Sweet Potato Pudding

Against my better judgment, I used the oven tonight and, as expected, it heated up the whole apartment. But, I have to say it was entirely worth it for this lovely little dessert. Last trip I made to the store, I picked up some sweet potatoes and was surprised to find three distinct varieties in addition to a pile of "yams". 

These "yams" looked like the sweet potatoes I always ate as a kid, so I picked them up and they were exactly what I wanted. It got me to thinking, what exactly is a yam? Is it a sweet potato? Or perhaps the other way around? Turns out, that no, yams and sweet potatoes are not the same. Who knew?

They're not in the same family, and there isn't even a species of yam native to the US. Most grocery stores sell "yams" that are really sweet potatoes, real yams are generally only found in international markets. In the US, the term "yam" came into use for sweet potatoes from slaves, because it was similar to the actual yam they knew in Africa. Vernacular can be a trickster like that.

Forgive my linguistic indulgence, I find that sort of thing fascinating- but now back to the pudding. While doing my sweet potato vs. yam research, I came across a fabulous sounding recipe on this site that discusses the differences and includes a few recipes.

Sweet Potato Pudding
Adapted from Tennessee Old Maid’s Sweet Potato Pudding from Classic Home Desserts

What You'll Need:
1/2 stick butter, room temp
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
2 1/2 cups grated raw peeled sweet potato (about two medium potatoes)
1 1/2 cup milk

The Process:
Preheat your oven to 350°. Grate your potatoes either coarsely or finely. I prefer finely. Cream together the butter and sugars. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove and mix well. Beat in the eggs and milk. Lastly, add the grated sweet potato and mix thoroughly. The liquid may look a little grainy, but don't worry, it'll meld in the oven. Pour into 4 small individual oven safe bowls and bake for 30 minutes, until bubbly around the edges.

Let it cool a bit, then chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Serve as is, or with whipped cream on the top (my preferred method). Marshmallows on top just before you bake it would be tasty, too. You could also pour it into one large baking dish, but I prefer individual bowls (Hubs isn't a good sharer).

Enjoy!