustainable lifestyle, which we are all about at Fork in the Road! Here are some tips to get the most out of your ingredients:
Take advantage of sweet potato and apple season. It is a great idea to stock up on sweet potatoes and apples while they’re seasonal. In most parts of the US, that is during the late summer and fall months.
Keep the veggie scraps! Set aside the peels, ends, and any other scraps you accumulated while making this recipe. Use them to make food scrap vegetable broth.
Repurpose apple cores. Don’t throw your apple cores away! You can use them to make your own apple cider vinegar, put them in smoothies, or use them to make apple butter (just make sure to toss the seeds). At the very least, they should be tossed in the compost pile.
Compost the sweet potato sprouts. Do a good deed for the planet and your soil by placing sprouted sweet potatoes in the compost instead of the garbage.
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🍠 More roasted sweet potato recipes
👉 Want more sweet potato recipes? Try Baked Sweet Potato Medallions, Oven Roasted Diced Sweet Potatoes and Carrots, or Maple Cinnamon Baked Sweet Potatoes.
🍏 Can’t get enough apples? Try our Apple and Beet Soup, Crispy Apple and Celery Salad, or our Apple Cinnamon Spritzer Mocktail.
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Cinnamon Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Apples
Ingredients
- 1 pound apples
- 1 pound sweet potatoes
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Pinch salt
Instructions
- Prep oven: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (200 C)
- Prep vegetables: Wash apples and sweet potatoes. Cut the ends from sweet potatoes, then cut them into small 1/2 inch cubes for roasting. Slice apples into quarters, then cut into 1/2 inch cubes. You do not need to peel apples and sweet potatoes before roasting.
- Roast vegetables: Arrange the sweet potatoes and apples on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, tossing the vegetables to completely cover with oil. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Place sheet pan in the oven and roast for 35 minutes, flipping sweet potatoes and apples halfway through to roast on all sides.
- Serve vegetables: Remove pan from oven, arrange vegetables on a plate and serve as a side dish or let cool and use as a salad topping.
Nutrition
Notes
- Tools Needed: sheet pan, knife set, cutting board
- Prep Ahead: Wash and cut vegetables and apples ahead of time to reduce prep time before cooking. If serving cold on salads or bowls, you can make this recipe up to three days ahead of time.
- Leftovers and Storage: Vegetables and apples should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. For best taste and texture, do not freeze and reheat.
- Nutrition notes: Nutrition information is estimated for only ingredients in the recipe, not the additional spice options given. This simple roasted vegetable recipe is a good source of fiber, vitamin C, and vitamin A.