Turn Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries Into Dessert With 2 Easy Swaps

Sweet potatoes are one of the most versatile foods, because they're a blend of slightly sweet and savory that helps them pair with many different ingredients. Sweet potatoes can be cooked and served whole, sliced and fried for french fries, or even mashed and turned into a popular Thanksgiving dish known as sweet potato pie. If you have a bag of frozen sweet potato fries and aren't sure how to use them, don't bother serving them with ketchup or spicy mayo. Rather, air fry them and turn this dish into a sweet treat with just a couple of swaps.

Sweet potato fries are usually served as a side dish with something like a burger or steak, but instead of seasoning them with savory ingredients like sea salt or paprika, toss the fries in a little bit of cinnamon sugar before cooking them. And sweeten the deal even more by dipping them in frosting — or even marshmallow fluff — to create the ultimate unexpected dessert.

The word "sweet" is in there for a reason. Prior to cooking the sweet potato fries, create a blend of four parts sugar to one part cinnamon; you can add a little more or less cinnamon depending on how much of a bite you want. Then, to get the mixture to stick to the fries, toss them in a small amount of olive oil, and coat them in the cinnamon sugar mixture. As the fries heat in the air fryer, the sugar will start to caramelize, giving the fries a delicious flavor and texture.

If you don't like cinnamon, you can omit it and still coat them in a touch of sugar (use less, since the cinnamon isn't there to balance the sugar's sweetness). Those sugars will still caramelize as the fries cook. Keep in mind that the caramelization could make the fries a bit sticky, so you can add a liner to the air fryer for easy cleanup.

What's the best part of a cinnamon roll? The frosting. Although the sweet potato fries will have a slightly more savory taste than cinnamon rolls, that frosting will still pair well with the cinnamon-sugar coating. Warm it up in the microwave for easier dipping consistency.

If you've ever had sweet potato pie, you probably know it often includes a marshmallow layer. Fluff is the perfect addition to this sweet treat as well. You can warm it in the microwave to ensure it's easier to dip, but do this carefully; anyone who has ever heated a Peep knows that marshmallows expand quickly in the microwave and you don't want a mess on your hands.

If you have leftover fries and want to reheat them at a later time, there's no need to refry them in the air fryer. Just preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, and spread the fries on parchment paper (this makes for easy cleanup if they get a little sticky). They only need about five minutes before they're heated through.