Cozy baharat spices swirled with creamy vegan butter and sweet maple syrup make these whipped sweet potatoes the best holiday side dish.
I’ve been dreaming of making these creamy sweet potatoes for a while, and I’m so glad I finally did! They are delightfully vegan thanks to the brilliant Miyokos vegan butter, and they’re sweet and have a richness that makes them seem like they actually took a lot of effort to make. Lucky for us, they spend some time in the oven and then whip up in less than 5 minutes! Perfect for Thanksgiving or the holidays, and hands-off enough to be part of a weeknight meal.
I first made this dish for Friendsgiving and it complimented the potluck spread perfectly – it was joined by green bean casserole, shepherd’s pie, cornbread, roasted brussels sprouts and butternut squash, cheesy bread bites, and so much more, along with a few desserts – fruit salad, apple crisp, and malabi.
A few people came up to me and asked if I made this, raving about the flavors, which is exactly why I chose to use baharat instead of pumpkin spice. The flavor of baharat is familiar enough, but has is a bit unexpected and leaves people wondering (in a good way).
Baharat is a Middle Eastern spice blend that varies from shop to shop – each spice vendor has their own secret recipe. It usually consists of some combination of allspice, black pepper, cardamom, cloves, coriander, cumin, nutmeg, turmeric, ginger, paprika, and saffron. The blend that I have is especially sweet – akin to pumpkin spice – and lends itself well to all different applications, from a chicken marinade, to a spiced cookie, to ice cream, to these sweet potatoes.
I purchased my baharat from a spice shop in Tel Aviv, and I’ve also seen it online. If you don’t have baharat, you could substitute pumpkin spice and add a pinch of high-quality ground coriander for a bit of brightness, which pairs perfectly with the sweet, acidic pop of the pomegranate arils on top.
Autumn and winter call for the coziest foods, and these mashed sweet potatoes might just top the charts. I love how well the baharat, maple, and vegan butter blend together to make a sweet, rich, and satisfying undertone to the yams. I hope you’ll make them and enjoy them as much as we did!
Baharat-Spiced Maple Sweet Potatoes (vegan)
Print RecipeIngredients
- 4 large sweet potatoes
- 1/4 cup Miyokos vegan butter*
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 heaping teaspoon baharat**
- pinch of sea salt
- handful of fresh pomegranate arils
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking dish with parchment and set aside (I used a 9" square pan).
Peel and rinse the sweet potatoes and cut into large chunks. Add to the parchment-lined baking dish and cover tightly with foil. Bake for 45 minutes or until very fork tender.
Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
Add potatoes to a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer (ideally glass or metal, since they'll still be hot) along with the rest of the ingredients.
Use a hand mixer or stand mixer, whip the ingredients together until smooth. Taste and adjust any of the ingredients as needed.
Spoon into a serving bowl and top with pomegranate arils. Enjoy!
Notes
*If you don't have baharat, you can substitute pumpkin spice and a little bit of corriander.
**If you aren't vegan, you can use good-quality dairy butter instead. I recommend Kerrygold.
