SWEET POTATO PUREE WITH BANANAS AND BUTTERED PECANS

SWEET POTATO PUREE WITH BANANAS AND BUTTERED PECANS image

Yield 8 people

Number Of Ingredients 11

6 pounds (about 6) sweet potatoes
2 ripe bananas, skins on
2 ounces (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound pecans
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Steps:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork and bake until tender, about 1 hour. Roast the bananas, with the skins on, for the last 15 minutes of cooking time. When cool enough to handle, peel the potatoes and bananas, and transfer to a food processor. Pulse until the potatoes are chunky. Add the butter and maple syrup, puree until smooth. Add the cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt; puree to combine. Transfer to a shallow baking pan and smooth out the surface with a spatula. In a skillet, cook the pecans in butter over low heat and sprinkle with salt. Saute until well-coated, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes. Transfer the pecans to paper towels to drain. Arrange pecans on top of puree and sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake at 300 degrees F until heated through, about 20 minutes.