I am a Thanksgiving fanatic. It’s actually my favorite holiday, because the feast never disappoints the way half-assed Christmas presents do. Plus, once the sun sets on Turkey Day, there comes the wonderful period of leftovers. Now that I’m in college, though, I’m only going to have two days to relish said leftovers before returning to D’fo fare; so I want to make my leftover-based meals count. These Sweet Potato Oaties, adapted from the Honey Bunches of Oats-specific recipe, are pretty straightforward as long as you have cereal and a can of sweet potatoes left after Thanksgivukkah. Or you could easily make them in your dorm to recall the splendor of the holiday as you dive into your end-of-semester work.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes (+5 minute cool down)
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 12-14, according to preferred size
Ingredients:
one can (16 oz.) sweet potatoes (I used Bruce’s Candied Yams)
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup light brown sugar (I used slightly less than ¼ cup because the yams were candied)
¼ cup chopped pecans
½ tablespoon butter, melted
½ tablespoon cornstarch + 1½ tablespoons water
1½ cups honey oats cereal (I used Wegmans Oats & Honey Cereal, basically Honey Bunches of Oats), crushed*
*You can crush cereal, cookies, chips, or most other crunchy things by sealing them in a plastic bag and then grinding them with a rolling pin, measuring cup, mug, or other broad, solid thing.
Photo by Agnes Chen
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Drain the sweet potatoes and mash them in a medium or large bowl.
Photo by Agnes Chen
Photo by Agnes Chen
3. Mix in the flour, brown sugar, pecans, and butter, then the cornstarch mixture.
Photo by Agnes Chen
Photo by Agnes Chen
4. Empty the cereal crumbs into a bowl. Using your fingers, shape roughly a tablespoonful of the sweet potato mixture into a ball and then roll it around in the crumbs. Yes, your fingers will get messy and sticky – this is baking. Place the ball on the cookie sheet. Repeat until you’ve used all of the sweet potato mixture, leaving 1-2 inches of space between the blobs, since they won’t spread as much as chocolate chip cookies do.
Photo by Agnes Chen
Photo by Agnes Chen
Photo by Agnes Chen
5. Bake for 20 minutes; they should be pretty soft and will firm up a little as they cool for 5 minutes. Best served warm!
Photo by Agnes Chen
Too sweet for you? Strike a balance between sweetness and savoriness in this sweet potato side dish or quick snack.