From The Oven: The Great Sweet Potato Calamity (and my Sweet Potato Soufflé (Super Southern Style))

I feel delinquent... I meant to get this posted around Canadian Thanksgiving for my friend K, who asked for it after I posted about it on Facebook, and then it just got away from me.
Well, now it's American Thanksgiving, and I've got my writing-groove going, so here we go.

First, a little background about why this Canadian girl loves a Southern dish like Sweet Potato Soufflé, and the great Calamity story.
I lived in Atlanta for four very formative years (grades 7-10) and while some of that time was not ideal (namely, 7th grade, most of which I have literally blocked out and do not remember at all), some of it was supremely excellent.  I have some wonderful friends to this day from high school, and I also experienced some idyllic teenage American life.  Friday night football games, sleep overs, hanging around at the mall, charity car washes.  It was awesome.

I also had a step-grandmother, Louise, who was (since I have 0 contact with anyone from my ex-step-father's family... but if you're out there, I'd love to hear from you!) a wonderful Southern cook.  She doted on me, and I loved it.
She would *literally* bake a cake because she knew I was coming over!

One Thanksgiving (could've been a Christmas, but this feels like a Thanksgiving story), she had the sweet potato soufflé, covered in marshmallows of course, baking in the oven.
My step-father, who was a bit accident prone, was the one to take it out.

I don't know what happened next exactly, but all I saw was a slo-mo of the casserole dish falling to the floor.... the orange and white contents flowing UP in a GIANT wave.... and then splashing down against the floor next to the wood paneled wall, causing a ricochet effect and further traveling of the wave... ooooohhhhhh....

It was GLORIOUS in its disastrousness. It was historic. The Calamity lives on in the annual telling of the story (between me and my mother), who witnessed it as well.
There is laughter until there are tears, usually. 

The only orange wave I could find. Ah...the days before cell phone cams! It was just like this, but with more wood paneling and less sunny beach

Ok, so, with that in mind (!) let me tell you how I now make my sweet potatoes for holidays.  This is sort of a ratio thing, and I don't think you can get it wrong.  Just don't over-bake the marshmallows, or they disappear, and I become sad.

Ingredients:

4-6 sweet potatoes (nothing fancy, not purple or anything, just the regular ones)
2-3 eggs
1 stick of butter, softened (or margarine, or leave it out if you don't like delicious things)
1/2c heavy cream (depends on how many potatoes you are using, what texture you like, etc), or 1/2 and 1/2, or evaporated milk, or regular milk. But really, cream.
1/2c. brown sugar, and white sugar (or splenda) to taste
pinch of salt
1-2tsp of combined cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger-- or use pre-mixed pumpkin pie spice, but then it will taste a lot like your pie, no?
1 bag of mini marshmallows (which are traditional, but big ones cut in half work fine too)
BIG casserole dish (1.5 to 2qts?) and butter or non-stick spray

Directions:

Heat oven to 350
While that is happening, wash the potatoes well, and poke them all over with a fork, and then you can microwave them until they are very soft.  I'd say at least 20 minutes.
You can boil them and peel them if you like, or you can peel them and boil them (which is harder), but you'll lose nutrients to the water.

Once they are soft and cool enough to handle but still warm, peel the sweet potatoes and dump them in a big bowl. Don't leave too much behind on the skins, scrape if need be.
Mash them up with a potato masher.

Now you can keep going with the masher, or switch to a handheld mixer, or a whisk.
Mix in the soft butter, and the eggs, and mix well.
Should be thick. Now mix in your dairy of choice, a little at a time, until you get to the texture you like.  You are going for a loose mash, but NOT a pie filling.  Get it to where you like it.
Add the pinch of salt, and the brown sugar, and give it a taste for sweetness. Add more brown or white sugar (or splenda, of course) to your taste.
Add the spices-- start with 1tsp of cinnamon and shake in the others if you like them, and taste.

Ok, now the mash is where you like it, yes? Don't eat it all yet. It's better baked.

Grease (with butter, or non-stick spray) your casserole dish, and pour in the mash. Smooth it out. There should be room between the top of the mash and the top of the casserole, to help hold the marshmallows on.
Cover with aluminum, and bake the casserole for about 30-40 minutes at 350 (could be 375 if your oven is set higher for something else).  At this point, you can remove them and wait until closer to dinner, or keep going.

Now, remove the aluminum (did I really need to say that? You're probably stressed out with family coming and everything, so, yes, I did. You're welcome).
Top with mini marshmallows. Don't be shy. We're not talking 1 layer here. Dump them on there and spread them out.  They should sit somewhat above the top of the rim of the casserole dish.
Bake about 10 more minutes, until the marshmallows are puffy and golden, but not over cooked because then they disappear and become a sticky glaze. Not what you want.

I used big marshmallows, and I'm ok with that.

Put out on the table to ooohs and aaaaahs, and enjoy.  I like it warm, and then I really like it cold all the rest of the week!

Kitchen Reno 2013: Day 11 - O, the DRAMA!

I'm so spiritually exhausted today. Total emotional rollercoaster.  Let me share with you...

I started the day by sitting BOLT UPRIGHT in bed at 7:29am, immediately noticing that my hubby had NOT woken me up (as previously agreed upon, EVERY NIGHT OF THE RENO)... the dog was upstairs, the baby gate in place, but my work had yet to be done.

Every morning, I run around the house making things ready for the guys. 
First, I roll up Haka's 2 carpets (he lies on one near the air vent in front of the front door, and the other is near his bed so he doesn't "bambi" if he gets up quickly).
Then, I move his bed to the basement.  This is his bed:

No small feat.

Then I put away his dog bowls that are downstairs (from his 5pm and 10pm meals).
Then I move my car onto the street, so the guys can make full use of the driveway.
Then I run back upstairs and give Haka his morning cookies, including his *stress ease* cookies, so he won't pace and freak out all day with the guys coming and going downstairs.

Soooo... today, I got all this done by 7:46am, when the first of the crew arrived.

Adam and Andrew, and shortly after, Jamie the Painter, arrived to, I had hoped, paint.

Nay nay, said the gods of Renovation.  You silly human.  You thought you'd be DONE this week? You spoke of Friday, when today is only Monday?
Bwahahahahahahaha... we will throw you many curve-balls and emotional lightning bolts, and put you in your place!

Um, so, ya.  They couldn't paint b/c there wasn't enough prep work done previously... So they spent the morning sanding the ceiling and other patched places, and using much caulk around the crown molding, and other tricks of the trade to make all the seams and nail holes disappear.

Side note: in my head, and online with my friend David, and with my hubby, many juvenile *caulk* jokes were made.  I won't subject you to them here, but just know that I am not even remotely above "going there" and I snickered many times.

Adam made a big hole in the coat closet wall, trying to create enough support for our new floating shelves that go on the wall above the peninsula.
He got it done, now we just need for that patch to dry and get mudded some more, sanded some more.... more dust please! Thank you sir, may I have another?

Jamie did manage to get a coat of paint on the crown molding in the dining room, and then the caulk was dry enough (snicker) to put a 2nd coat of green on the dining room.  Just a couple small patches left to do in there, and we will call the dining room done.
But it's not yet.

Meanwhile... is that BURNING I smell?
I ran downstairs in the early afternoon, and lo and behold, the plumber was here.
I'd been advised that he would be old and Polish (that's a quote... not sure what I imagined, but someone like my grandfather came to mind).  Instead, I got Scott, who looks like what you'd see if Hugh Jackman got skinny, had his goatee, and longish hair.  Very nice guy, easy to work with, and answered my questions, didn't make me feel like an idiot...

Anyway-- he was installing the Kohler magic faucet when I came downstairs, and then he called me when it was time to do the dishwasher.

You remember, the dishwasher? that leaked? and caused the floor damage, that required the floors to be ripped up... that led to the renovation? THAT dishwasher?

Well, seems that the intake valve might not have been the only culprit in that leak.  Scott couldn't install the machine because the outflow hose, the big white one that is sort of like an accordion?
Imagine if that had been eaten by moths... ya. UGH.
That was the skeletal remains I saw, and I immediately realized, THE RENOVATION GODS ARE SPEAKING TO ME and they are saying-- go buy a new dishwasher.

So I begged Scott not to leave (and he went and replaced the refrigerator water hose instead) and I zoooooomed to the nearest appliance store, ran in, bought a floor model (Samsung), wheedled a bit of a discount on top of the floor model price, and got the 2 guys to load it into my car.
Maybe 20 minutes total.
Zoooooomed back home, and Scott and Jamie unloaded it, and installed it.

And then, buyers' remorse sunk in.  My model does not have the best reviews online.  Some are stellar, but many are not.  Luckily, none of the issues involve water leakage.
Actually, funnily enough, this model has a leak sensor.
Irony.

So, happiness turns to fretting as I read more and more reviews.  To shorten the story, hubby and I decide to keep it for now (I have 30 days to return it, and after that, I actually have a 5 year warranty, that includes replacement of the unit if it has to be fixed more than 3 times).
I read the user guide front to back, and I feel confident I know how to load it so that the dishes will get clean.
Fingers crossed.

So, I'm back at ground level of my rollercoaster.  Tonight, I have filtered water from my fridge door, and ice too.  I'm washing the dogs bowls in the dishwasher.

And to top it all off-- I have the worlds smartest faucet. 
Well, as long as it's plugged in. 
Without power, it's just cool to look at.

Here's the video for you-- and it works just like this. But mine's stainless, not shiny:

 

I'll have pics for you tomorrow, I promise :)