Sweet Potato Biscuits

Way back when I used to live in Korea, I used to take piano lessons from a lady who lived in the next apartment building over.

My piano teacher beautiful and talented and she was also scary as hell. She was a ferocious force to be reckoned with. When you're a kid, there are certain adults you know instinctively not to cross...and she was one of them. You couldn't fool her if you tried. She knew you hadn't practiced by the way you walked in the door. But she also got you to master "Fur Elise" before your seventh birthday.

She was also known for being this queen bee of all the housewives. She was sassy, she was smart, and she knew things most people didn't. If she cooked a certain dish or tried a new project or wore something new, everyone else followed and copied. If she did it, then by golly they had to, as well.

One day, she invited us to eat sweet potatoes at her home. I thought to myself, what's the big deal with sweet potatoes? Then I got there and realized these sweet potatoes were different. They were reddish instead of dark brown. Their flesh was orange and moist instead of deep yellow and somewhat dry. They were sweet, just in a different way.

Ladies and gentlemen, that was little Rae was eating her first American sweet potato.

Every time I eat a fat, orange tuber, I think about that day. When I baked these biscuits, I thought about my piano teacher. And I wonder how she's doing, if her two children have grown to be as strong and talented as their mother. I think one day I'll give her a call. Tell her thank you for all she did.

Tell her how she scared the heck out of me but it's all good.

Do any one of you have a similar story? Food that evokes memories of a special someone, an odd day, a promise, even heartbreak?

I'm not sure how I'd feel if someone told me they think about me every time they eat a sweet potato. I would imagine it would be an odd feeling. But caramel cheesecake or French macarons or a good carrot cake? I'd be down.

But that's so unfair to sweet potatoes. They're awesome. They're pretty because they have all these super beta-carotene in them and a hefty serving of vitamin C.

Truth be told, I think about the pies and bars and brownies and cakes I can bake with sweet potatoes. Still, it doesn't hurt to know they're chock full of nutrients. I guess.

These biscuits graced my Thanksgiving dinner table, and we loved eating them. They're soft and bready without being heavy on the first bite. They're a fancy and doable upgrade on your plain buttermilk biscuits.

Seriously, they're yummy.

Therefore, without further ado, I present you sweet potato biscuits, in pictures and (as short as possible) descriptions:

Microwave steamed and shmushed sweet potatoes. Set aside to be worked in with buttermilk.

Flour mixture and cold butter+shortening.

Butter/Shortening cut in with a fork or pastry cutter.

Coarse texture a must.

Enter sweet potato+buttermilk mixture.

 Gathered with a spoon.

 Poured out onto floured surface.

Kneaded max ten times.

Gently pressed out into a rough rectangle.

Messy working space.

Ahem.

Cut into pretty squares.



Then baked.

...BAM!


Hooray for yumminess.




Sweet Potato Biscuits

*makes 12 biscuits*

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sweet potato
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cake flour
• 5 tsp baking powder
• 4 tsp sugar
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup cold solid vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
• 4 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 F.
2. Place the sweet potato in a microwave-safe bowl with a few tablespoons of water and heat for three minutes. Check to see if it's fork-tender; if not, microwave an additional minute at a time until the sweet potato is cooked through. Drain the water. Smash the potato with a fork. You can also force it through a large-mesh sieve and into a bowl, if you wish.
3. Add the buttermilk to the mashed sweet potatoes. Whisk until smooth.
4. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cake flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Add the shortening and butter. Using a pastry blender, cut the fat into the dry ingredients until the pieces of butter and shortening resemble corn kernels. 
5. Add the buttermilk mixture and stir until a soft, crumbly dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead 8 to 10 times, until it just holds together.
6. Roll out and pat the dough into a 6 by 12 inch rectangle. Using a knife, cut the dough into 12 rectangular biscuits. Transfer the biscuits to an ungreased baking sheet. Bake until the biscuits have risen and their edges and bottoms are lightly browned, 12 to 14 minutes. 

From Williams-Sonoma