For sweet potatoes:

1. Peel the sweet potatoes and chop them into 3/4" cylinders.
2. Heat a large pot of water until boiling.
3. Carefully dump the sweet potatoes into the water and allow them to boil for 20-30 minutes, under they are very tender.
4. Preheat the oven to 415º and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or oiled aluminum foil.
5. Drain the sweet potatoes and allow them to cool for a couple of minutes.
6. One at a time, place the sweet potatoes on the baking sheet and use a fork to gently smash them, keeping them mostly intact. You want them to spread out just a little bit because it will allow the edges to crisp.
7. When you've smashed all of the potatoes, lightly drizzle oil over each one, sprinkle minced garlic, sea salt, and pepper.
8. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, then flip and bake for 15-20 more minutes. The edges with start to brown and look crispy – that's when they're done!
9. Remove and allow to cool, garnish with fresh chives and serve with this garlic-lemon aioli for maximum flavor impact.

For aioli, with a blender:

1. In a high speed blender, combine garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, and egg yolks (or aquafaba). Mix on a medium speed until well combined.
2. Slowly pour olive oil through the hole in the blender lid. Continue blending until the aioli becomes creamy and slightly fluffy.

If you have an immersion blender:

1. Combine garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, and egg yolks in a bowl, then blend.
2. Slowly pour in olive oil while blending on high. Continue blending and moving the blender around until the consistency is creamy and slightly fluffy.