Throughout my entire childhood, my family prepared the exact same Thanksgiving feast almost every year. The adults gathered in the kitchen bright and early, and they started pulling out mixing bowls and ingredients while my younger brother and I plopped in front of the TV, alternating between watching the Macy’s parade and running into the kitchen to try to help.
By early afternoon, the nice dishes and silverware sat on our fancy dining room table, and cozy aromas permeated throughout the house. Roasted turkey and mashed potatoes, green bean casserole and Great Grandma’s cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole with green apples and toasted marshmallows, Dad’s homemade whole wheat bread rolls… Plus pumpkin and pecan pies cooling on the counter, everything completely made from scratch.
Although my brother and I started out as picky eaters (I stuck with Dad’s rolls and a big pile of mashed potatoes topped with a generous pat of butter and showering of salt — nothing else!), we eventually grew adventurous enough over the years to try the turkey… Then the sweet potato casserole (its toasted marshmallow topping really helped!)… Then the pies… And finally the green beans and special cranberry sauce.
Since the same recipes appeared on Thanksgiving year after year, I assumed everyone across the country cooked those recipes for their feasts as well. Until…
I joined marching band in high school.
Our last marching band competition fell on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the first official day of our week-long fall break, so the parent chaperones organized a special Thanksgiving-themed dinner for us. As we slowly walked through the buffet line to fill our plates, I spotted many of the same savory foods that appeared on our family’s Thanksgiving table…
Yet when I reached the dessert station, the band moms offered me a choice of pumpkin pie or… apple pie. Not pecan!
Confused, I took a moment to collect my thoughts before mumbling, “Pumpkin, please!” As I headed to find a seat, I curiously asked my friends what pies they are on Thanksgiving, fully expecting them to respond with pumpkin and pecan and nothing else…
But many of them chimed in with other flavors. “Apple! Buttermilk! Chocolate! Coconut cream! Sweet potato!”
Although I had heard of the rest of the flavors, just not for Thanksgiving, the last one made me pause. Sweet potato? I thought to myself. I thought sweet potatoes were just for savory recipes… like our Thanksgiving casseroles!
Apparently I was completely wrong!
To this day, my family still sticks with pumpkin and pecan pies on Thanksgiving… Yet they’re open to other desserts, as long as those sweets are in addition to their favorite pies — not instead of! So I’ve been working on a new dessert recipe for this Thanksgiving, and I’ve finally perfected it…
This Ultimate Healthy Sweet Potato Pie! The filling is deliciously smooth and creamy, perfectly sweet, and bursting with spices and rich sweet potato flavor. Throw in a homemade flaky pie crust and dollops of luxurious whipped cream… And you’ve got the best ever healthy sweet potato pie!
Unlike traditional recipes that call for ample amounts of butter and refined sugar in the sweet potato filling, this recipe contains neither. Each sweet slice is also 127 calories — including that flaky crust!
Continue reading & see the rest! ›› The Ultimate Healthy Sweet Potato Pie
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