Servings: 10 Prep: 15 mins Cook: 30 mins Total: 45 mins
This dish is higher in carbs than most on my site. However, it was designed for the holidays, where a modicum of splurging is likely to happen. This, in my mind’s eye, is the replacement for the traditional “Candied Yams”, which are usually drenched in brown sugar and often topped with marshmallows. This … isn’t that … but it’s far from a poor replacement! The flavors are from the same planet, but it’s not going to release an army of insulin into your blood.
Create this, or bring it to any holiday meal and … people will love it!
Note: You don’t want to put too many root veggies into the pan, at once. If you have a large sauté pan, where it will all fit without more than about 2 layers of cubes, that’s ok. Otherwise, consider doing 2 batches or do it in two pans, simultaneously. Practice your sautéing skills!
Second Note: Cut larger chunks and toss it all (except the mint) with melted butter. Then, roast in a pan at 350 F, for about 45 minutes, or until soft, browned and roasty. Then, top with fresh mint and serve! It’s a more rustic version of the same flavors, but no less awesome!
Rootin' Tootin' Underground Hash
Print RateIngredients
- 1/4 cup fresh whole butter
- 2 lbs sweet potatoes peeled and diced
- 1 lb golden beets peeled and diced
- 1 lb carrots peeled and diced
- 4 each garlic cloves minced
- 1 each sweet red onion diced
- 2 tsp cinnamon ground
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg freshly ground
- 1 cup pecans halves
- 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves washed and dried
- salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pre-heat a large non-stick sauté pan.
- Add your butter, and quickly swirl it around. A little light browning of the butter is ok. Don't burn it, though.
- Before the butter is totally melted, add your cubed beets, carrots and sweet potatoes. Toss them in the butter, to make sure the cubed are evenly coated. Then, spread them out along the bottom of the pan, so that there is as even a layer as possible. Season with salt and pepper.
- Turn the heat down to a medium-low. About every 2 to 3 minutes, toss the root veggies around, so that a different group of mini-cubes will get exposure to the bottom of the pan. We're trying to brown up many of the cubes, for color, texture and flavor. Be careful not to burn them. They have a tendency to want to burn quickly. Watch it, closely.
- Continue cooking the roots, until they are almost completely cooked through (will take about 20 minutes, with occasional tossing). Once they are nicely browned, add your onions, garlic, pecans, cinnamon, nutmeg and more salt and pepper. Cook for a further 5 minutes, until the onions and garlic are cooked and translucent.
- Taste some of the cubes and adjust the salt and pepper (this can handle a good amount of salt). When you're satisfied with the taste, toss some fresh mint leaves into the mix and serve immediately. (if you're planning to bring this to a different location, take the fresh mint leaves separately and add them to the top of the hash, just before serving. They will wilt and turn brown fairly quickly, if they sit in the hash too long ... they'll still taste great, but ... will just loose that vibrant green color).
- Enjoy!
STANDARD FTC DISCLOSURE: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. Please note, I only ever endorse products that are in alignment with my ideals and I believe would be of value to my readers.
* Learn More: More about this recipe and nutrition …
That does sound like a good replacement. Think I will fix it on Christmas. Thanks for the great idea!!
Hi Sharon. Let me know how it turns out! I loooooved it! (I actually made a slightly different version of it for my higher carb relatives over Thanksgiving and threw a bunch of dried cherries into it, near the end. That really kicked things up another notch. If your way of eating allows for this … it was definitely tasty! … don’t tell anyone I had a bite, though. *wink*)
I can’t find any golden beets. The ones at Whole Foods were soft and wrinkled. Afraid they would not have lasted until next week. What should I use as a replacement for them?
Hi Sharon, you could use regular beets. Just be careful, as they bleed all over the place and turn things red. They’re also tougher to watch in the pan, as they can burn and … you might not notice. They also may turn your hash … pink. As an alternative, you could ask Whole Foods to order you some nice golden beets. I suspect they’ll try to. You could substitute a different kind of sweet potato (the whole foods I was at had about 5 different varieties). You could also substitute with parsnips, which should be relatively easy to find, the right color and easy to cook. I hope this helps! Happy Holidays!
Unfortunately whole Foods is over an hour away. I’m thinking rutabaga. I love those things. Will let you know how it turns out.
That should work. Yep. Let me know how it turns out!
Would dakon radishes work in this? (Perhaps to replace the golden beets? – We don’t care for beets)
Hi Di,
Yep! Absolutely. I personally am not a huge fan of diakon, but it would “work”. I’d personally probably just use more carrots, or use something else like celeriac (celery root), but you may prefer diakon. In terms of visual and function, it should be fine. I just have too much history with the stuff and the smell of it kind of oogs me out, but that’s just me. If you enjoy it … use it! 😉
I hope this helps!