Sweet potatoes (patate douce) with ginger and garlic

This is one of our favorite ways to prepare sweet potatoes: cubed and roasted with a glaze of olive oil mixed with strong herbs and spices, in this case ginger and garlic.

Mince garlic, ginger, pine nuts as finely as you can, then crush the mix in a mortar. When the mix begins to soften -- the pressed oils will begin to form a paste -- add some olive oil and continue working the mix with the pestle. For a good-sized potato about a quarter cup of olive oil.

In a tian, spread out the diced sweet potato, pour on the garlic-ginger mix, and turn the potato bits with a wooden spoon until each bit is covered with oil and dotted with flecks of ginger, garlic, etc. Put into a pre-heated oven (around 150 to 175 C.) and let it cook for about a half hour. Remove from the oven , test for doneness, and stir with the wooden spoon. For crispy skins on the potato bits, turn the heat up for the final burst of cooking. In the end, the bits should be soft on the inside and beginning to get crusty on the outside, but, of course, this is a matter of taste. My sensibility runs toward crunchier, which also means that the garlic-ginger mix is well-cooked to the point of sublime intensity.