this shit rocks no. 68: roasted Japanese sweet potatoes with coconut labne & honey!

Plus shackets and shoes!

Want to know some shit that really rocks? Getting in and out of your dentist appointment in less than 25 minutes. Not a cavity in sight and a high five from the dentist on my way out. I skipped so forcefully back to my car that I nearly took out another pedestrian. Sometimes, it’s the little things!!!!

Finding a dentist in LA was not easy, but here we are, people. I’ve made it. Aside from my absolutely glowing oral hygiene, here are some other things to get excited about.

Zara Patch Pocket Jacket and Adidas Gazelles

Julie’s tan shacket and my Adidas sneakers, both modeled by me

I am not sure if shackets are still in or not, but they are in my book because they are a perfect layering piece, and you can wear them with any outfit. I borrowed Julie’s tan Zara shacket (pictured above) enough times during our trip that when we stumbled upon the same shacket in other colors at the Zara in Tokyo, I went ahead and bought one for myself in army green. Sisterhood of the traveling shacket!

Going all the way to Japan to make a purchase at a Zara of all places feels silly, so if anybody asks where my shacket is from, I will smugly tell them, “Tokyo” and make sure that they don’t see the tags. It is very oversized so I’d recommend sizing down.

As far as the shoes, I have already mentioned them in my epic traveling essentials list, but I feel I need to spotlight them again because they’re that great. Such a comfortable shoe, and I can’t stop wearing them. I sized down a half size.

Roasted Japanese Sweet Potatoes with Toasted Seed Oil, Coconut Labne, and Honey

Serves: 4-6

Active time: 30 minutes

Total time: 55 minutes

I freaking LOVE Japanese sweet potatoes because they’re a little sweeter and starchier than a regular sweet potato. Not to mention, I did return just a few short weeks ago from a trip to JAPAN, where these starchy wonders were on every corner.

Earlier this week, I went to a pop up dinner with my pal, Kath, at the Santa Monica Proper hotel featuring food from Rory’s Place, a seafood-centric restaurant in Ojai. My favorite dish of the evening was these roasted Japanese sweet potatoes with a toasted seed oil, coconut labne, fried garlic, and honey.

Japanese sweet potatoes from the Rory's Place pop up; me gazing longingly into said potatoes

I was so inspired by these potatoes that the next day, I recreated them at home. I don’t want to toot my own horn, but…they were special. This recipe is great (if I do say so myself) because there are a lot of valuable cooking moments in here: fried garlic chips (very easy and looks fancy!), a homemade toasted seed oil (versatile and delicious!), and perfectly roasty, caramelized sweet potatoes (an important life skill!). It’s cliche to say, but this is a restaurant-quality dish right in the comfort of your own home.

This recipe will leave you with some leftover coconut cream, which I’d recommend you use up in your coffee, smoothies, or with rum, lime juice, maple syrup, and salt.