::Jade's Sweet Potato (Yam) Crisp::

Last Thanksgiving, Wayne was still training in Gagetown (where he is now. Again. Sigh.). His buddy, Jason, and his wife, Jade, invited him to their house for Thanksgiving weekend in Halifax. The next day, after the turkey coma had worn off, Wayne called me gushing about the Sweet Potato Crisp Jade had made. On and on he went about it, saying it "tastes like candy," and "certainly cannot contain anything healthy!" Sounded good to me. :) So I promptly emailed Jade, asking for the recipe and I made it again for Wayne at Christmas. It was a hit. A great way to spruce up plain ol' boiled yams at the Thanksgiving table.

Of course, here in Manitoba, I can never seem to find proper yellow-fleshed sweet potatoes (below, right), only "yams," which I have been told many times, are still "sweet potatoes," but they are the large, orange-fleshed version (below, left). And the yams I found were more than 2lbs. each - HUGE!

Tomorrow, I am heading to the Kings' house to partake in their Thanksgiving feast, along with Dora and Heidi, of course. I asked if I could contribute the Sweet Potato Crisp, along with a Pumpkin-Carrot Cake with Brown Sugar Icing from the Kraft magazine. So here is Jade's recipe, complete with photos.

::Jade's Sweet Potato Crisp::

Ingredients: 

250g (one brick) cream cheese*

2 lbs. (approx. 7 med.) sweet potatoes, peeled, cooked, and coarsely mashed**

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Crisp Topping:

1 1/2 cups chopped apple (peeled)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

3 tbsp. flour

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 tsp. round cinnamon (optional)

3 tbsp. butter, chilled and cut

2+ cups Honey Bunches of Oats cereal***

*I use only about 3/4 of this, or it can turn out runny. Adjust according to your preference. PS - Victorian Cream Cheese is SO MUCH BETTER than Philly or no name. So creamy.

**The "yam" in this pic is 2 lbs on its own. I used two that size but didn't double anything else in the recipe.

***I prefer Just Right cereal by Kellogg's, because it's lighter and less dense then Honey Bunches of Oats.

Preheat your over to 350 F.

In the pot in which you boiled and mashed your yammers, use your electric mixer to beat in the cream cheese, brown sugar and cinnamon. I like mine smooth and creamy, so I mixed it well. 

Spoon the yammy goodness into your fanciest oven-safe serving dish, with about a 2L capacity. This scalloped dish was a wedding gift and if it ever breaks, I think I'll cry. 

Smooth it out so it's got an even surface.

Top with chopped apples...

...and Craisins.

In a separate bowl, mix the flour and brown sugar with a fork. I like to add some cinnamon here, too, but that's your choice. It's your crisp, after all.

See how it's mixed in the corner of this photo? Then add your butter. Isn't my butter dish pretty?

Possibly one of my favourite pieces of kitchenware, is my butter dish. (Yes, this photo is a gratuitous one to show it off.) It belonged to my grandma, whom I never met. But I like to keep her in the kitchen with me in the form of her butter dish. 

Add the butter and mix with the fork until it resembles coarse crumbs.

Um, my butter was room temp so it looks a little more mushy than it should.

Remember: Do as I say, not as I do...

Use cold butter.

Add the cereal and feel free to use your (clean) hands to coat the cereal with the butter/flour/sugar/(cinnamon) mixture. 

Sprinkle over top of the fruit mixture in your fancy dish.

Stand back and admire your work.

Pop it in the oven for 35 or 40 minutes until it's heated through. The cereal should be a toasty golden brown. 

Serve immediately or keep chilled until tomorrow's dinner. You'll need to reheat it in the oven again. But if your oven is otherwise occupied with a turkey, I'm sure a nuke in the microwave wouldn't hurt. 

Enjoy!