Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Brown Sugar-Pecan Topping

Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Brown Sugar-Pecan Topping
 adapted from Epicurious
22 ounces red-skinned sweet potatoes (yams; about 2 large), peeled,
  cut into 1-inch pieces 6 tablespoons
(3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Pinch of salt

For topping
1 1/2 cups cornflakes, crushed
1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Directions:  Preheat oven to 400°F. Cook sweet potatoes in large pot of boiling water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain; transfer potatoes to large bowl and add butter.

Using electric mixer, beat until smooth. Add egg, sugar, spice and salt; beat to blend. Transfer mixture to 8 x 8-inch baking dish.

(Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Bring to room temperature before continuing.)

Bake potatoes until beginning to brown around edges and slightly puffed, about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare topping: Mix together all ingredients in medium bowl. Spoon topping evenly over potatoes. Bake until golden brown and crisp, about 10 minutes longer.

Modifications:
-I multiplied this recipe x3 to serve 20.

Here's what you'll need for the potatoes.

Cut the potatoes and put them on to boil.

Drain them.

Add the butter.

Using a hand mixer, whip the potatoes.

Add the sugar and spices.

Add the eggs and mix.

Spread out into a baking dish. 

(If making ahead of time, cover and put in the refrigerator at this point)

Now to prepare the topping.

Here's what you'll need:

Place the corn flakes in a bag and crush them.

Place the nuts in a bowl.

Add the brown sugar.

Add the butter and mix together.

Put the potatoes in a 400 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.

Add the topping and cook for another 10 minutes.

Our Thoughts:

I asked my friends on Facebook to send me their favorite Thanksgiving dishes and my friend, Andrea, sent this one to me.

Of course, sweet potatoes a staple at Thanksgiving but this dish was extra special.  Normally, our sweet potatoes are still in big chunks so whipping them with all of that butter really gave them a creamy texture.

The start of the dish, though, was that brown sugar-pecan topping.  SO GOOD!  The crunchiness of the pecans against the smoothness of the potatoes made for a perfect bite and the melted brown sugar was delicious.

I will definitely be adding this to my holiday favorites!

Hope you enjoy!
April

Cranberry Pineapple Mini

Cranberry Pineapple Mini
1 can crushed pineapple in juice
2 pkg. (3 ounce) Rasberry Jello
1 16 ounce can of whole berry cranberry sauce
2/3 cup chopped walnuts
1 Apple chopped

Directions:  Drain pineapple, reserving juice. Add enough water to juice to measure 2 1/2 cups, pour into saucepan. bring to boil. Pour over gelatin mixes in large bowl stir 2 minutes until completely dissolved. Stir in pineapple, cranberry sauce, walnuts and apple.Spoon into 24 paper lined muffin cups. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm.

Modifications:
-I used pecans instead of walnuts.

I forgot to take a picture of what you will need but just look at the recipe.

Drain the pineapple juice into a bowl and add enough water to make 2 1/2 cups of liquid.  Put it on to boil.

Open the gelatin packet and pour the hot liquid over it.  Stir until the gelatin completely dissolves.

Add the cranberry, crushed pineapple, diced apple and walnuts.

Pour into muffin cups and refrigerate for 3 hours.

Here's what you'll get:

Our Thoughts:
A few weeks ago I put out a request on Facebook for my friends' favorite holiday dishes.  My friend, Kendra sent this recipe to me.

I didn't think that I would really like this dish because I am not a jello fan at all but, boy, was I wrong!  This dish was great and a huge hit at our Thanksgiving table.

The combination of the pineapple, apple, and nuts gave it the texture that I definitely need.  It was sweet and tart and went perfectly with my cranberry glazed turkey.

I ended up taking all of the little muffin bowls and just putting them in to one bowl so that we could each dip out as much as we wanted.

This is definitely a dish that I will start making year after year.

Hope you enjoy!
April

Roasted Acorn Squash

I got this recipe in my Weight Watchers packet this week and thought they would go great with the veggie-filled burgers.

Roasted Acorn Squash
1 acorn squash
Coarse salt
Chili powder
cooking spray

Directions:  Peel and chop up the squash.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Coat pan with cooking spray.  Sprinkle on salt and chili powder.  Spray the cooking spray on the squash.  Bake for 16-18 minutes.

Here's what you'll need:

Cut off the ends

Peel

Scoop out the seeds

Cut up

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Coat a pan with cooking spray.  Spread out and sprinkle with sale and chili powder and then spray the squash with the cooking spray.

In to the oven for 18-20 minutes.  I had some extra sweet potatoes so I cut them up and put them in, too.

Here's what you'll end up with:

Our Thoughts:

We loved this!  I was really kind of surprised because I wouldn't say that I have typically been a squash kind of girl but it was really good.

The one thing I will say is that it was really, really hard to cut, peel, and cut up this squash-much harder than a sweet potato.  The sweetness came out of the squash after roasting but it still had a firm texture like a potato.  I can't wait to make this again and maybe cut up some onion and apple to roast along with it.  I also can't wait to grill the squash.

I did have some left-over sweet potato so I just added it to the pan and roasted it, too.  It was fabulous!  Scott couldn't get enough of it.

Hope you enjoy!

April

Turkey with Cranberry Glaze

Turkey with Cranberry Glaze
Adapted from Alton Brown, Bobby Flay and Paula Deen
16-18lb turkey
8-10 cups chicken broth
2 onions quartered
1 small bag of baby carrots
4 celery stalks, cut into 1 inch
1 container poultry herbs
1 1/4 stick of unsalted butter, room temperature

Directions:  Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Quarter the onions and cut the celery stalks into 1 inch pieces.  Finely chop the herbs.  Mix the herbs in with the butter.  Pour the chicken stock into a saucepan and warm.

Take package off of turkey.  Reach inside the cavity and take out the neck and the bag.  Rinse turkey.  Pat dry.

Salt and pepper the cavity.  Put 1/2 of the vegetables inside of the turkey.  With your hands, massage the butter mixture all over the turkey.  Try to get under the skin (without cutting holes in the skin).  Put some of the butter mixture inside the cavity.

Put the rest of the vegetables in the bottom of a roasting pan.  Pour half of the chicken stock into the bottom of the roast pan.  Place the turkey breast side down directly into the roasting pan (not on a roasting rack).

Let turkey cook for 30 minutes at 500 degrees.  Baste every 15-20 minutes.  At 30 minutes, turn the oven down to 350 degrees.  Cook for another hour.  Turn the turkey over so that the breast is facing upward.  This will require help!!

Continue to cook 15-16 minutes for every pound of the turkey.  Continue basting every 15-20 minutes.

The turkey will start to brown.  Don't freak out!  This is just trapping the juices in.  Continue to baste. 

I turned the turkey down to 275 after about 4 hours.

Once the turkey is done, pull it out of the oven and let it rest for 15-20 minutes.

Here's what I started with:

Here's how I did it:

#1 Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.  Chop up the vegetables.

#2 Put the chicken broth in a saucepan to warm up.

#3 Finely chop all of the herbs.

#4 Add the herbs to the butter.

#5 Take the turkey out of the packaging.  Pull out the bag that is full of turkey "innards".  Throw away.

#6 Go to the other end of the turkey cavity and pull out the neck.  Throw it away.

#7 Tuck the wings up under.

#8 Place half of the onions, carrots and celery into the turkey cavity.  Salt and pepper the cavity and outside of the turkey.  Grab a big handful of butter and rub it all over the turkey.  Try to stick your hands up under the skin.  Put some butter inside the cavity.  Use all of the mixture.

#9 Place the remaining vegetables and about 3/4 of the chicken stock in the bottom of a roasting pan.  Place the turkey breast side down into the roasting pan.

#10 Place into the oven at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. 

#11 After 30 minutes, turn the oven down to 350 degrees.  Continue basting every 15-20 minutes.

#12 After an hour and a half, turn the turkey over so it is breast side up. 

#13  As the turkey cooks, use your instinct.  If you think it is getting too dark or you are starting to worry, turn the oven down to 300 or 325. 

#14 This is what it looked like after cooking from 9:30-2:30.

Cranberry Glaze

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsps Apple cider vinegar

1 cup cranberry juice

1 bag of cranberries

1/2 cup apple cider

4T of butter

Directions:  Mix all ingredients and warm.  Pour over turkey.

Here's what I started with:

Here's how I did it:

#1 Put the butter in a saucepan and let it melt. 

#2 Add all of the ingredients and let it slowly warm.

The Finished Product:

Finished Product with Cranberry Glaze:

Review:

This is the the 2nd year that I have made this recipe for the turkey and it really turned out great. 

By cooking the turkey on 500 for the first 30 minutes, the skin starts to crisp up.  The herbed butter rub seeps into the skin and helps to brown it, too.

I cook the turkey breast side down for the first hour and a half.  This allow for the breast to really soak up all of those juices, then flip it over.

I just can't say enough about the cranberry glaze.  It is SO good.  Next year, though, I am not going to put the glaze on until after the turkey is sliced up.  Some of the pieces did not get the turkey glaze by me pouring it over before it was sliced but, either way, this turkey was fantastic. 

Hope you enjoy!
April

*****(5 Stars)--This dish was fantastic!