Homemade Israeli ptitim in sweet potato cream sauce

Start with a small sweet potato (a regular-sized one, not the jumbo kind). Roast it in the oven, blend it with cream, and add it to the ptitim pot. The result is an incredibly sweet and delicious dish that everyone will love and find hard to resist. Want to make it even richer? Feel free to add a generous amount of grated Parmesan.

Ingredients:

For the roasted sweet potato:

1 small sweet potato (250 grams)

2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon salt

For the ptitim:

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 small white onion, finely chopped

2 cups ptitim

½ teaspoon black pepper

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

2 cups boiling water (use the same cup as for measuring ptitim)

1 teaspoon fine salt

Roasted sweet potato (prepared in advance)

½ cup heavy cream (38%) or, for a non-dairy option, ½ cup water or milk substitute

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (390°F) on the turbo setting.

2. Peel the sweet potato and place it on parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Wrap it tightly in the parchment paper, then add an additional layer of aluminum foil.

3. Place the wrapped sweet potato in the oven for 1.5 hours. Once done, let it cool before starting on the ptitim.In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Gently brown the chopped onion, then add the ptitim and toast them together for 3 minutes. Add the spices and stir well for another minute.

4. Pour the boiling water into the pot, add the salt, and mix well. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting, allowing a gentle simmer. Cover tightly and cook for 3 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, using an immersion blender or food processor, blend the sweet potato with the heavy cream. Add this sweet potato cream to the pot.

6. Stir well and continue cooking for an additional 3 minutes, with the lid partially open.

7. Turn off the heat, mix thoroughly (don’t worry if there’s some liquid), cover with a clean towel, and place the lid on top.

8.Let it sit for 10 minutes, stir again, and serve.

Recipe by Rubi Michael, in collaboration with Sugat.