Preheat oven to 400°F/200 C. Line a baking pan with parchment or foil and drizzle 1tbsp/15ml olive oil on the bottom.

Scrub the sweet potatoes and cut off any bad spots, but leave them mostly peel on. Cut in half lengthwise.

Place sweet potatoes in baking pan cut side down, pushing around to make sure they all get a coating of oil on the cut surface. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until the potatoes are soft and beginning to caramelize underneath.

While the sweet potatoes are baking, make the sauce.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the tahini, maple syrup, and pepper. Stir to blend.

Stir in the lemon juice. The mixture will become very thick. Add in 2 tbsp/30ml of water and stir until smooth. Add water until desired consistency is reached (should be thick but pourable).

Add in ¼ tsp/1g salt and stir. Adjust the salt to taste. Set aside.

Make the chickpeas when the sweet potatoes are nearly done.

Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic.

Heat 1 tbsp/15ml olive oil in a large pan over medium.

Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to brown, 5-7 minutes.

Add the chickpeas, garlic, harissa paste, cumin, and salt. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until chickpeas are heated through, well coated, and some browning is starting to happening on the bottom of the pan (an additional 5-7 minutes).

Serve each sweet potato half with a generous scoop of chickpeas, sauce, and chopped cilantro.

Cooked components can be stored separately and reheated before assembling.