Sweet Potato Pudding

Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray, for spraying the baking dish

2 1/2 pounds medium sweet potatoes (about 3), poked with a fork 

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature 

2 large eggs 

1 cup sugar 

1/2 cup milk 

1 tablespoon self-rising cornmeal 

1/4 teaspoon salt 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1 cup pecan halves 

1/2 cup packed brown sugar 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

On a foil-covered baking sheet, bake the sweet potatoes until soft, about 1 hour. Remove and let cool. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. When cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes, place the flesh in a large mixing bowl, add the butter and mash until smooth. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the sugar, milk, cornmeal, salt and 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla and beat until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Arrange the pecan halves on top of the pudding and top with the brown sugar. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla by small droplets over the brown sugar. Bake until the top is browned, about 45 minutes.

Sweet potato Halwa

ingredients

• 2 medium to large sweet potatoes (shakarkandi)
• 4 tablespoon sugar or as required, depends on the sweetness of the sweet potatoes
• 7 to 8 tablespoon oil or ghee
• 3 to 4 green cardamoms, crushed or powdered Or ½ teaspoon cardamom powder (choti elaichi powder)
• 1 pinch saffron (kesar)
• 10 to 12 cashews halved or chopped or kept whole (kaju)

HOW TO MAKE SWEET POTATO HALWA

• boil the sweet potatoes (shakarkandi) first.
• when they become warm, peel and mash them.
• heat oil or ghee in a kadai or pan.
• first fry the cashews.
• remove when they become golden and keep aside.
• in the same oil, add the mashed sweet potatoes.
• stir well and saute for 3-4 mins.
• add sugar and saute for 4-5 mins.
• now add crushed cardamom and stir
• add saffron and stir.
• keep on stirring and cooking the halwa till oil or ghee starts to leave the sides of halwa. this will take approx 10-12 minutes on a low to medium flame.
• lastly add the fried cashew nuts and stir again.
• serve sweet potato halwa hot, warm or cold.

NOTES

i have used oil in making the halwa, however you can use ghee too. 

SWEET POTATO PUDDING (SHAKARQAND KHEER)

Indian Sweet Potato Pudding is a rich and fragrant dessert made with sweet potatoes, whole milk, sugar, cardamom, saffron, nuts and kewra water. Food for the soul!

• 30 minutesCook Time:2 hoursTotal Time:2 hours 30 minutes

ingredients

• 2 long sweet potatoes
• 1.8 litres whole milk
• 200 gms sugar
• 1/2 tsp green cardamom powder
• 10–12 skinless, slivered almonds
• 5–8 slivered pistachios
• 4–5 strands saffron (plus a few for garnishing)
• 1 teaspoon kewra water

instructions

1. Boil the sweet potatoes until they are soft just as you would potatoes. Remove the skins and mash them fine.
2. Add the sweet potato mash to cold milk in a deep, heavy-bottomed pan and bring to a boil. Stir continuously as it gets heated to prevent the sweet potato from sticking to the bottom of the pan. (disaster!)
3. Reduce heat and cook the milk till it reduces in quantity to about half. The measure of doneness is when the milk has thickened considerably and the colour has changed to a golden yellow (1.5 to 2 hours). Keep stirring the mixture every few minutes.
4. Add the sugar, cardamom powder and saffron strands and cook for another 10 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat and mix in the kewra water.
6. Take out the kheer in a dish and garnish with slivered pistachios, almonds and more saffron if you wish. Serve cold.

notes

1. If you want to make sure the kheer is smooth and lump-free, puree the boiled sweet potatoes in a blender along with some milk till you get a puree. Then, add this puree to the pan of milk.

Kewra water is an extract from pandanus flowers. A clear, fragrant liquid, it is very similar to rose water, and is used for flavouring desserts and biryanis in North Indian cuisine. It is readily available in Indian grocery stores.