Mini Sweet Potato Pies

This is one of my most appreciated dishes which I get a lot of positive comments about when I make it. This recipes was originally published in my cookbook back in the days. Since it’s so appreciated, I thought I’d share this with you. 

These pies have a velvety smooth filling in a crunchy crust. Topped with caramelized onions and hazelnuts they have everything. 

You can use puff pastry instead of making your own pie dough, and I usually do this because square puff pastry sheets create this beautiful and flaky shell for the sweet potato mousse and makes the pies look more elegant :)   

Quantity: 8 small pies in a muffin tray
200 C for about 30 minutes

Basic recipe for the pastry:

• 4 dl spelt flour
• 100g vegetable margarine, softened
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 1 pinch thyme or (any other dried herb that compliments the seasonings you will use in your pie filling)
• 3 tbsp oat cream or use water if preferred

Filling:

• 6 pc small sweet potatoes, boiled (or 2 large ones)
• 1 dl oat cream, or other plant-based milk
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp tarragon
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 dl chopped fresh hazelnuts
• 50 grams fresh spinach, chopped
• 6 tsp orange juice, fresh
• 1 batch of glazed red onions
• Herbal salt taste

Directions: 

1. Peel and cut your sweet potatoes into equal pieces.
2. Fill a pot with water and let the water boil, add the sweet potato and cook until soft (about 20 minutes).
3. When the potatoes are soft, remove the pot from the stove and pour off the water.
4. Let cool off slightly.
5. In a food processor, add your sweet potatoes, plant based cream, tarragon olive oil and garlic, mix together until you have a smooth fine mash. Season with salt and pepper. 
6. Remove the bowl from the machine and remove the blade.
7. Chop the spinach finely, mix down with a spoon in your sweet potato mixture, make sure to mix the spinach in evenly.

Directions – pies:

1. Take a muffin tray, grease each hole with oil or vegetable margarine.
2. Bake out the pastry in your forms, the pastry shells should just be under 1 cm in thickness.
3. Add the sweet potato filling to each pie. Leave about 1 cm in height so that you have room for the red onion and hazelnuts.
4. Add the glazed red onion on top of all the pies, and press down into the filling. Top with finely chopped hazelnuts.
5. Squeeze orange juice over each pie, about 0,5 tsp per mini pie, press with a spoon on the top so that the red onion and nuts mix into the filling.
6. Bake in middle of an oven preheated to 200 degrees C for about 30 minutes.
7. The pie crust should be firm and crunchy, and the sweet potato should still be soft and smooth inside and not dehydrated.
8. If necessary, place a sheet of foil over the pies so that the top does not burn after half the time