My Mother's Sweet Potato Pie

In honor of my brother in law's birthday on May 10th - one of my dishes that he seems to like best.  This goes back to my really early days as a cook, and relies on canned sweet potatoes.  I've never tried to make it with fresh sweet potatoes, because some recipes are best left alone, and if they happen to call for condensed cream of mushroom soup or canned niblet corn, there is a darn good reason for it.

This is a dish that also falls under the heading of "Deviation is Treason" because to tamper with any of it's essential elements is tantamount to putting cherries on top of Grandma's Chocolate Cake.  In an earlier era in American history, such actions might incite a lynching.  I should know.  One time and one time only, I tried substituting Mandarin oranges for the crushed pineapple (in order to avoid duplicating the pineapple I was using in another recipe at that meal.)  It was not well-received.  Back to the original, which incidentally, is not a pie at all.  There is no crust, and no suggestion that this is a dessert rather than a side dish.  I have no idea where my mother found this recipe, but I do know that I served it at my very first Thanksgiving as a bride in 1974, and that she had been preparing it for us at least from the time I was in junior high school.

There are absolutely no fresh ingredients in this pie, but around Thanksgiving time, no one is really thinking in terms of healthy eating.  What other holiday could inspire the turducken, a masterpiece of artery-clogging fat and starch?  As healthy as turkey is, stuffing it with mountains of cornbread and sausage, and deep-frying it is not going to win you any points with your cardiologist.  Unlike your cardiologist, however, I am a great believer in "everything in moderation", so that if you enjoy a few bites of something decadently unhealthy on a holiday or a birthday or even an occasional dinner, no harm, no foul.

Mom's Sweet Potato Pie

2 large cans of yams (or sweet potatoes), well drained

1 stick of butter, melted

1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark)

1 large can crushed pineapple, well drained

Cornflake crumbs for the topping (Kellogg's is the only brand I know of)

Additional melted butter for the topping

In a large bowl, mash the drained yams with a hand masher.  Melt the butter in a small pan, and then blend the brown sugar into it.  Pour the butter-sugar mixture into the yams and mix well to combine.  Season with a little kosher salt, to taste.  Layer half of the mashed yam mixture into a baking dish.  Top this with all of the drained pineapple, and then the rest of the yams.  Cover the top with cornflake crumbs and drizzle over this some melted butter.  Bake at 350 degrees for one hour.  This serves at least eight as a side dish.

I like to make this in a 2 quart glass souffle dish, because the amount fits perfectly, and the dish is taller than your normal 2 quart casserole, and so it shows off the layers nicely.