Sweet Potatoes Two Ways: A Thanksgiving Two-For-One!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope all of you had wonderful days with your families and friends. We sure did, but I am absolutely exhausted tonight. It's a good exhausted, though.

I have two delicious sweet potato recipes to share with you today, and while it's obviously too late to include them in your Thanksgiving spreads, they'd both be great for Christmas too. First up is a recipe that's new for me this year: sweet potato pie.

This was my first time making a sweet potato pie, and I was surprised by how much the end result tasted like pumpkin pie. It's spiced the same way and hits the same sweet, earthy notes as pumpkin pie. It was so easy to make because everything gets mixed up in the food processor. Don't skip the streusel, either; it makes this pie really special and extra-delicious. I can't wait to have the leftovers for breakfast tomorrow morning! (Yes. Pie for breakfast. I think the day after Thanksgiving is the only day one can get away with this, so I take full advantage.)

Sweet Potato Pie with Streusel Topping
source: Cooking Club of America

For the pie:
Dough for 1 (9-inch) pie crust
1 17.2-ounce can sweet potatoes
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the streusel:
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 cup chopped pecans

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line 9-inch pie pan with dough; flute edges. Pulse sweet potatoes in food processor or blender until smooth. Add all remaining pie ingredients; process until blended. Pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, combine brown sugar and flour in small bowl. Stir in butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in pecans.

3. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees; sprinkle pie with streusel. Cover crust with foil to prevent over-browning. Bake 40 minutes or until puffed and knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire rack. Store in refrigerator.

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Next up is a recipe of my mom's that she used to make every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas: sweet potato casserole.

Everyone has their own version of this, I think, many of which use marshmallows in the topping. Since I'm not a huge fan of marshmallows, I love my mom's version, which is topped with streusel instead. It's so incredibly good, and whenever I take it to any type of family dinner I never come home with leftovers. This is easily prepared the night before. If you're a sweet potato fan, this casserole is a must-try!

Mom's Sweet Potato Casserole

3 cups cold mashed sweet potatoes, prepared without milk or butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons cold butter or margarine

1. In a mixing bowl or food processor, beat sweet potatoes, sugar, milk, butter, eggs, salt and vanilla until smooth. Transfer to a greased 2-quart baking dish.

2. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, pecans and flour; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over potato mixture.

3. Bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 45 minutes.

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Believe it or not, today's post is my 300th here on this little blog. I hope you've enjoyed reading about the food I've made as much as I've enjoyed preparing it and sharing it with you. To celebrate, I'll be doing my first ever give-away here tomorrow, so be sure to check back. I think it's something most of you will really like -- and it's just in time for Christmas, too!