Harvest Sweet Potato Salsa

Roasted sweet potatoes and corn tossed with beans and avocado in an red and green salsa dressing. One of the ways I put up food to eat local all year long.

When the garden is barren and there's snow falling down is a strange time to talk about harvest and abundant vegetables, no?

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I think it's exactly the right time.  You see, the vegetables I used in this salsa--the corn, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and tomatillos that is*--came from my Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm share.  George, Mark, Josh and Erik of Patchwork Gardens grew and harvested them, and we got a weekly box of locally-grown vegetables during the growing season.  Once in my kitchen, I performed Vegetable Triage--eating what won't keep, freezing or canning what can be put up, and using a cold corner of my breakfast nook as my Strategic Winter Squash Reserve (link to a photo on my FB page) for the long storage crops.  Even though the fields are brown, we're still eating the fruits of our farmers' labors.

If you'd like to know more about where your food is grown, now is the time to research local eating in your area.  Up on the left sidebar is a Local Harvest gadget.  If you're in the US, type in your zip code and see what's available near you.  Signing up with a CSA farm share before the season starts means your farmers will have the funds to purchase or repair equipment like the potato harvester shown here, which harvested the sweet potatoes I used in this salsa.

Photo credit Marguerite Mertz/Patchwork Gardens

*See the avocados in the second photo? Yeah, they sure are not local to Ohio and one of the reasons (along with bananas and salmon, vanilla and chocolate, tea and olive oil) that I will never be a completely local eater.  To me, local food just tastes better (think garden tomato vs store-bought) so I put my efforts into eating local food where I can.  I am fortunate to have a choice where I spend my dollars on food, and I choose to keep my money in my local community when possible.  It's why I started this blog and organized my Visual Recipe Index by produce type--to help other folks eat locally as well.

Visit all the other Appetizer Week Peeps for more Munchie Causing Goodness:

• Pizza Dip by Cravings of a Lunatic
• Steak and Potato Bites by Kiss My Smoke
• Gluten Free Brie en Croute by Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker
• Caramelized Onion, Brie, and Pear Crostini by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Easy Low-Carb Chicken Dip by Yours and Mine Are Ours
• Caramelized Onion Dip by Cooking in Stilettos
• Tuna Bruschetta by What's Cooking, Love?
• Harvest Sweet Potato Salsa by Farm Fresh Feasts
• Parmesan Chips by Makobi Scribe
• Mini Cheeseburgers by Rants From My Crazy Kitchen
• Bacon Wrapped Little Smokies by Clarks Condensed
• Baked Buffalo Chicken Bites by From Gate to Plate
• Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Apricots by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Crock Pot Party Meatballs by My Catholic Kitchen
• Bacon Cheese Popcorn by Life Off the Clock
• Empanada Mini Pies by The NY Melrose Family
• Buffalo Chicken Tortilla Pinwheels by Home Cooking Memories
• Easy Cheesy Mexican Dip by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• French Onion Grilled Cheese Stackers by Mom's Test Kitchen
• Root Beer Chicken Wings by Try Anything Once Culinary
• Low Sodium Swiss Cheeseburger Stuffed Mushrooms by Cookerati

NOTE:  I created this recipe to be gluten free through my choice of ingredients. Check labels to confirm that your products are also gluten free. Good sources for determining that your products are gluten free can be found here:

http://knowgluten.me/2012/03/31/other-names-for-gluten/

http://glutenfreedoctor.com/gluten-free/

http://www.celiac.com/categories/Safe-Gluten%252dFree-Food-List-%7B47%7D-Unsafe-Foods-%26amp%3B-Ingredients/

Harvest Sweet Potato Salsa

Ingredients

• 2 cups cubed peeled sweet potatoes (cubes small enough to fit on a chip)
• 1-2 teaspoons cooking oil
• a generous pinch of salt (½ teaspoon) plus more to taste
• several grinds of pepper (¼ teaspoon) plus more to taste
• 1 ½ cups corn kernels, cut right off the cob works great
• 1 ⅔ cups (15 ounce can, drained and rinsed) cooked beans (mine was black, kidney, and pinto beans)
• 3 to 4 Tablespoons salsa (your choice, I used home canned)
• 2 to 3 Tablespoons salsa verde (I make mine with roasted Hatch chiles and farm share tomatillos)
• ½ cup chopped cilantro leaves
• 2 avocados, cubed

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  
2. In a large bowl toss sweet potato cubes with oil, a generous pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.  
3. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet (I use a piece of parchment for easy clean up) and roast for 10 minutes.  
4. While the sweet potatoes are roasting, toss the corn in the bowl to coat it with any remaining oil and spices. 
5. Stir the sweet potatoes, then add the corn to the baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes.  Check them at this point--if the sweet potatoes are soft and lightly browned, remove the sheet from the oven and let cool.  If the sweet potatoes are still firm, stir and roast for another 5 to 10 minutes.  [I kept my cube size very small, for scooping up on tortilla chips, and mine roasted in 20 minutes.]
6. In a large bowl, toss roasted vegetables with beans, salsas, and cilantro.  
7. Taste and see if you'd prefer more salt or pepper, or a more moist salsa--then add more salsa or salsa verde.  
8. Just before serving, fold in avocado cubes.  This is also good eaten with a fork straight out of the fridge by a hungry spouse.

You can find the rest of my #AppetizerWeek recipes here:
Buffalo Butternut Squash Hummus  
Sriracha Butternut Squash Hummus 
Pickled Pepper & Pepperoni Puff Pastry Pinwheels 
Veggie Veggie Puff Pastry Pizza Bites 

This recipe is shared with the Tasty Tuesdays, What's Cookin' Wednesdays, Fresh Foods Wednesday, Food on Friday and the From The Farm Blog Hop.