Thanksgiving Morning!

The smells in the house are so inviting.  Sweet potato pie, turkey and dressing, collard greens and of course mac and cheese.  All of these dishes remind me of my childhood and wanting to help my Mom cook.  We never had wine for dinner when I was growing up.  But now I want to know why.  Why was wine only for a certain group of people in the U.S.?  If I had grown up in Italy or France wine would have been the beverage on the table every night.  So what goes with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner in a African-American family?  Well, not much different than any other American family.  The spices are garlic, thyme, sage, hot pepper and salt.  You can serve red or white, sweet or dry.  Don't turn your nose up at the sweet suggestion. So here are my tips and treats for this week.

TIPS

1. Italy makes wonderful semi sweet wines in red and white.  Try a light bodied one made from the Malvasia or Refosco grapes.  There is one I use to sell a lot of called Adesso from Italy. It is slightly sweet, red and will go well with any the spies of Thanksgiving.
2. A red blend is a good choice for a dry wine.  Blends have more character and can be very versatile.  Try Hot to Trot from Washington State made by 14 Hands.  It is full of great berry flavors, velvety, smooth and works great with spicy. It is made with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Syrah.

Both sell for around $10

TREAT

Looking for a great Sweet Potato Pie recipe. Try mine.  Adapted from an old boyfriends mother, Maxine.  It was the first and best Sweet Potato Pie I ever tasted.  It is creamy, a good spice combination, sweet and not too soft.  Goes wonderfully with a nice glass of vintage port.

Stephanie's Sweet Potato Pie

4            Medium to large Yams
4 Sticks  Butter (softened)
2 1/2      Cups of sugar
7            Eggs
2            Cups of milk
1/2 tsp   Allspice
1/2 tsp   Nutmeg
1 tsp      Vanilla
1 tsp      Lemon Extract

Mix the cooked, smashed Yams with the butter while the Yams are hot.  Add the sugar.  Beat eggs and add to potato mixture gradually adding the milk..  Add remaining ingredients and pour into two large uncooked pie crusts. Bake at 350* for 1 1/2 hours or until firm. Let cool and serve with vanilla ice cream. Yummy...