Ah, Dr. Seuss. I grew up on his books, and now my daughter’s doing the same thing. And that just makes me happy. Star-Bellied Sneetches, anyone? And Green Eggs & Ham, of course. If I can avoid reading Fox in Socks out loud for the rest of my life, however, that’d be peachy. Holy tongue twisters.

Green Eggs & Yams - Pesto-smothered roasted yams (or sweet potatoes), topped with an egg and drizzled with more pesto. In this case, it's easy being green!

I’m sure you’ve guessed that today’s recipe is a riff on the popular Dr. Seuss book. St. Paddy’s Day, is of course, the perfect time to share Green Eggs & Yams because, you know, green. You don’t want to have to pinch your breakfast.

This one involves no food color – rather, the green comes compliments of a healthy hit of pesto.

Roasted sweet potatoes and, naturally, a couple of poached eggs complete this simple breakfast.

Green Eggs & Yams - Pesto-smothered roasted yams (or sweet potatoes), topped with an egg and drizzled with more pesto. In this case, it's easy being green!

I DO, I DO like it, Sam-I-am!

Green Eggs & Yams - Pesto-smothered roasted yams (or sweet potatoes), topped with an egg and drizzled with more pesto. In this case, it's easy being green!

Sorry, sorry. You know I had to.

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Green Eggs & Yams

Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
Total: 1 hour
Author: Kare
Pesto-smothered roasted yams (or sweet potatoes), topped with an egg and drizzled with more pesto. In this case, it's easy being green!

Ingredients

For the roasted yams:

  • 1 pound yams or sweet potatoes (peeled, roughly 3/4-inch dice)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt + more to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper + more to taste
  • 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional, just adds a nice little touch of savory smokiness)

For the pesto:

  • 3 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (optional)
  • 1/3 cup pine nuts**
  • 2 medium cloves garlic (roughly minced)
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast***
  • 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt + more to taste
  • 1/4-1/3 cup olive oil

For the poached eggs:*

  • 4 large eggs

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Place yams in a medium bowl. Drizzle olive oil over the top. Toss to coat potatoes. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika (if using). Spread on a large rimmed cookie sheet. Place yams in oven and cook, turning every 15 minutes or so, until tender and browned on some sides, about 30 minutes.
  • While the yams cook, make the pesto and heat the water for the poached eggs. Fill a medium pan 2/3 of the way with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
  • To make the pesto, place basil, thyme if using, pine nuts, garlic, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt, and 1/4 cup olive oil in the pitcher of a blender or in a small food processor fitted with the "s" blade. Puree until nearly smooth, drizzling in more olive oil as needed (I usually need right around 1/3 cup). Taste and stir in additional salt if desired.
  • Place roasted potatoes in a medium bowl and top with 2 tablespoons of the pesto. Toss gently until coated. Divide potatoes between two plates.
  • Lastly, poach your eggs! Your water should not be rapidly boiling but instead be barely moving, with a few small bubbles rising to the surface. Crack eggs into the water, hovering right over the surface so that the eggs don't have far to drop. Cook for 3 minutes for a very runny yolk or 3 1/2 minutes for thicker (yet still runny) yolk.
  • Remove eggs with a slotted spoon, taking care to tilt the spoon to discard as much of the cooking water as possible. Top the potatoes with the poached eggs. Drizzle with remaining pesto and sprinkle with a light dusting of coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper. Garnish with basil if desired. Serve!

Green Eggs & Yams - Pesto-smothered roasted yams (or sweet potatoes), topped with an egg and drizzled with more pesto. In this case, it's easy being green!

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