Whipped Sweet Potatoes in Orange Shells

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, this week I'm sharing a series of vintage recipes that are sure to turn heads at your holiday table. Bon appetit!

Before there was Pinterest, there were vintage cookbooks. Remember that article I shared earlier this month from the NY Times Magazine? Presentation is everything.

So today we're going to take a simple, traditional recipe and jazz it up just in time for Thanksgiving!

Whipped Sweet Potatoes in Orange Shells
(serves 8)
8 Sunkist oranges
4 cups boiled or baked sweet potatoes
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons melted butter
8 marshmallows

1) Cut off tops of oranges and remove pulp and juice with a sharp knife and spoon.

Don't let the length of this sentence fool you. This step is the most time-consuming part of the whole recipe, but it's worth it! I used a small, sharp knife and an ice cream scoop to hollow out each orange shell. This part took about 40 minutes, but I also stopped a few times to take photos and check Instagram, so who knows how long it actually takes.

At this point, you may be wondering why we're spending so much time on preparing oranges when this is supposed to be a sweet potato recipe. Well, this recipe comes from the California Fruit Growers Exchange in 1940, so yeah, oranges are going to take a starring role on this one.

2) Whip sweet potatoes with salt, butter, and orange juice to moisten to desired consistency. Use juice secured in preparing shells.

Because I used the bulk of my time hollowing out orange shells, I decided to get a few minutes back by going with canned yams for this step.

Best decision ever! In no time, my sweet potatoes were soft and mashable. I stirred in the melted butter, orange juice, and salt, and added a few pinches of brown sugar for good measure.

(P.S.--All of that leftover orange pulp didn't go to waste. Come back tomorrow to see how you can put the remaining orange pieces to use!)

3) Fill orange shells and top each with a marshmallow. Brown in moderate oven until heated through.

Because I was taking this dish to share at Friends-giving, I decided to hold off on the last step until I arrived at the party. Speaking of, take a look at this tablescape! Sunkist isn't the only one who knows the art of presentation. My friend Amanda knows how to set a table!

Before we ate, I scooped the sweet potatoes into the orange shells and placed a marshmallow on each. After a few minutes in the oven, the marshmallows melted on top of the warm, fluffy sweet potatoes and were ready to be served. 

I must say an orange shell is a clever way to serve just about anything. It's a tidy single-serving container to keep the sweet potatoes from encroaching on a crowded plate of goodies. And they're just so darn cute!