Whiskey & Maple Glazed Sweet Potatoes -

We’re just days away from the most gluttonous day of the year. My pantry is locked, stocked and ready for the big day.

For the first time in forever, I have Thanksgiving off. I can’t go anywhere, though, since I’ll more than likely have to work the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The biggest day for college football in Oklahoma is that day: Bedlam. It’s on our channel, so we’ll be going all out since it’s a ratings boon.

Instead, Rob and I and a coworker will have a little Thanksgiving dinner all for ourselves. I bought a 3 pound Turkey breast, some boxed stuffing (sorry, foodies), potatoes, stuff for green bean casserole, and a can of jellied cranberry sauce. I’m not even making a dessert; we’re baking a frozen apple pie.

One of my favorite Thanksgiving side dishes will be notably absent from the table: sweet potatoes. I don’t have time to make the stuff, and even if I did, they wouldn’t be as good as the sweet potatoes my mom makes. She gets these delicious pre-sliced potatoes and smothers them in brown sugar and marshmallows. They’re divine.

But…these sweet potatoes were pretty darn good, too.

I made this side dish for my work’s yearly Thanksgiving potluck. I stuffed myself silly on all the casseroles and side dishes everybody brought, including these sweet potatoes. They’re different from the marshmallow-topped ones, or the pecan-and-brown-sugar whipped sweet potatoes. I liked this weird spin a lot, and it helps that it was pretty boozy, too.

If you’re in the mood to try something new this year, give this recipe a spin. It’s everything wonderful there is about fall: apples, sweet potatoes, pecans, maple syrup, and whiskey. What could go wrong with that combo?

Enjoy!

Whiskey & Maple Glazed Sweet Potatoes

Servings: 6-8
Time: 1 hr 30 mins
Difficulty: Medium
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Boozy & sweet sliced sweet potatoes and apples.

Ingredients

4 large sweet poatoes
1 cup pecans, chopped
4 TBS. unsalted butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1/4 cup whiskey
Pinch of salt
2 Granny Smith Apples, peeled and sliced thin

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wrap sweet potatoes in foil (do not pierce) and bake until soft to the touch but not all the way cooked through, about 45-55 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.
Meanwhile, toast pecans in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne and whiskey. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.
Peel sweet potatoes and slice into 1/2″ thick sliced. Place a layer of sweet potatoes in the bottom of an 8×8 inch square pan. Add apples on top and a few spoonfuls of the whiskey-pecan sauce. Continue layers ending with the whiskey-pecan sauce on top.
Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly and sweet potatoes and apples are cooked through.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wrap sweet potatoes in foil (do not pierce) and bake until soft to the touch but not all the way cooked through, about 45-55 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Meanwhile, toast pecans in a small saucepan over medium heat.