I am not a holiday food purist. When my family switched our eating habits, we carried our love of vegetables and whole grains into the holidays as well. At first, the other members of my extended family were hesitant, but after a few years, they realized that while the food was heavily loaded with vegetables, it was still delicious. These simple sweet potatoes would easily grace our table during the holidays.

Now, however, these potatoes are a treat only for me. After moving to California, my husband and I realized going home to Illinois for Thanksgiving and Christmas became too much, so we spend a quiet day by ourselves on Thanksgiving. Don't be fooled though — my husband still wants the Thanksgiving food he grew up with (read: not homemade green bean casserole). It's the one time of year I oblige his wishes and make him what he wants.

I still will treat myself to a vegetable-heavy meal: roasted Brussels sprouts, butternut squash casserole, and sweet potatoes in one form or another. I really enjoy these Hasselback sweet potatoes for their simplicity and ease. (Once you get good at the cutting, that is. I'm forever accidentally cutting them in half! Note the chopstick trick in the recipe instructions — it's a potato saver.)

I stick with thyme as the seasoning, but you could add whichever herbs you might have on hand from the rest of your meal. Rosemary, chives, and sage would make good additions or replacements, and if you don't want to mess with the brown butter, you could use a drizzle of good olive oil — though the brown butter does add a nice touch of flavor!