SWEET POTATO CORN STICKS WITH MAPLE SYRUP AND CAPE COD POTATO CHIP CRUNCH

makes 6 cornsticks

​6 oz. oven roasted sweet potato, skin removed, halved; one half mashed, the other half diced (you should have a generous ¼ cup of the mash)
2 tablespoons melted butter for greasing the pan
½ cup stoneground cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ cup unsalted butter at cool room temperature, cut into ½” cubes
1 Tablespoon good quality maple syrup
¼ cup buttermilk
1 large egg, room temperature
additional maple syrup for brushing the corn sticks
1 cup coarsely crushed Cape Cod Pink Himalayan Salt & Red Wine Vinegar chips
 
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the buttered corn stick pan on a baking sheet. In a large bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, and cayenne. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together maple syrup, ¼ cup sweet potato mash, buttermilk, and the egg until smooth.
 
Place the baking sheet with the corn stick pan in the oven to heat- set the timer for 6 minutes. Cut the butter cubes into the dry ingredients until crumbly with just a few larger pieces. Add the wet ingredients (maple syrup, sweet potato mash, buttermilk, and egg) to the dry ingredients/butter mixture. Use a rubber spatula to fold the mixtures together then fold in the diced sweet potatoes. Retrieve the baking sheet with the corn stick pan from the oven. Fill each cavity with equal amounts of batter (approx. 2.5 oz. of batter each). The batter will fill the molds completely. Bake for 12-15 minutes until corn sticks test clean with a toothpick. Let cool for 5 minutes before carefully turning them out onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush the tops of each corn stick with some of the maple syrup then sprinkle crushed potato chips over each. Serve warm with additional maple syrup, if you wish.