Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Brown Sugar & Pecans

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes are thinly sliced, slathered in a brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon sauce, and then roasted in the oven until perfectly crisp and tender!  Throw on a bit of coarsely chopped pecans just before serving as an impressive side at your next Thanksgiving or holiday party.  They’re also easily adaptable to be gluten-free, vegan, and Paleo, too!

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

As if sweet potatoes couldn’t get any better, why don’t we thinly slice, cover in a sauce full of butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, and then bake until perfectly crisp and tender!

A bit of toasted pecans and a sprinkle of sugar are added just before serving.

Yup… these hasselback sweet potatoes sound like a pretty darn good Thanksgiving side dish to me – and I think you and your dinner guests will agree!

And dare I say they’re even better than the classic Sweet Potato Casserole?!

That might be a bold statement to claim, but if you prefer your potatoes on the crispy side, then I have a feeling you’re going to love this recipe variation.

They’re also a little bit healthier since less butter and sugar are used than the traditional recipe, and can easily be made gluten-free, vegan, and Paleo, too!

If you’re a fan of the savory, you might want to check out these Loaded Hasselback Potatoes, instead.

What are Hasselback Potatoes?

Hasselback potatoes are thinly sliced russet, sweet, or new potatoes that are still held together at the base to create a fan-like presentation.  They can either be filled with savory ingredients, such as butter, garlic, and even cheese, or accompanied by sweeter toppings, like brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans.

These impressive looking potatoes got their claim to fame back in 1953.  What started as a very popular dish in a Swedish restaurant called Hasselbacken, soon became known and loved across the world.

Now they make their appearance on many holiday and Thanksgiving tables as a noteworthy side dish everyone loves!

Ingredients

The ingredients are incredibly simple to find at most grocery stores.  In fact, you may even have most of them already in your pantry!

• Sweet Potatoes – There are a few key things you’ll want to look for when purchasing your sweet potatoes:
  • Jewel and garnet sweet potatoes are the easiest to find in most American grocery stores.
    • If elsewhere in the world, you may need to look for “yams.”
  • It’s best to find potatoes that are very close in size so they cook at an even rate.
  • Also, try to pick small to medium-sized potatoes that are roughly 0.4-0.5 pounds each.
    • Much larger than this and they will take a very long time to bake in the oven.
• Sugar – Brown sugar was used and tested in this recipe, but coconut sugar may also be used if on a Paleo diet.
• Oil & Butter – A mixture of either olive or avocado oil and butter is made to coat the potatoes.  You can also either use all of on or the other if that is what you have, or even substitute with a plant-based butter alternative if vegan or dairy-free.
• Spices – As little or as much cinnamon can be added to the sauce mixture.  You can also add in a dash of nutmeg or cloves for an added spice.
• Pecans – Coarsley chopped pecans are sprinkled on and baked just before serving for an added crunch.

How to Cut

Probably the hardest and most crucial step in making hasselback potatoes in know how to properly cut them.

Make one cut that is too aggressive and you’ll accidentally slice the entire potato in half. :-O

So in order to prevent this hasselback catastrophe, I’m going to teach you a little trick I recently learned – the use of chopsticks!

And not just any chopsticks, you want a pair that have a square end so they do not roll around on your cutting board.  (Learned this the hard way!)

1. Wash potatoes, scrub, and dry thoroughly.  (This is super important since you’ll be baking the entire potato with the skin on!) (step 1 above)
2. Place two chopsticks on a cutting board and place one sweet potato in between them, with the long-axis of the potato running parallel to the chopsticks.
3. Make cuts approximately ⅛-¼-inch apart starting at least ½-inch from the end of the sweet potato.  Stop cutting when your knife hits the chopsticks so the bottom is still connected. (step 2 above)

How to Make & Bake

Once you’ve got your potatoes sliced, the rest of the process is pretty easy.

1. Whisk together oil, butter, salt, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium-sized bowl. (step 1 above)

2. Use a pastry brush and brush half of the mixture over all of the potatoes. (step 2 above)

3. Spread apart the slices using your fingers or a fork to ensure the sauce gets in-between the pieces.  Bake in 425 °F oven for 25 minutes. (step 3 above)

4. Brush remaining sauce over the potatoes and return to oven for an additional 20-25 minutes.

5. Sprinkle on chopped pecans and reduce oven temperature to 375 °F.  Return potatoes to oven for 5-10 minutes, or until pecans are lightly toasted. (step 4 above)

Serving & Storing

Hasselback potatoes are best when served immediately.  The longer they sit out at room temperature, the less crisp they will become.

Just before serving, sprinkle them with additional brown or coconut sugar and a bit of cinnamon.

You can reheat leftovers, but they will not have that same incredible texture they originally had.

The best way to reheat hasselback potatoes is to return them to a 350 °F oven for 15-20 minutes.

You can microwave them, but they will become slightly soggy with this method.

Dishes that Pair Well

Honestly, you almost can’t go wrong with picking a main dish to go along with these potatoes.

Traditionally, I would say these taste best when served at Thanksgiving with a big ole’ turkey and all of the other yummy sides (like a Cornbread Dressing and Green Bean Casserole.)

But if you’re craving these on a day other than a holiday, these main dishes pair exceptionally well:

• Spinach Artichoke Stuffed Chicken
• Lemon Basil Baked Salmon
• Filet Mignon
• Honey Balsamic Chicken

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Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Brown Sugar

Once you try this Hasselback Sweet Potatoes recipe you'll never go back to the classic casserole. Your guests at Thanksgiving will have no idea how easy this side dish is to make!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword easy, side dish, sweet potatoes, Thanksgiving

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 6 servings

Calories 439 kcal

London Brazil

Ingredients

• 6 medium sweet potatoes about 2 ½ lbs. total
• 6 Tbsp. butter melted
*
• 2 Tbsp. oil olive or avocado
• ¼ tsp. salt
• ½ cup brown sugar or coconut sugar, plus more for topping
• ¼-½ tsp. cinnamon to taste
• ½ cup pecans coarsely chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.

2. Wash potatoes, scrub, and dry thoroughly.

3. Place two chopsticks on a cutting board and place one sweet potato in between them, with the long-axis of the potato running parallel to the chopsticks.
4. Using a sharp knife, make cuts approximately ⅛-¼-inch apart starting at least ½-inch from the end of the sweet potato. Stop cutting when your knife hits the chopsticks so the bottom is still connected.
5. Repeat this until the entire potato is sliced thinly. Do this with the other 5 potatoes.

6. Place potatoes on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

7. Whisk together oil, butter, salt, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium-sized bowl. Use a pastry brush and brush half of the mixture over all of the potatoes. Spread apart the slices using your fingers or a fork to ensure the sauce gets in-between the pieces.

8. Cover the baking sheet with a piece of aluminum foil and bake in oven for 25 minutes. Brush remaining sauce over the potatoes and return to oven, uncovered, for an additional 20-25 minutes.

9. Once potatoes are cooked through, sprinkle on chopped pecans and reduce oven temperature to 375 °F. Return potatoes to oven for 5-10 minutes, or until pecans are lightly toasted.

10. Serve potatoes with additional sugar and cinnamon, if desired, and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

• Use a plant-based butter alternative to make these dairy-free and vegan.
• Cook longer if potatoes are more than ½ pound each.

Nutrition Facts

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes with Brown Sugar

Amount Per Serving

Calories 439 Calories from Fat 207

% Daily Value*

Fat 23g35%

Saturated Fat 8g50%

Cholesterol 32mg11%

Sodium 294mg13%

Potassium 695mg20%

Carbohydrates 57g19%

Fiber 7g29%

Sugar 26g29%

Protein 4g8%

Vitamin A 27182IU544%

Vitamin C 5mg6%

Calcium 83mg8%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.