THE APRON GAL

Have you entered my Christmas giveaway yet? It ends Monday at midnight so get cracking! Even if you don't want all that cute stuff, I bet you know someone who does...a great FREE Christmas gift!

Ok, is anyone still reading? I hope the title of this post didn't scare you off. Sometimes when I read other people's food blogs I read these long complicated titles and I think, what is all that stuff? Give me a chocolate chip cookie recipe!

But I try to keep an open mind for my favorite blogs and for ingredients that I have been wanting to try in different ways. So give this one a chance, you won't regret it! 

Although this is a dessert - it isn't super sweet so its perfect when you are on a sugar overload during the holidays. It is also a great way to use up extra sweet potatoes or sweet potato puree you have from Thanksgiving or Christmas. 

But most of all, they are cute because they are mini and colorful. hehe

So start by peeling and cutting up your sweet potatoes. They don't need to be pretty, you are going to boil them and mash them anyways. 

Boil the sweet potatoes until tender when pricked with a fork. Drain. 

While your sweet potatoes are cooking, work on your crust. 

Like always, I used store bought but you could make your own too. Roll it out thin and then use a cookie cutter or cup to find the perfect size to fit your mini muffin pan. I tried a couple of different sizes and pressed them into the pan until the size was big enough to fill up the sides of the muffin cup. 

I didn't worry about making them pretty, I think it gave them character :)

Prick the bottoms of the mini cups and then bake for 5 minutes at 350.

Meanwhile mash your sweet potatoes with the coconut milk, cinnamon and brown sugar. 

Finally, you want to make your meringue by whipping egg whites with sugar and a dash of cream of tartar. My picture of the stiff peaks didn't turn out but here is a good link for pictures of the stiff peaks and the consistency you want before its ready to bake.

Once your crust is baked, fill the shells with about a teaspoon of sweet potato and then adding the meringue, coconut and marshamllows on top. I don't have specific measurements, just eyeball it. The more meringue, the more impressive they look. I just dropped coconut over all of them and put a few marshmallows on each tart.  But they all turn out cute and there isn't a specific ratio that is essential. 

Bake for ten minutes or until lightly browned and that's it! I recommend letting them cool at least an hour or I popped mine in the fridge for about 20 minutes to bring them down to room temperature and that seemed to be perfect.

Makes 24 mini tarts

1 lb sweet potatoes

1 pie crust 

1/3 cup coconut milk

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup brown sugar 

Marshmallows

Coconut

3 egg whites

1/2 tsp cream of tartar [optional]

5 tablespoons sugar

Preheat oven to 350. 

Peel sweet potatoes and chop into chunks. Boil until tender when pricked with a fork. Drain. 

Roll out pie crust until thin. Using a circle cookie cutter or bottom of a cup, make 24 circles for shells to go in mini muffin pan. Press pie crust circles into muffin pan until a shell forms. Prick bottoms with fork.

Bake shells for  5 minutes and remove from oven. 

Mash sweet potatoes with coconut milk, cinnamon and brown sugar. [This mixture will not be very sweet but if desired add additional sugar or milk] Place 1 teaspoon of mixture into prebaked shells. 

For the meringue: beat 3 eggs for 1 minute then add 2 tablespoons sugar, then beat for additional 1 minute, then add 3 tablespoons sugar, then continue beating until stiff peaks form and meringue stands up on beater. 

Spoon merinuge over sweet potato filled tarts to desired height. Sprinkle with coconut and 1-3 marshmallows per tart. 

[You may have some extra meringue and or sweet potato mixture leftover depending on how full your shells are]

Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly golden.

Let cool for 1 hour or place in fridge for 20 minutes to bring to room temperature before serving. 

Enjoy!!