5 Star Foodie Junior:
Today, we made vanilla sweet potato pecan baskets. First, we made the filling. We boiled the sweet potato. When it cooled down, we peeled it and mashed and mixed it with butter and sugar and vanilla bean seeds. Next, we put pecans in it and refrigerated it. Then, we got phyllo pastry sheets and brushed it with butter. Then we cut them in squares, put the filling in, and folded up like baskets.
After we baked them, they looked crispy and cute. They tasted delicious: the pastry was crispy and yummy and the filling was sweet and tasted like sweet potato and pecan pie all together!
Ingredients:
1 sweet potato
1/4 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
Seeds of 1 whole vanilla bean
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup ground pecans
6 sheets phyllo dough
2 tablespoons butter
Directions:
Boil the sweet potato, unpeeled, for about 30-40 minutes, or until soft. Cool, peel, and mash. Place in a bowl, and blend the sweet potatoes with butter, sugar, vanilla bean seeds, and cinnamon, using an electric mixer. Fold in the ground pecans. Refrigerate for a few hours, or until firm.
Lightly brush 1 phyllo sheet with butter. Cover with another sheet, brush with butter, and cover with the final sheet of phyllo. Cut into 9 squares (repeat with the remaining 3 phyllo sheets). Place about spoonful of the sweet potato pecan mixture in the center of each square. Pull all the sides together and pinch to hold, forming "purses". Bake on 350°F for about 20 minutes or until the edges of the pastry are golden brown.
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Please check out a new Quickies Noodle Challenge hosted by my friends Lazaro and Denise, here or here. It's a fun contest opportunity, so don't miss it!
