Mother Earth News_December_2016_2017

14 MOTHER EARTH NEWS December 2016/January 2017

The Gardener’s Table

ting them out individually, 8 inches

apart in the row, with their pointed

tops barely covered by the soil. In mid-

summer, watch the foliage, and when

it dies back and turns brown, dig the

clusters up carefully, clean them well,

and store them in a cool but unrefrig-

erated place where they won’t freeze

during winter.

Shallots for

Luxurious Sauces

I like to grow several kinds. I use

‘French Grey’ shallots when I just want

to add a few to make a dish special.

They’re fussy to peel, so when I want

to roast a lot of them whole alongside

meat or in a pan of vegetables, such as

Brussels sprouts or baby turnips, the

big ones, such as ‘Dutch Yellow,’ make

more sense.

I first came to appreciate shallots

when I discovered certain French

brown sauces — to which shallots

are added toward the end of cook-

ing — and the addictively buttery

sauce béarnaise.

I often find myself reconvening

the flavors of this sauce — especially

shallots, tarragon, egg yolk, and but-

ter — in an omelet or on toast spread

with soft shallot-and-tarragon butter.

The flavors also reappear in my egg

salad and in butter-fried breakfast po-

tatoes with shallots and tarragon.

Sometimes I’ll look at a pan or skil-

let glazed with syrupy drippings and

yummy brown meat bits, and in will

go the wine, tarragon, and finely

chopped shallots, along with a little

butter swirled in as needed — a perfect

quick sauce for a cold winter day.

Barbara Damrosch grows and simmers

sweet potatoes and shallots at her

home, Four Season Farm, in Maine.

She’s the author of The Garden Primer

and co-author of The Four Season

Farm Gardener’s Cookbook, both

available on Page 80.

Discover more about growing sweet potatoes at http://goo.gl/MFRVpq. For more information about planting shallots, see our article at

ROOT AROUNDhttp://goo.gl/IcQGBv, part of our Crops at a Glance Guide, available in its entirety at http://www.MotherEarthNews.com/Crops-At-A-Glance.

Sweet Potato Pudding

A pudding made with sweet potatoes and spices tastes much like pumpkin pie and

spares you the extra work of a pastry crust. Fill a crust with it if you’re so inclined, but

I like it best topped with a decadent pecan crumble. I provide cream at the table for

pouring over the pudding, but you could alternatively

add a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla

ice cream. Yield: 6 servings.

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Fahrenheit. Bake the sweet potatoes on a baking

sheet for 1 hour or until very soft. Cool them enough

to peel. Grease a 2-quart ceramic or glass baking dish

with 1 tablespoon of the butter, and melt the rest in

a small pan. In a mixing bowl, combine the cooked

sweet potato,^2 ⁄ 3 cup brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, milk,

spices, salt, and 3 tablespoons of the melted butter.

Purée until smooth with a food processor, a mixer, or

a food mill. Pour into the baking dish and bake until

the edges are puffed up and the center is starting to

set, 30 to 35 minutes. Mix the remaining^1 ⁄ 2 cup of

brown sugar, the remaining 4 tablespoons of melted

butter, and the pecans. Sprinkle over the top of the

pudding. Bake for 30 minutes more, or until the

center has solidified and risen. Serve warm, and pass

cream in a small pitcher, if desired.

Ingredients

• 3 large sweet potatoes,
  enough to make 3 cups
  after baking
  -^1 ⁄ 2 cup unsalted butter
  (1 stick), divided
  -^2 ⁄ 3 cup plus^1 ⁄ 2 cup dark
  brown sugar, divided


• 5 large eggs


• 2 tbsp vanilla extract
  -^1 ⁄ 2 cup milk


• 1 tsp nutmeg
  -^1 ⁄ 2 tsp ground ginger
  -^1 ⁄ 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  -^1 ⁄ 2 tsp salt


• 1 cup chopped pecans


• 1 pint heavy cream
  (optional)

p 10-14 Gardeners Table_c.indd 14 10/4/16 10:15 AM