Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with a Bacon-Parmesan Crust

Ingredients:

4 medium sweet potatoes
8 slices bacon
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Parmesan, divided
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon reserved bacon fat
1 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375F.
Place the sweet potatoes on sheet pan and bake for 1 hour, or until soft. Remove from the oven and let stand for 15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.

Meanwhile, cook the bacon until well done and crisp. Reserve 1 tablespoon fat, and drain the bacon slices on paper towels. Break into large pieces and place in a food processor. Grind to a fine crumb; place the bacon crumbs in a small bowl with 1/4 cup Parmesan. Mix well, and set aside.

Slice the cooked sweet potatoes in half lengthwise; scoop the flesh leaving a 1/4-inch border and place in a large bowl. Set the scooped skins aside. Add the reserved bacon fat, heavy cream, 1/4 cup Parmesan, butter, sage, salt, and pepper to the sweet potato flesh and whisk until creamy, fluffy, and smooth. Set aside.

Evenly divide the filling among the 8 potato skins, using a regular spoon to fill. Top each potato skin with the bacon-Parmesan crumbs. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until the crust is crisped and browned. Serve immediately.