Purée of Roast Sweet Potatoes

From the book The Basic Gourmet Entertains by Diane Morgan, Dan Taggart, and Kathleen Taggart

Serves

Introduction

You won’t find nuts, marshmallows, honey, or syrup in this dish! Sweet potatoes have a subtle sweetness and need only butter and a bit of salt to brighten and balance their flavor. This purée is easiest to make using a food processor and can be prepared a day or two ahead. For a richer purée, you can substitute milk or half-and-half for the water.

Ingredients

	6	lb. sweet potatoes
	4	oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut in tablespoon pieces
	~	About 3½ cups hot water
	1	tsp. salt
	~	Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
	½	cup chopped fresh parsley

Steps

Preheat oven to 450°F. Bake sweet potatoes directly on center oven rack until a fork can be inserted in them without resistance, 40 to 70 minutes, depending on size. Cool until you can handle them safely. Cut potatoes crosswise into 2-inch sections, remove peel with a paring knife, and place sections in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. (You will need to process potatoes in batches unless you have the very largest processor.) Add butter and half the water. Process until potatoes are a smooth consistency with few lumps. Add more water as necessary to thin purée to desired consistency. Add salt and a few grinds of pepper. Taste for seasoning. Transfer to a 2-quart serving bowl and garnish with parsley.

This content is from the book The Basic Gourmet Entertains by Diane Morgan, Dan Taggart, and Kathleen Taggart.