Sweet potato casserole
This is my first time making this casserole. Actually, it's about half sweet potato and half yam because I didn't have enough sweet potato. Until this Thanksgiving, I always found this casserole reprehensible as a side dish, what with it being so sweet - more appropriate for the dessert table - and the marshmallows.
I don't know why but I broke down this year. Maybe it was because of the health benefits of sweet potato. Maybe it was experiencing how delicious it was when I had it along with regular mashed potatoes during Thanksgiving in New Orleans. Maybe it was because this is the first time I was spending the holiday at home instead of a different American city over the past several years. I really wanted to cook a very traditional American Thanksgiving this year, and practically every American table has a version of this. But above all the recipe is extremely easy.
5 medium sweet potatoes and/or yams
Half stick of sweet cream butter
1/4 cup of good maple syrup (less or more to taste)
Several gratings of fresh nutmeg
25 regular sized commercially made marshmallows (unless you're super fancy and want to use homemade ones, or alternatively, top with homemade meringue)
Peel your potatoes and cut into about 2 inch pieces. Boil until fork tender. Heat half a stick of butter in a pan until the milk solids turn brown and nutty. Pour into potatoes and start mashing with a fork. Add the maple syrup and grate as much fresh nutmeg as you like. My nutmeg was quite old (I bought a large container years ago at Costco but the opportunity to use it didn't arise as much) so I had to grate more to get the flavor, about half a tsp which is actually quite a lot for the dish.
After the potatoes have been thoroughly mashed and the ingredients combined, I put it into an 8x8 glass baking dish but use whatever you have. I started to put marshmallows only on the edges, then decided to dot the whole thing. It's really up to you. Bake in a 350 degree oven until the marshmallows puff up and turn a toasty light brown. Careful not to let them burn.