Southern Smashed Sweet Potatoes – A Holiday Must
This smashed sweet potatoes recipe is perfect for the holidays. It also is a great way to share the southern food heritage that I love.
I write mostly from a sustainable-living perspective, but I also think a lot about my southern roots. In sharing my recipes, I want to share that part of me and my cooking with you, too.
My family and I do our best to live sustainably and self sufficiently (and we are learning more every day), but our lives are every bit as southern as they are sustainable. In fact, I probably wouldn’t have such a love for food had I not grown up in the South.
More than any other vegetable, sweet potatoes say “southern cooking” to me. The South has the perfect temperature for growing these beautiful and healthy root vegetables. Maybe that’s why I cannot remember a holiday that sweet potatoes were not served in a variety of ways.
One of the Southerner’s favorite preparations is to boil and whip the potatoes with some butter and a little sugar and then to mound small marshmallows on top and roast them.
For me, I like simple, elegant southern foods that I call honest or real. I like to eat them with a little seasoning, but I also really want to taste the vegetables and the meats that I prepare. I don’t want anything to overpower the true flavors from the simple beautiful victuals, especially that of the sweet potato.
Last spring Bonnie Plants supplied us with a ton of sweet potatoes to plant. They have grown like weeds, and we are reaping a plentiful harvest. I have so many plans for these sweet potatoes!
We have already made Healthier Crunchier Sweet Potato “Baked” Fries, Cinnamon Sweet Potato Fries, Sweet Potato Soup with Bacon (yummy), Sweet Potato Bread and Sweet Potato Bread Pudding. I also love entertaining with a simple Southern Pan Fried or Quail over Sweet Potato Recipe!
For the holidays I will be making these simple, delicious southern smashed sweet potatoes.
Sweet potatoes are naturally healthy, so I never feel guilty when eating my sweet potato cheesecake. (Did I tell you cheesecake is my favorite food group? Everything cheesecake.) Well, to get back on point, sweet potatoes contain three times more fiber than white potatoes, and they are rich in vitamins and minerals, too: B6, A, C, beta carotene and manganese. These nutrients contribute to a glowing complexion and vibrant, healthy hair. I am going to make sure to eat these nutrients daily, for I want all I can get of those benefits!
If you like this recipe, I know you will like my other recipes in Stacy Lyn’s Harvest Cookbook!
This recipe is fantastic for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Southern Smashed Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 pounds sweet potatoes peeled and cut into chunks
- 4 tablespoons 1/2 stick butter
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place potatoes in large pot and add water to just cover them. Set heat to high and boil potatoes until tender, and then drain.
- Place potatoes back into the pot and fold in butter and sugar until dissolved. Blend in spices with a hand mixer until well incorporated and potatoes are smooth. Serve hot with extra butter!
For a more robust dish, baking the potatoes is a much better option. You don’t pour any of the flavor down the drain with the water.
I do think that if you have time to bake them, they are fantastic that way!! Great suggestion. Thanks for commenting.
Great article! My brother turned us on to cutting the raw sweet potatoes into 3/4″ to 1″ cubes and then steaming them in a regular steamer basket on the cooktop, or, in a steam oven. It’s such an easy and painless way to prepare them. And, leftovers are a cinch with the little cubes. Just mash / smash them or eat them as cubes!
I love that! Sweet potatoes are so very versatile. I will be frying them tomorrow for a TV show and it couldn’t be easier. They are going to serve as a bed for venison steaks!! I will post the recipe asap!
i just cooked them stacey. they are very good . extra pepper
Thanks William!!! The are so easy to make.
Another recipe I used of Stacy Lyn this Thanksgiving. I’ve made a candied sweet potatoes in past years… they were good, but I thought too sweet. This year I made Stacy Lyn’s Southern Smashed Sweet Potatoes and this was perfect. It was sweet, but not too sweet… went well as a side dish for Thanksgiving. This is a keeper recipe for sure!
Thank you a million times over. I am so glad you enjoyed it John!