With Thanksgiving less than a week away, I was wondering if anyone has a favorite dish or recipe that is on the must-have list every year? For me, it's Bourbon Yams. My BFF's & I have been getting together to make these on the Monday before Thanksgiving for as far back as I can remember.
Bourbon Yams ~
4 yams
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup bourbon
1/3 cup raisins (optional)
Marshmallows on top (optional)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Scrub yams & bake until tender, about 40 minutes depending on size. Peel and mash into bowl. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well. Turn into greased casserole dish and bake until heated through. Makes 4 servings.
We always run the yams through a Foley Food Mill. Definitely extra work but worth it in the end. And since these have become the family fav on both sides of the family, I'm usually required to make no less than 238 servings.
A _________________ "It has been a magnificent journey..." ~ Linda Dano, 1999 Daytime Emmys
Running them thru the mill or processor prolly makes a big
difference in the texture, so I'll try it that way.
Yams have always been a Thanksgiving tradition with us too.
Your yummy recipe made me wonder if there really is a difference
between yams & sweet potatoes.
Here's what I found:
Quote:
What is the difference between sweet potatoes and yams?
Although yams and sweet potatoes are both angiosperms
(flowering plants), they are not related botanically.
Yams are a monocot (a plant having one embryonic seed leaf)
and from the Dioscoreaceae or Yam family.
Sweet Potatoes, often called ‘yams’, are a dicot
(a plant having two embryonic seed leaves)
and are from the Convolvulacea or morning glory family.
Yams
Yams are closely related to lilies and grasses.
Native to Africa and Asia, yams vary in size from
that of a small potato to a record 130 pounds (as of 1999).
There are over 600 varieties of yams and
95% of these crops are grown in Africa.
Compared to sweet potatoes, yams are starchier and drier.
Sweet Potatoes
The many varieties of sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas)
are members of the morning glory family,
Convolvulacea. The skin color can range from white to yellow,
red, purple or brown. The flesh also ranges in color from
white to yellow, orange, or orange-red.
Sweet potato varieties are classified as either ‘firm’ or ‘soft’.
When cooked, those in the ‘firm’ category remain firm,
while ‘soft’ varieties become soft and moist.
It is the ‘soft’ varieties that are often labeled as yams in the United States.
Why the confusion?
In the United States, firm varieties of sweet potatoes
were produced before soft varieties.
When soft varieties were first grown commercially,
there was a need to differentiate between the two.
African slaves had already been calling the
‘soft’ sweet potatoes ‘yams’ because they resembled
the yams in Africa. Thus, ‘soft’ sweet potatoes were referred to
as ‘yams’ to distinguish them from the ‘firm’ varieties.
Today the U.S. Department of Agriculture requires labels
with the term ‘yam’ to be accompanied by the term
‘sweet potato.’ Unless you specifically search for yams,
which are usually found in an international market,
you are probably eating sweet potatoes!
I cannot wait to try the Bourbonized version this year!
Thanks NettieGurl.
Yup ~ dat's the contraption! Sue will have to bring that with her when we make them here on Monday cuz I don't have one.
Quote:
Running them thru the mill or processor prolly makes a big
difference in the texture, so I'll try it that way.
TEXTURE! That's the point I was trying to make when I mentioned the *mill* but it was late and my brain was kinda going to sleep. Definitely run it thru the mill or processor cuz I think you will prefer the texture.
As for bourbon, I've always used Jim Beam cuz that's what I always have on hand and I have not heard a complaint yet. Jackie likes to throw Southern Comfort in hers and it has also received raves.
Unless you really like raisins or marshmallows, I would leave those two out.
I can't wait to hear what you think about them!!!
A
_________________ "It has been a magnificent journey..." ~ Linda Dano, 1999 Daytime Emmys
I don't have the recipe, but my mom's whipped sweet potatoes, baked with a brown sugar and marshmallow crust.
And in the nostalgia department, my grandma made the best homemade yeast rolls. No milk or dairy in them because of my allergy. She always made them at Thanksgiving and Christmas. They were so good, I never even put jelly or jam on them. I'd eat four of those plain in one sitting. She was, among so many other things, an awesome cook!
By popular request from my immediate family, I always make a Turkey Tetrazzini casserole. And I love leftovers, so I make a lot of it!
Here's the recipe, which I always double:
Turkey Tetrazzini Casserole
2 cups cooked turkey, white and/or dark meat, Julienne style one-half stick butter one-half pound thin spaghetti one-half cup parmesan cheese
SAUCE: 3 T. butter 3 T. all-purpose flour 2 cups turkey broth 1 cup half-and-half 3 T. cooking sherry 1 tsp. salt one-fourth tsp. Cayenne pepper
Melt the butter in a saucepan. To this, add the turkey and saute lightly. Set aside and keep warm. Boil the spaghetti in salted water according to package directions and drain. To make the sauce, place butter in a saucepan and melt. Add the flour and blend for a minute. Add the broth and cream and blend to a smooth consistency. Add salt, pepper and sherry. Divide sauce in two. Mix half of the sauce with the turkey, and the other half with the spaghetti. Place spaghetti in a well-buttered casserole dish, leaving a hole in the center. Fill this cavity with the turkey mixture. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and set in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Enjoy! _________________ WWWD? (What would Wallingford do?)
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup pumpkin
1 tsp lemon juice
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
Filling (recipe follows)
Filling: Beat together 1 pkg (8 0z) soft cream cheese and 4 tbsp butter or margarine. Stir in 1 cup powdered sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, blending until smooth.
1. In large bowl, combine eggs and sugar, beating well. Add pumpkin and lemon juice, mixing until blended;
2. In separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Add to egg mixture, mixing well. Spread batter into greased and waxed-paper lined 10-by-15-inch jelly-roll pan;
3. Bake at 375 for 15 min. Remove from oven. Cool for 15 min. Place cake on clean tea towel. Cool 10 min. longer. From 10-inch side, roll cake up in towel. Set aside;
4. Meanwhile, prepare filling. Unroll cake. Evenly spread filling over cake. Roll up cake (discard towel). Wrap in plastic wrap. Cover and chill at least 1 hr. Slice before serving. Keep leftover slices (if any) refrigerated.
Just a little personal note from experience ~ I find if you put a little Pam or some other non-stick stuff on yer hands, it makes rolling a whole lot easier.
I'm off to go make the pumpkin roll myself!
A _________________ "It has been a magnificent journey..." ~ Linda Dano, 1999 Daytime Emmys
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