Sweet Potato & Chorizo Hash

Growing up, I was never a lover of fried eggs. I was often repulsed by the sight of a runny yolk, especially if someone else ordered them at a diner, allowing the yellow contents to flow and touch everything on their plate. I remember thinking something along the lines of, "Oh my gosh! HOW can you let that stuff touch your perfectly good bacon? Your hash browns? Oh no, not the toast, too!" I was always more comfortable with enjoying scrambled eggs, and I should probably owe this to the fact that I was never really taught to eat fried eggs and to truly enjoy the sunshine yellow yolk in its intact form. 

Then I studied in Seville, Spain for four months during my junior year of college, and my whole egg-eating experience was rocked by my host mother's cooking. I can still remember her laying a beautiful multicolored bowl of Spanish pisto manchego (a gorgeous vegetable stew) in front of me and boldly declaring that this would be the best pisto I would hope to try. It looked and smelled incredible, but alas... atop my stew was a perfectly round over-easy egg, the yolk already broken and pouring over my meal. I looked at my roommate, who was already digging into her dinner. I tapped her on the shoulder and whispered, "I don't know if I can do this. There is egg yolk all over my food!" Corinne, bless her heart, nudged me and told me it was delicious and that I would love it. So I took a deep breath, crying a little inside because I still held the memories of diner food covered in yellow, and took a huge bite. I figured, go big or go home. 

That pisto combined with the rich egg yolk completely eradicated my egg phobia. I can honestly say that a switch flipped inside my brain from ewwwwwgrosseggyolksbleeeehhh to moremoremoremoremoremoreeggyolksplease. I am in love with egg yolks now and forever. We ate them countless times in Spain, and I prepare them several times a week at home. As such, they are perfect set atop my sweet potato and chorizo hash. The spices and meatiness from the chorizo make the sweet potatoes sing, and the egg on top creates a sort of rich sauce that I like to soak up with buttered toast. 

I like to think that without the help of my host mother Barbara and her incredible cooking, this hash would not have happened. Happy eating! 

Sweet Potato & Chorizo Hash

Makes 2 large portions

1 medium sweet potato, washed and cut into 1-inch chunks

1 chicken chorizo sausage (found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store), cut into small chunks

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

heavy pinch of course salt 

lots of cracked black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all of the ingredients and place on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are cooked through and browned, and the chorizo is crispy. Serve hot with a fried egg and buttered toast.