¾cupwhole milk or half and half(or a combo, warmed)
¼teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Prick each sweet potato several times with a fork. Place on a rimmed baking sheet, preferably lined with parchment or aluminum foil, and bake until tender, about 1 ¼ to 1 ½ hours.
Meanwhile, prepare the garlic for roasting. Cut the top from the head of garlic with a sharp knife, exposing the very tops of the cloves. Place the garlic head on a square of aluminum foil large enough to encase the garlic. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over the exposed top of the cloves. Sprinkle the top with salt. Wrap tightly in foil, and after the sweet potatoes have been in the oven for 30 minutes place the foil-wrapped garlic on the baking sheet with the squash. Continue baking the potatoes and the garlic for about 45 minutes until the garlic and the potatoes are very soft. Let the garlic cool in the foil, and let the potatoes cool until you can handle them.
When the vegetables are cool enough to handle, unwrap and squeeze out the roasted garlic from the papery wrapper, pressing up from the bottom to pop it out. Peel the sweet potatoes (you should be able to peel the skin off with your fingers, or use a peeler if you feel like you are losing too much of the insides).
Press the garlic and the potatoes together through a food mill or a ricer into a large pot over medium heat. If you don't have either, you can place them in a large pot and use a potato masher. Add the remaining olive oil, butter, milk, salt, and pepper and stir to thoroughly combine. Heat, stirring, frequently until hot throughout.
Notes
There are a lot of types of sweet potatoes, and if you are a sweet potato fan, have at it, and get to know the different kinds. The exteriors and the interiors range considerably in color. Most commonly, you will find various shades of white, tan, and all sorts of orange hues.You can use white or orange-fleshed sweet potatoes in this recipe, but especially for Thanksgiving and the holidays I am for the orange. Check the inner color when you buy them, as it isn't always easy to tell from the skin (you’ll certainly see a little ding on one of the potatoes that will reveal its inner color). The orange makes a holiday table feel like a holiday table to me.