Spiced sweet potatoes with toasted pecans

Don't even get me started on the evils of green bean casserole

Every Easter and Thanksgiving, grocery stores conspire to ruin sweet potatoes. Beside the crates of yams or sweet potatoes, take your pick, yes I know there’s a difference but that’s for someone else to wax poetic about, are giant mounds of marshmallow bags. It’s an abomination. It sullies a perfectly good, naturally sweet vegetable. Here’s an alternative my wife and I found years ago. We’re guessing it was originally in a Bon Appetit Thanksgiving edition, but it’s been so long we couldn’t say for sure. Not to mention by now it has been adjusted to our tastes. We promised Samina over at Samina Cooks this recipe awhile ago when she wrote about mashed sweet potatoes, so without further ado and sans marshmallows here it is.

Spiced sweet potatoes

• 3 sweet potatoes
• 1 tbsp water
• 3/4 tsp corn starch
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 3 tbsp butter
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cardamom
• 1/2 cup (or more) roughly chopped pecans, toasted (about 15 minutes at 350 will do it)

Peel sweet potatoes and boil until somewhat tender. They should have a little resistance when you stick a knife in. Cool and cut into 1/2 slices and arrange all pretty like in a 9-inch by 13-inch pan. Mix water and cornstarch until smooth. Heat sugar and butter over low heat until smooth. Stir in lemon zest, then spices. Mix in cornstarch mix. Pour syrup over potatoes and sprinkle with nuts. Cover with foil and refrigerate for up to a day. Or bake right away at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. Uncover and stir. Cook for 10 more minutes.