Welcome Spring: Rainbow Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Garlic Tahini Dressing

 Every now and then, you and you alone need to give yourself a confidence boost. It may be after your partner tells you that your new sunglasses remind him of the fly villain from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Or, it could be that it's spring, and you're recovering from a long, downward fashion standards spiral that went from wearing elastic-waisted pants, to leggings, then sweatpants, and finally, pajama pants, in public. For the record, I have no regrets.

Sometimes I get that confidence boost when a recipe turns out just the way I'd hoped it would, the first time around. This recipe was inspired by the appearance of greenery around the city, and a craving for bright, cheery things after a long, record-breaking cold winter. We may have felt like wearing mittens and a tuque while we hopped around the barbecue, waiting for the accompanying entrees, but we still barbecued- and this was a welcome splash of colour to the beginning of a long, beautiful reunion with the dog days.

Rainbow Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Garlic Tahini Dressing   

Ingredients

For the salad:
5 1/2 cups sweet potato, peeled and chopped
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 avocado
1 tbsp freshly chopped basil
1/2 red and yellow pepper
3 green onion stocks
1/4 cup thinly chopped red cabbage

For the dressing:
1 large clove of garlic; crushed and finely diced or grated
3 tbsp tahini 3
1 1/2 tsp maple syrup
1 tsp lemon juice
4 tbsp water

Directions 

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
• Peel, chop and toss the sweet potatoes with the olive oil, salt and pepper 
• Spread sweet potatoes on a large baking sheet, avoiding overlap where possible, and roast for approximately 20 minutes, stirring them halfway through (I roasted them for two extra minutes at the end to let them crisp up a bit)
• Whisk ingredients for the dressing until well blended and thickened
• Once the sweet potato has slightly cooled, gently toss all salad ingredients together
• Drizzle over the salad and serve warm or cold - serves 4-6 as a side.