Indian Sweet Potato Dessert

It's warm outside. Soothingly warm. I have mentioned before that this year's summer did not mean well with us so every single day temperature rises above 20°C is precious. In fact, they appear so precious you kind of want keep them in your pocket so you can take them out again when you know exactly that you have got the time to make the most of it. Writing these words, I just realised how odd that thought is. Imagine people had the ability to save sunny days for later. The result? Clouds and rain all year.

Anyway.

This recipe is a bit on the odd side. It's simple. And apparently, it's Indian. It was the dessert we have had the day we enjoyed last time's recipe and comes from the same source. The original only asked for three ingredients: Milk, sugar, and sweet potatoes. This particular dish was chosen for two reasons: Not only were we actually supposed to work on a project so time for cooking was meant to be short (uhm...), it was also meant to be an experiment.

You can imagine that this concoction can only get as pretty as good ol' mashed potatoes and is maybe a bit one-dimensional flavour-wise. So foresighted, we added about 100g of almonds we caramelized with a bit of sugar. Some of it went directly into the puree, the rest was garnish. Almost pretty, right?

Indian Sweet Potato Dessert

Adapted from here. Serves 4.

• 1 kg (35 oz.) sweet potatoes
• 930 ml (4 cups) milk
• 200g (7 oz.) sugar
• 100g (3.5 oz.) caramelized almond slivers (optional)

1. Peel and slice sweet potatoes.
2. Put in a big pot along with 600ml of milk, let it cook on low heat until potatoes are soft.
3. Remove from heat and puree completely. Add sugar and rest of milk, stir well.
4. Put pot back on heat and let it simmer until consistency is creamy.
5. Fold in caramelized almonds and garnish (optional).
6. Serve warm.

So. How was it? Actually, it was alright and I can see myself preparing it again. It was sweet, creamy and, well, sweet potato-y. But probably only when there are any left-over sweet potatoes. I know it's really, REALLY simple but hey, there is worse.