Digs' Famous Mashed Sweet Potatoes
This recipe has some unexpected twists that give it a signature flavour - and keeps people coming back for thirds.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs sweet potatoes
- 3-5 tbsp butter or Earth Balance
- 2-3 tbsp non-dairy yogurt
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp vanilla extract
- salt
Instructions
- Peel the yams, cut them into similar sized 1”-2” pieces and place them in a pot of cold salted water.
- Bring the water to a boil and cook for 20-35 minutes or until fork-tender.
- Drain and let steam evaporate for at least 5 minutes.
- Purée in blender until smooth, in 2-4 batches, depending on the size of your blender. Add cream, butter, and cinnamon to each batch, enough to achieve a creamy consistency – this will depend on which type of yam you use and how starchy they are. Make sure to wear oven gloves to guard your hands against the hot steam that will come out of the yams as they’re puréed.
- Once the batches are finished, add additional butter or cream as needed to even out consistency. Be careful not to add too much cream, or you’ll end up with a soupy texture.
Notes
Digs says: "One of the dishes my friends and family always ask me to make over the holidays is my mashed yams. I’m sort of known for them, and everyone likes joking about how I must have named my store The Sweet Potato because I make such good sweet potatoes (which is mostly true).
The basic recipe has been around for years, but my variation has some unexpected twists that give it a signature flavour that keeps people coming back for thirds. I’ve never brought it to a holiday party and had there be leftovers. Ever. Even after I started doubling the recipe.
The trick, as a friend once pointed out, is that they’re not actually ‘mashed’, per say, so much as they’re puréed. When they’re just right, their consistency is like a cross between traditional mashed potatoes and a silky custard. The buttery flavour should be there, but just under the surface, as should the cinnamon, and you only need to use just enough brown sugar to enhance the sweetness ever so slightly. Also, I prefer to use brown sugar to the more traditional maple syrup, though a mix of the two can also be really nice."