Blog by: Samantha Belcourt
Every year for Thanksgiving I make a family recipe of sweet potatoes. It seems that no matter how they taste, tradition is always the best recipe. I do a little bit of preparation before jumping in. First, I get out all the ingredients I will need which include:
- 2 eggs
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 tbsp. of baking powder
- 2 cups of flour
- 16 oz can of yams
- A few handfuls of marshmallows
- A few handfuls of pistachios
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- A sprinkle of salt
- A sprinkle of rosemary
- A sprinkle onion powder
I wash my hands thoroughly and begin by mixing the eggs, butter and yams; a much harder task then it sounds because the yams are pure sugar and quite like to stick- to everything. In a separate bowl I mix baking powder, flour, salt and sugar. I use a sugar substitute called Stevia in the raw since they already have quite a bit of the real thing. After everything is mixed, I combine them together and get lazy and use a blender; I don’t typically use a blender, I like to use my own strength to test my patience but I know that I still have quite a bit to do.
At this point everything is smooth, and my workstation is a bit messy. I abandon the contents for a moment, toss the egg shells, clean the stray powder, wipe up the oily butter and wash my hands again after all is said and done. I return back to the contents and do a double-take. Unmixed pieces have risen to the top, little chunks here and there. Not even the mixer could get through the power of the corn syrup. After stirring for probably three more minutes straight I decide there is such a thing as stirring too much.
I pour the contents into an 8×8 pan and inwardly shudder. I forgot to crush the nuts for the topping. I grab a small bowl and take a few handfuls- no specific amount of nuts- and break them apart, then break those pieces apart. This is my least favorite part because it is so tedious but it is worth it; the topping makes the sweet potatoes. I sprinkle them all over the top and after the entire surface is covered I add the extra nuts to the middle. Lastly, my favorite part: marshmallows, but not just any marshmallows; the World Market kosher kind. I sprinkle them on here and there filling in any gaps visible.
Then it’s time to heat things up. Into the oven the masterpiece goes for anywhere from 15-25 minutes depending on the consistency. Because I stirred quite a bit, and I assume the consistency to be thin, I put it in for 15 minutes exactly. While that sits in the oven, I clean all the tools I used earlier and load the dishwasher. I then make myself something to eat, all of this food and preparation of food made me hungry. Then a couple minutes after cleaning that up and then remembering to clean the beaters off, the timer goes off.
I can tell by looking a it through the clear pan that it’s not ready because it’s kind of swaying slowly back and forth, which it has never done any other time I’ve prepared this. I go to add five more minutes, and I realize what I have done wrong.
I forgot to preheat the oven. This is super important. This recipe requires the oven to be set at 400* for 15-20 minutes, so it needs to be this temperature when the dish is placed into the oven.
Rather than throw everything away, I decide to experiment, I set the oven for 450* instead of its called for temp, because even though it’s not set up, it is already getting crispy at the top and on the sides.
I put it in for five minutes and don’t do anything. While it’s in there I just wait in the kitchen, like a family in a waiting room.
The timer beeps and it’s solid, so I am pleased by how it looks. I set it out to cool for five minutes.
Everyone said the sweet potatoes were better then ever before this year, which I thought was hilarious. I guess my mistake made the outside extra crispy and the inside creamy.
Its true you do learn from your blunders, but maybe this will be one I repeat in the future.
When you are cooking or baking do not forget where you are at and to have fun. I was in a major hurry to get this done. If I would have remembered to slow down and enjoy myself it may have taken longer but I wouldn’t have made the errors I did.