Sweet Potatoes for Dessert
If you’re still looking for the perfect dessert to take to Thanksgiving dinner, I highly recommend this one. Especially if you have cooked sweet potatoes on hand, this pie is easy to make, and wow, is it good. This recipe belonged to my great-grandmother, and my mom has taken on the task of making it every Christmas. As soon as the weather turned cool, (and I began buying and cooking sweet potatoes like a mad woman) I craved this pie.
My affection for this particular recipe has much to do with my memory, I know; it’s been several years since my great-grandmother was here to share the holiday with us. But also, I think this pie does what all of my favorite recipes do: it relies on the simplicity of the ingredients. The sweet potato flavor is highlighted by the orange zest, and those are really the only flavors you taste. The evaporated milk or cream imparts a fluffiness to the potatoes that enhances their own texture. My mom serves it with a dollop of slightly sweetened cream and freshly grated nutmeg, and I like it warm or cold. Really, as far as pies go, this one for me is hard to beat.
NANNY’S SWEET POTATO PIE
Nanny is famous for writing down cryptic recipes. I’m going to type it up exactly as my mom recited it to me over the phone, and then I’ll explain what I actually did when I made the pie. Her instructions:
1-2 potatoes
1 can Carnation
2 eggs
Grated orange rind
Vanilla
Salt
3/4 cup sugar
Whip the potatoes, Carnation, and eggs; then add sugar. Add vanilla and salt. Bake 15 min. at 375, 30 minutes at 350.
What I did:
Bake a pie shell for 10 minutes at 425; remove from oven and reduce the temperature to 375 degrees. I used 2 small potatoes (about 2 cups of cooked, mashed potato) and 1 cup of whipping cream instead of Carnation (because I couldn’t figure out whether she meant sweetened condensed or evaporated milk. Mom says evaporated, but the cream worked fine too). Whip the potatoes, cream, and eggs together in the mixer. Then, add the sugar, the grated rind of 1 orange, 1/2 t. of vanilla, and 1/4 t. salt. Whip for a couple of minutes. The mixture should be very light and fluffy. Pour the filling into the slightly baked pie crust, and return to the oven. Bake for 15 minutes; then reduce the temperature to 350 and bake for 30 minutes more. The pie should be set so that it jiggles only slightly in the center when you shake it. (It will firm up as it cools, but I can never wait, so my pieces are always falling apart a little bit.) Serve as you wish, hot or cold, with whipped cream and nutmeg, or just some grated orange rind on top, with coffee, tea, or a tall glass of milk. I’m telling you, you really can’t go wrong.