Thanksgiving Potluck

[Shel_B]

This afternoon my building is having a Holiday Potluck. The management is providing a ham and the residents are bringing what they will. Many will buy some items at the local Safeway or Trader Joe’s, but some of us will prepare our own dishes, and I’m among that group.

I made roasted Garnet Yams with Lavender Brown Butter and a bit of fresh-ground nutmeg. I got those yams pretty well caramelized, and that worked well with the brown butter. The yams were topped with rough chopped, pan-toasted pecans, and shaken/mixed/topped with just a little sugar and single-origin Korintje Cinnamon. The mixture that didn’t stick to the nuts was sprinkled over the top of the dish. Sadly, the sprinkling wasn’t very even, and there were a couple of spots where my heavy hand was obvious, so aesthetically the dish could have been a little nicer looking. Of course, that means for those who want a somewhat sweeter taste, the option is there.

The yams will be served in a vintage CorningWare dish. I love my old CorningWare.

 

[frankbee3]

Shel, that looks delicious! It is nice that you hand made a nice dish to share with others. Happy Thanksgiving!

 

[JayhawkRoy]

We still have quite a bit of Corningware that we purchased when first married in 1971. Also got my mother's collection when she passed. Find it very useful for microwave cooking as well as oven cooking. Would be difficult to live without it.

 

[JeffKeryk]

I let Whole Foods do the work... Wifey calls it Whole Paycheck.

 

[AZjeff]

Looks exactly right ShelB.

I quit potlucks after getting violently ill after a church potluck. Apparently one of the little old ladies lost her touch.

 

[Pablo]

Can you taste the lavender? Disgusting floral flavor that does NOT belong in cooking, but OK for sleepy aromatherapy.

Drop that, and the sugar and you have something although sweet potatoes are very nasty sugar bombs for the insulin resistant folk.

 

[Shel_B]

Can you taste the lavender? Disgusting floral flavor that does NOT belong in cooking, but OK for sleepy aromatherapy.

Drop that, and the sugar and you have something although sweet potatoes are very nasty sugar bombs for the insulin resistant folk.

The lavender flavor is quite subtle, more like a background suggestion. There is no lavender in the dish as it was strained out after imparting some flavor to the butter. Total amount of sugar used was about 1 1/2 teaspoons, and some never even got into the dish.

 

[AZjeff]

Gotta agree with Pablo here, had something with lavender in it once, immediately thought about eating soap! Unsophisticated palate apparently.

 

[Shel_B]

Gotta agree with Pablo here, had something with lavender in it once, immediately thought about eating soap! Unsophisticated palate apparently.

Well, the dish was enjoyed by many people, and unusual for events like this, I got several requests for the recipe and numerous compliments. Frankly, I was somewhat surprised by the attention it got.

While I understand your hesitancy about lavender in food, what made this dish so successful (IMO) was its subtlety. Lavender was quietly in the background, just as the nutmeg was, causing one to know that something was there, and enjoying it, but at the same time not quite knowing what it was.

I'm a strong advocate of flavors softly whispering to the diner. Yes, there are time when a sledgehammer of flavor is appropriate, and there are times when you want a quieter experience. This was that quieter dish, a more contemplative experience.

 

[JRay’07]

This thread has been bothering me for the entire day and now it's time to address the elephant in the room. It's a potlatch!

/ˈpätˌlaCH/

 

[Shel_B]

This thread has been bothering me for the entire day and now it's time to address the elephant in the room. It's a potlatch!

/ˈpätˌlaCH/

That's not 100% accepted, although the two are often confused. I don't care to go into the etymology to deeply right now, but potlatch is derived from a Native American ceremony while pot luck has it's roots in 16th century England. There is somewhat of an overlap between the two, and it's understandable that one may get confused, but the origins and differences are real.

 

[JRay’07]

That's not 100% accepted, although the two are often confused. I don't care to go into the etymology to deeply right now, but potlatch is derived from a Native American ceremony while pot luck has it's roots in 16th century England. There is somewhat of an overlap between the two, and it's understandable that one may get confused, but the origins and differences are real.

Interesting. It must be related to the Native American's influence on our culture here in the Pacific Northwest.

 

[Shel_B]

Interesting. It must be related to the Native American's influence on our culture here in the Pacific Northwest.

In fact, yes. The Potlatch has its origins with the tribes along the Pacific Northwest Coast.