Sweet Potato Jubilee!
by Marjan
Each week this month, I will post recipes in preparation for Thanksgiving dinner; November 22nd will be here in a heart beat! Last week's recipe for Spiced Rolled Pumpkin Cake has my sweet tooth engaged for a sweet appetizer. One of my favorite side dishes at our Thanksgiving dinner has always been sweet potatoes. Whether you call this starchy vegetable sweet potato or yam, it always is a crowd favorite. Baked, fried, or roasted the sweet flavors of yam can't be beat! As far as my taste buds go, it is my 'appetizer dessert' before I indulge into my pumpkin rolled cake! So it is no surprise, this year I'm baking a mashed sweet potato yam dish which looks and bakes like a cake!
Feast into rich, buttery, sweet layers of both white and orange yam! Decorated with crunchy pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, cinnamon and brown sugar for both contrast in texture and flavor. Similar to my archived recipe for Sweet Yam Crunch, this stunning side dish will be the bells and whistles to your Thanksgiving dinner! Best of all, this recipe may be prepared 2 days in advance helping to decrease last minute preparations of hosting Thanksgiving dinner!
Serves 8-12
Ingredients:
2 lbs orange color sweet potato
2 lbs white color sweet potato
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup heavy cream
12 tablespoon organic salted butter
*2 tablespoons of butter to grease pan and to bake
1/2 cup crushed pecans
1/4 cup crushed walnuts
1/4 cup pine nuts
½ cup dark brown sugar (more or less to taste)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (more or less to taste)
1/2 teaspoon flour
Spring Cake Pan
Separately prepare orange and white sweet potato mash:
Peel, wash, and cube sweet potatoes. First boil white sweet potatoes and 4 cups of water in a large pot over medium heat; add 1/2 teaspoon salt. 20-30 minutes later, potatoes should be soft and ready to mash. Strain and discard liquid; in the same pot, add 1/2 cup cream and 6 tablespoons of butter. Over medium low heat, mash potatoes until silky smooth. Taste for additional salt; add if needed.
Transfer mashed potatoes to a bowl (or use another pot if available) and repeat entire process again with orange colored potatoes; once potatoes are mashed, add 1/4 cup of brown sugar, butter and cream. Again, taste for addition of salt if needed.
Preheat oven to 350° F.
Grease spring cake pan bottom and sides generously with butter. Spoon and spread orange mashed potato evenly on the bottom. Top with white mashed potatoes; make certain the top of the cake is smooth and even.
In a small bowl, mix nuts, brown sugar, cinnamon and flour. Evenly sprinkle mix along side of pan approximately 1" wide sprinkles and in the middle of cake, spoon remaining nut mix in a clean circle. Place small dabs of remaining butter on top of the nut mix and place in the oven for 30 minutes or until nuts are slightly golden.
Remove cake from the oven and cool for 20 minutes. Using a thin flexible knife, carefully run blade against the walls of the pan to make sure potatoes separate from pan. Carefully open side wall of pan. Serve on your favorite round serving platter.
** If preparing dish in advance, follow above steps up until sprinkling nut mix on top. Cover and store in fridge mashed potatoes in the spring cake pan. Two hours prior to serving, remove from fridge and store at room temperature. 1 1/2 hours prior to serving dinner, bake in a 350° F oven for 30 minutes; remove and sprinkle nuts. Place back in the oven to bake for additional 30 minutes. Cool for 20 minutes and remove spring cake side walls and serve.
Each week this month, I will post recipes in preparation for Thanksgiving dinner; November 22nd will be here in a heart beat! Last week's recipe for Spiced Rolled Pumpkin Cake has my sweet tooth engaged for a sweet appetizer. One of my favorite side dishes at our Thanksgiving dinner has always been sweet potatoes. Whether you call this starchy vegetable sweet potato or yam, it always is a crowd favorite. Baked, fried, or roasted the sweet flavors of yam can't be beat! As far as my taste buds go, it is my 'appetizer dessert' before I indulge into my pumpkin rolled cake! So it is no surprise, this year I'm baking a mashed sweet potato yam dish which looks and bakes like a cake!
Feast into rich, buttery, sweet layers of both white and orange yam! Decorated with crunchy pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, cinnamon and brown sugar for both contrast in texture and flavor. Similar to my archived recipe for Sweet Yam Crunch, this stunning side dish will be the bells and whistles to your Thanksgiving dinner! Best of all, this recipe may be prepared 2 days in advance helping to decrease last minute preparations of hosting Thanksgiving dinner!
Serves 8-12
Ingredients:
2 lbs orange color sweet potato
2 lbs white color sweet potato
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup heavy cream
12 tablespoon organic salted butter
*2 tablespoons of butter to grease pan and to bake
1/2 cup crushed pecans
1/4 cup crushed walnuts
1/4 cup pine nuts
½ cup dark brown sugar (more or less to taste)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (more or less to taste)
1/2 teaspoon flour
Spring Cake Pan
Separately prepare orange and white sweet potato mash:
Peel, wash, and cube sweet potatoes. First boil white sweet potatoes and 4 cups of water in a large pot over medium heat; add 1/2 teaspoon salt. 20-30 minutes later, potatoes should be soft and ready to mash. Strain and discard liquid; in the same pot, add 1/2 cup cream and 6 tablespoons of butter. Over medium low heat, mash potatoes until silky smooth. Taste for additional salt; add if needed.
Transfer mashed potatoes to a bowl (or use another pot if available) and repeat entire process again with orange colored potatoes; once potatoes are mashed, add 1/4 cup of brown sugar, butter and cream. Again, taste for addition of salt if needed.
Preheat oven to 350° F.
Grease spring cake pan bottom and sides generously with butter. Spoon and spread orange mashed potato evenly on the bottom. Top with white mashed potatoes; make certain the top of the cake is smooth and even.
In a small bowl, mix nuts, brown sugar, cinnamon and flour. Evenly sprinkle mix along side of pan approximately 1" wide sprinkles and in the middle of cake, spoon remaining nut mix in a clean circle. Place small dabs of remaining butter on top of the nut mix and place in the oven for 30 minutes or until nuts are slightly golden.
Remove cake from the oven and cool for 20 minutes. Using a thin flexible knife, carefully run blade against the walls of the pan to make sure potatoes separate from pan. Carefully open side wall of pan. Serve on your favorite round serving platter.
** If preparing dish in advance, follow above steps up until sprinkling nut mix on top. Cover and store in fridge mashed potatoes in the spring cake pan. Two hours prior to serving, remove from fridge and store at room temperature. 1 1/2 hours prior to serving dinner, bake in a 350° F oven for 30 minutes; remove and sprinkle nuts. Place back in the oven to bake for additional 30 minutes. Cool for 20 minutes and remove spring cake side walls and serve.
