Lunch: Five-Spice Sweet Potato Pie

Recipe by Lia Huber This southern American dessert is a classic for Kwanzaa celebrations. Five-spice powder is a blend of cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, star anise, and Szechuan peppercorns that can be found in the spice aisle of most supermarkets. If fi

This recipe includes fertility superfoods such as:

Cinnamon

Health and fertility benefits of Five-Spice Sweet Potato Pie

Cinnamon is one of the best ingredients that someone with insulin sensitivity can eat. Half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day has been shown to be very effective at normalizing blood sugar levels. Cinnamon contains hydroxychalcone, which is thought to enhance the effects of insulin. It has also been suggested that Cinnamon prevents post-meal blood sugar spikes by slowing the gastric emptying rate - meaning that food digests slowly. (Reference: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11506060).

Ingredients

2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 5 medium)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon five-spice powder or pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 (15-ounce) package refrigerated pie dough (such as Pillsbury)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 °.
Pierce sweet potatoes several times with a fork. Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet. Bake at 375 ° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly. Peel and discard skins. Place the pulp in a medium bowl, and mash. Add 3/4 cup brown sugar and the next 8 ingredients (through eggs) to pulp. Beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended.
Fit refrigerated pie dough into a 9-inch pie plate; fold edges under, and flute. Pour sweet potato mixture into pie shell. Bake at 375 ° for 55 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool pie completely on a wire rack.

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