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Mom and Dad are hosting Thanksgiving again and I am bringing home-made cherry pie and a sweet potato dish.  I feel pretty lucky – aside from taking a little time, these recipes are pretty simple.  After all, I cook almost every day, so this shouldn’t be a bigger deal…except that this IS a special holiday… AND people expect my food to taste fantastic… AND Thanksgiving food is supposed to be more special than regular food.  Right?

I think I am having a little performance anxiety, which was amplified when I tasted my food.  It was too sweet.  Did I make a mistake?  Or was the recipe simply too sugary?  If I was on Top Chef, might they have suggested I throw it out and start over?

Maybe I am over-exaggerating.  I’ll try to be fair and diplomatic.  The dish does taste good.  It would have been even sweeter if I had topped it marshmallows, which is what my husband ate as a child.  But this one is topped with caramelized apples, which still have a little bite to them.

The jury is still out.  Dinner isn’t for another 2 hours.

In the meantime, here is the recipe.  If you love your sweet potatoes SWEET, you will love this!  If not, you might want to cut the sugar in the recipe a bit, and allow the sweet potatoes to speak for themselves.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Caramelized Apples

In this sweet potato recipe, caramelized apples replace the traditional marshmallows, adding a delicious twist on an old favorite.

Sweet Potatoes
4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
1 cup whole milk or half-and-half
6 Tbs butter
4 Tbs light-brown sugar

Apple Topping
3 Macintosh or Gala apples
3 Tbs brown sugar
3 Tbs butter
Coarse salt, to taste

1. Set a steamer basket in a large saucepan. Fill with enough water to come just below basket; bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer. Place sweet potatoes in steamer basket and cover; steam until tender, 15 to 25 minutes. Drain, and return to saucepan.
2. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, bring half-and-half, butter, and brown sugar to a simmer, stirring to combine; remove from heat. Add to drained sweet potatoes, and mash just until smooth; season with salt and pepper.
3. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add apple wedges and brown sugar; cook about 10 minutes, turning apples occasionally, until lightly browned on both sides.
4. Place on top of sweet potatoes and bake 30 minutes, until heated through. (Note: If refrigerating before baking, cook an additional 15 minutes, or until heated through.)

Servings: 8

I can’t remember where I originally found this recipe – maybe from Ina Garten?