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These tender roasted sweet potato bites are such a fun healthy appetizer or snack idea! Topped with creamy guacamole, crunchy corn, onion, and cilantro, they’re like crostini but with a vegetable base.
If you’re like us, you always need fun party appetizer or snack ideas—here’s a new favorite: these loaded sweet potato bites! Alex and I have a slight obsession with creating recipes around this root vegetable (from roasted sweet potatoes to sweet potato brownies) because it’s so versatile and delicious.
In these bite-sized snacks, tender roasted spiced sweet potato rounds are the base of a “crostini”, topped with savory guacamole, crunchy corn and a little cilantro! They are absolutely irresistible! We like serving with Cholula for a little (optional) spicy hit. They’re perfect as a party snack, healthy appetizer, or game day snack—and also vegetarian, vegan, plant based and gluten free (and most importantly, delicious).
Featured reader comment
“These bites were so simple to prepare and loved by all at my book club! We all appreciated having something more wholesome and filling! Putting them together took 5 minutes! They were the star of the show for sure.” -Tanvee
Ingredients in sweet potato bites
The sweet potato bites are a spin on the loaded sweet potato rounds in our first cookbook. It’s a recipe we originally created as Super Bowl food that became a huge hit with readers! It’s our favorite recipes to this day but we wanted to create a spin that was both easier to make and plant-based. Here a guacamole topping stands in for the cheese and sour cream of the original: and it’s just as tasty! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Sweet potatoes: For a sweet potato rounds recipe, you’ll want thin sweet potatoes if you can find them, which make the best bite-sized rounds.
- Olive oil and spices: Roasting the sweet potatoes will require olive oil, garlic powder, and chili powder.
- Guacamole: You can used purchased or homemade guacamole (we typically use store-bought for ease of making the recipe).
- Toppings: We used minced red onion, canned corn, and cilantro, but you can get creative. We also like serving with Mexican hot sauce (Cholula) for a kick.
Tips for making this recipe
This recipe is simple to put together and works well for parties! We love it as Super Bowl food (with our healthy vegetarian buffalo chicken dip), but it also works any time of the year. Here are a few tips:
- Roast the sweet potatoes in advance or immediately before serving. This recipe works well made ahead: you’ll just need the sweet potato base. Slicing into rounds makes it take only 20 minutes to roast (versus a whole baked sweet potato which can take 1 hour).
- Consider using avocado sauce if serving at a party! Guacamole tends to turn brown if you leave it out and expose it to air. Typically ours works well for 2 hours. But you can also make our avocado sauce which stays green for up to 5 days (though it does contain dairy versus guacamole, which makes this a plant based snack.)
More topping ideas
You can make this sweet potato bites recipe your own by using different toppings! Here are a few ideas:
- Swap in refried beans for the guacamole (canned or homemade refried beans)
- Add pickled red onions for a tangy crunch
- Top with crumbled cheese like queso fresco or feta
- Sprinkle on pico de gallo (either purchased or homemade pico de gallo)
- Add sliced green onions
- Sprinkle with chopped pickled jalapenos for some head
Storing leftovers and make ahead notes
These sweet potato bites are the perfect finger food for a party table. If you’re making it ahead, you can roast the sweet potato rounds in advance, then top them before bringing to the party. Or, you can make the entire platter and refrigerate for a few hours: allow to come to room temperature before serving.
Leftovers last up to 3 days refrigerated, but keep in mind that the guacamole will turn brown when exposed to air. For a bright green look, you can make avocado sauce which stays green for 5 days.
Dietary notes
This sweet potato bites recipe is vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free.
Sweet Potato Bites
These tender roasted sweet potato bites are such a fun healthy appetizer or snack idea! Topped with creamy guacamole, crunchy corn, onion, and cilantro, they’re like crostini but with a vegetable base.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 to 8 as an appetizer 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 2 pounds sweet potatoes
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 to 1 cup guacamole (or avocado sauce; see Notes)
- 1/2 small red onion, minced
- ½ cup canned corn
- Chopped cilantro, for garnish
- Mexican hot sauce (like Cholula), for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Cut the sweet potatoes into ¼-inch slices. Place the slices in a large bowl, sprinkle with 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon chili powder, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and stir to thoroughly coat both sides of all slices. Place on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper, taking care that the rounds do not overlap. Bake 10 minutes on one side, then remove from the oven, flip all rounds, and bake another 10 minutes until soft.
- When the potatoes are done, remove them from the oven. To serve, place the rounds on a platter. Place a small dollop of guacamole on top. Sprinkle with a small bite of minced red onion, corn, and finely chopped cilantro. If desired, add a dot of Mexican hot sauce or serve with sauce for dipping. (Tastes great at room temperature, so it’s perfect for leaving out for up to 2 hours at a party.)
Notes
Make ahead notes: If making for a party, you can roast the sweet potato rounds in advance, then top them before bringing to the party. You can also make the entire platter and refrigerate for a few hours: allow to come to room temperature before serving. For a bright green look, you can make avocado sauce which stays green for 5 days.
These bites were so simple to prepare and loved by all at my book club! I topped mine with guac, onions, corn, some hot sauce, and feta (it was in the fridge and needed to be used). We all appreciated having something more wholesome and filling! The cook time was perfect, and putting them together took 5 minutes? They were the star of the show for sure