Roasted Sweet Potato Discs with Herbed Goat Cheese

This was the second appetizer I made for the fancy-but-not-fancy dinner I cooked for the "Better with You" cast. I initially had a difficult time coming up with something and was hoping to avoid another appetizer with cheese since I knew I already wanted to make the crostini, but I could not get this out of my head. The original plan was to make baked sweet potato chips, but a few test runs at my apartment didn't get me the results I wanted. I decided to go with thicker discs that I had recently seen on Smitten Kitchen and they worked out well. Ordinarily, I shun goat cheese, but when it packs an herby punch, it is difficult to resist. I found myself sneaking tastes of goat cheese when I could and saved a little for myself to recreate the dish at home.

I made a few other dishes for the occasion, but didn't get pictures of them. Here are a couple from previous posts.

Arugula Salad with Squash and Pomegranate. This time I used delicata squash, which made for really pretty half moons on the mound of salad.



Pumpkin Shortcakes. This time, I used regular vanilla bean ice cream and an cranberry-apple compote to balance out the sweetness of it all.

From Dishing Up Delights

I also did a rockin' squash and pumpkin soup that I will have to make again ASAP because it was so good and I didn't get a picture of it.

Roasted Sweet Potato Discs with Herbed Goat Cheese
(Sweet Potatoes adapted from Smitten Kitchen, Herbed Goat Cheese by Esi)

Makes 12 servings

3 pounds sweet potatoes, washed, scrubbed, and sliced into half-inch thick discs
Olive oil as needed
Salt and pepper to taste
11 ounces goat cheese, at room temperature
1 tablespoon finely chopped chives
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Generously coat the sweet potatoes with oil and season with salt and pepper. Spread them evenly on a baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the bottoms have browned. Flip, and bake an additional 10-15 minutes until the potatoes are crisp on the outside, but soft on the inside. Set aside to cool.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the goat cheese until it is fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the herbs and beat until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spoon or pipe the goat cheese onto the cooled sweet potato discs.

Printable Recipe