Loaded Taco Sweet Potato Sliders

Hello, hello! I have another fun recipe to share with you today! These loaded taco sweet potato sliders were pretty darn fabulous! They were absolutely delicious and they made the most perfect Friday night dinner! If we were to merge a taco and a burger the result would be these sliders - they definitely do have a taco-ish taste to them but I totally got burger vibes as well! The tasty combo made such a delightful summer meal! This recipe is from a site called Low Recipe. You can find the original HERE. I strayed a little from the original recipe simply because of what we had in our fridge and it all worked out so well! I'll detail how I made these sliders below!

There are several components to this meal - the baked sweet potato bottoms, the burger, the chipotle ranch, the guacamole, the bacon and I made some potato wedges to serve with the sliders. So lots of different parts that I prepared throughout different parts of the day.

I started with the chipotle ranch, the bacon and the guac earlier in the day. I put these together around lunchtime. For the chipotle ranch, combine 1/2 cup of vegan sour cream, 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder (or chipotle powder), 1 teaspoon of onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon of paprika in a small mixing bowl. I transferred this chipotle ranch to a nicer serving dish, then covered it in plastic wrap and stuck it in the fridge until dinner.

I did the same with the guacamole. Around lunchtime, I mashed 2 avocados in a small mixing bowl and stirred in 1/4 cup of chopped red onion, 2 cloves of minced garlic, about a Tablespoon of lime juice and 1/4 cup of fresh cilantro. Once it was ready, I transferred the guac to a nicer serving dish, put an avocado pit in the center of the guac, then covered the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge until dinner.

While I was getting the chipotle ranch and the guacamole ready, I had the bacon cooking in the oven. These sliders are topped with crumbled bacon (yes please, right!?). So I cooked 6 pieces of bacon for 20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. The original recipe calls for 3 pieces of bacon but that just wouldn't fly in my house! I made 6 anticipating one slice per person with a little extra for leftovers the next day and it was perfect! When the bacon is done and cool, chop it into little pieces.

That was it for my lunchtime prep. The rest had to be done closer to dinner time. About an hour or so before you are ready to eat, you'll need to start on the sweet potatoes and the burger patties. For the sweet potato pieces, you'll want a really thick sweet potato. We get organic ones and they were the perfect size! Scrub the sweet potato clean then cut it into 1/2'' thick rounds. You'll need ten rounds total.

Place the sweet potato rounds down on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush each of the sweet potatoes with olive oil on both sides. Then, bake the sweet potato rounds for 15 minutes in an oven preheated to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Flip each of the sweet potatoes and put them back in the oven for another 10-15 minutes until they are soft and beginning to brown.

While the sweet potatoes are in the oven, it's a great time to put the burger patties together! In a medium mixing bowl, combine 1 1/4 lbs of lean ground beef with 2 teaspoons of taco seasoning, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder (or chipotle powder) and a pinch of sea salt. When the seasoning are well mixed into the meat, divide the meat into 10 patties. The burger patties will be pretty small since they are sliders and not full fledged burgers.

You can choose to prepare your burgers on the grill or on the stove top. I did mine in a skillet on the stove top because you don't want me working a grill! Although I have to say, my Aunt Lesley works a grill like a boss so if I can get her to teach me her ways I might know how to work a barbecue someday!

Heat a little bit of olive oil in the skillet until it is sizzling hot, then cook each of the burgers for 2-3 minutes on each side until they are cooked to your liking. We have a warming drawer at the bottom of our oven, so once my burgers were fully cooked, I just stuck them in the warming drawer. You could totally wrap them in some aluminum foil to keep them warm though!

Once everything is done (by everything I mean the burgers are cooked, the sweet potatoes are ready and the bacon, chipotle ranch and guac are all ready to go) you can put your sliders together!

To build the sliders, lay a sweet potato down, top the sweet potato with a burger patty then top the  burger patty with a dollop of guacamole, a drizzle of chipotle ranch and then sprinkle some bacon over it all. I have to say, I'm writing that description and I miss these already! They were such a fun combination of flavors and they made the most perfect meal! This recipe makes 10 sliders total. This comfortably served my family of four with leftovers for the next day!

I served these sliders with some garlic Parmesan potato wedges that were pretty heavenly if I do say so myself! I figured this post is already pretty dense with instructions so I'll share the recipe for these fries next week!

I should also mention, my parents and I loved these sliders, but the Bean didn't love them. She ate the burger with a little bit of guacamole but she wasn't feeling all of the toppings and the sweet potato. This might be more of an adult friendly meal!

LOADED SWEET POTATO SLIDERS
serves 4-5 people

ingedients

for the chipotle ranch
1/2 cup sour cream or mayonnaise (use vegan options if necessary)
1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder or chili powder
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika

for the guacamole
2 ripe avocados, mashed
1/4 cup red onion
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
~1 Tablespoon lime juice

for the sliders
1 thick sweet potato, scrubbed and sliced into 1/2 inch rounds (you need 10 rounds total)
olive oil (to brush on the sweet potatoes and for cooking the burgers)
1 1/4 lbs lean ground beef
2 teaspoons taco seasoning
1/4 teaspoon of chipotle powder or chili powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of sea salt
3-6 slices of bacon, cooked and chopped into small pieces

directions

for the chipotle ranch
1. Combine all of the ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Transfer the chipotle ranch to a serving dish then leave in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

for the guacamole
1. Mash the avocados in a small mixing bowl.
2. Mix in the red onion, the cilantro, the minced garlic and the lime juice.
3. Transfer to a serving dish and set in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

for the sliders
1. Scrub the sweet potato and cut it into 1/2'' rounds. Lay the rounds on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush each side of the sweet potatoes with olive oil.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake the sweet potatoes for 15 minutes. Flip them over and return them to the oven for 10-15 minutes until they are soft and beginning to brown.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the ground beef with the taco seasoning, the chili powder the minced garlic and the sea salt.
4. When the seasonings are well distributed in the meat. Separate the meat into 10 small patties.
5. In a medium skillet, heat a little bit of olive oil until it is sizzling them cook the burgers for 2-3 minutes on each side until they are done to your liking (you could also prep the burgers on the grill if you prefer). Set the burgers in a warming drawer or wrap them in some aluminum foil to keep them warm.
6. Cook the bacon in an oven preheated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes (flipping the bacon halfway through). Once cooled, cut the bacon into small pieces.
7. To assemble the sliders, lay a sweet potato round down on a plate. Top the sweet potato with a cooked burger patty, a dollop of guacamole, a drizzle of chipotle ranch and a some chopped bacon. Then enjoy!

Have a great day!