Gearing up for the perfect holiday menu means bringing out the culinary arsenal of Louisiana recipes and around the Graham house, that means sweet potatoes. This recipe is one from my cookbook Acadiana Table: Cajun and Creole Home Cooking from the Heart of Louisiana, and it is sure to be a hit on your holiday table.
A holiday recipe for sweet potatoes. (All photos credit: George Graham)
Listening to chank-a-chank, Cajun French songs featuring a classic squeezebox accordion is a Sunday morning ritual as we head to church. We are blessed to have a totally French-speaking show on our local radio station, KRVS, that plays these classic tunes. You can listen online at krvs.org.
If you live in Acadiana you’ve no doubt heard Lache Pas la Patate, the popular Cajun song made famous by Jimmy C. Newman. If you haven’t, then you should go listen to it here for background as you read the rest of this story. It was recorded in 1974 for La Louisianne Records, and while it is a colorful lyric, it is also a colorful Cajun expression that translates to “don’t drop the potato”, meaning “don’t give up” or “hang in there.”
With the holidays approaching, cooks everywhere are starting to think about dinner menus and anxiety is setting in. As joyous as the season is, stress levels seem to rise as deadlines — and relatives — approach. My advice is to “lache pas la patate” this holiday and turn to my new favorite seasonal dish.
Two things are sure to show up on my Acadiana Table during the holiday season: yams and pecans. The farms around Acadia, Evangeline and St. Landry parishes are famous for growing the sweetest yams in the country, and a bit further north is pecan country. Nothing reflects the spirit of the holidays more than dishes featuring this duo.
Yams or sweet potatoes? Before we go any further let’s sort out the confusion. Louisiana yams are actually sweet potatoes, and mine are the Beauregard variety grown in rich South Louisiana soil. Back in the 1930s Louisiana decided to brand their crops of sweeter and moister, orange-fleshed sweet potatoes as yams. The name stuck, and now we commonly refer to them with both terms. Only in Louisiana.
Acadiana is the center of Louisiana’s yam farming.
Like most cooks in my part of the state I invariably resort at least once over the season to the old tried and true sweet potato casserole topped with chopped pecans and marshmallows. However, if you’ve spent any time at my Acadiana Table, you will know that I have an arsenal of classic sweet potato recipes and have embarked on a journey of enlightenment to reinterpret them into new and creative dishes.
It was the Jimmy C. Newman chank-a-chank accordion-laced rendition of his classic song that got my creative juices flowing. I recalled seeing recipes using the “Hasselback” technique of serving potatoes cut into thin rounds that when baked and garnished unfold for a delightful accordion-style presentation. Why not use that trick on sweet potatoes?
These ingredients are not hard to find, but I was lucky to find some extra long Louisiana sweet potatoes at The Fresh Market – the perfect size for making this dramatic squeezebox sweet potato dish. The pecans come from my friend Jady Regard at Cane River Pecan Company in New Iberia, and of course, Steen’s is a staple in my pantry.
So, hang in there this holiday season and make this dish a new tradition on your Acadiana Table. Heck, everyday is a holiday when you serve these Squeezebox Sweet Potatoes.
And don’t forget — “lache pas la patate.”
Simple ingredients and easy technique.
Use chopsticks as the stopping point for slicing the potato.
- 1 stick of unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons sugarcane molasses, such as Steen’s
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons dark rum (optional)
- 2 very large Louisiana sweet potatoes
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
- 4 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons sugarcane molasses, such as Steen’s
- Coarse sea salt
- ½ cup chopped Louisiana pecans, toasted
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and add the brown sugar and molasses. Stir until the sugars melt and begin to sizzle. Immediately pour in the cream and whisk vigorously as you add the rum. Turn the heat off and continue whisking as the sauce comes together. Remove from the stovetop and keep warm until serving.
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
- Using a pair of chopsticks as a guide, place the potato between the sticks on a cutting board. Using a sharp, thin-blade knife, cut down into the potato until you hit the chopstick. Continue slicing across the potato in ⅛-inch intervals. The slices should create a fan-like, accordion style pattern across the potato. Repeat with the second potato; transfer to foil-lined baking pan.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the butter and olive oil and bring to a slow sizzle. Add the rosemary leaves and sauté briefly to release their flavor. Add the brown sugar and molasses with a sprinkle of sea salt. Add the pecans and bring the glaze together. Take off the heat and keep warm.
- Spoon the glaze over the potatoes and be sure to work the pecan pieces down into the potatoes to help separate the segments. Cover the baking pan with another piece of foil and seal tightly. Place in the oven and bake for 90 minutes. At around the halfway point, check the potatoes and carefully fan out the round segments so that they cook in an even accordion-fold pattern during the remaining time in the oven. Once completely baked and fork-tender, remove the potatoes from the oven and keep warm until serving.
- For serving, place the potatoes on a platter and drizzle over some of the Sugarcane Cream Sauce and pool the rest of the sauce on the bottom of the serving dish. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
Voila! Squeezebox Sweet Potatoes with Sugarcane Cream Sauce – a new holiday tradition.
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Thanks for the great recipe. One of the first cajun phrases I taught Charles was “Lache pas la patate.” It has served him well through ten years of Congress. Yours looks awwwwwesome. Think I’ll give it a try ASAP!!
Wow, yum yum yams!
I stumbled across this website tonight. What a nice happenstance. The sweet potatoes sound great. I’ll be checking out the other recipes too.
Wow.. Will have to try this.
Glad to find your website. We always bring some Beauregard sweet potatoes home to El Paso when we visit Ville Platte. These look great. Will try for Christmas.
Can’t wait to try this recipe
My mother forwarded this recipe to me! Knowing I am a big fan of southern food, but live in the northwest.
squeezebox sweet potatoes looks yummy!!!!!
yummmmmmy!
My son is coming in from Laf tonight to make Fettuccine Alfredo and to go over our Thanksgiving menu. I think these squeezebox sweet potatoes will make the list this year. I’ll have to pay Jady a visit for some pecans.
Hey Phyllis – Thanks for the comment and be sure to tell Jady I said “hello.” All the best.
I love the way you presented this glorious recipe! You are so talented, George! I can’t wait to try it!
Prissy- Thanks so much for the kind words. It is a fun and tasty recipe for sweet potatoes that should be on every Thanksgiving table. All the best for a joyous holidays.
This is a super creative idea for a fun Cajun side dish with Louisiana’s bounty!
This will be the second Thanksgiving we’re having these fantastic potatoes. Last year everyone raved so much I had to promise to make them again! Absolutely fabulous!
Thanks Sydney.