Sweet Potato Fluff

Sweet Potato Fluff  is another Thanksgiving tradition passed down by Grandma Timm(Timmons). All of her children expected this, and slick dumplings, whenever she came for Thanksgiving dinner. She arrived with her apron on ready to roll!  This delectable side dish continues on in her absence on her children and grand-children’s tables. She had shared with me her version of this recipe and I’ve altered it ever so slightly here. You can use canned sweet potatoes like she did, but when there is an abundance of local red sweet potatoes at your produce market, you should definitely use those!

Sweet potatoes are baked in a 350 degree oven on a non-stick  foil-lined tray. It took a little over an hour for a knife to slip easily into the thickest part of the potato. Allow them to cool before handling.  I used a little over three pounds here which yielded 4 packed cups. This could actually be done prior to the big feast day to save yourself some time. Keep them chilled in refrigerator until ready to use.

Sprinkle sugar over the potatoes. Into the half and half, whisk in the egg, vanilla and spices. Combine into the potatoes using a wooden spoon at first. Then, whip them a couple of minutes to “fluff” them up a bit using a hand mixer.

Spoon the mixture into a casserole dish sprayed with non-stick spray for an easier clean up.  An 11″x 7″  dish provided more surface area on the top which equates with more marshmallows on top. There’s never enough marshmallows, according to my boys.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and place marshmallows on top. My kids prefer the big marshmallows as opposed to the small ones, but either will work fine. They just like a large chunk of them with a mouthful of the Sweet Potato Fluff.

Place the pan back in the oven for about 5 minutes or until marshmallows are lightly toasted. Whoops! Obviously, I  placed a few too close to the pan’s edge so next time, I’ll try to correct that mistake. Who cares though, right? What matters is what is placed in your mouth. Taste a heaven of sweetness in just one bite!

Now, my grandmother never made this, but the memories from her table so long ago linger in my mind as well as on my taste buds! She has been an amazing inspiration to my own love of cooking for family. To honor the generations of cooks who have enlightened me, I plated the Sweet Potato Fluff from my children’s paternal great-grandmother on a piece of  my paternal grandmother’s china. Make this part of your family’s Thanksgiving tradition!