When Al Roker thinks about his mother and food, this recipe comes to mind. The poon is a bit of a mystery. While it graced his table for every holiday meal and on special Sunday dinners, no one in the family knows where this side dish came from or why on earth it’s called a poon.
The recipe is included in a new cookbook written by Roker and his daughter Courtney, titled “Al Roker’s Recipes to Live By.”
Just as the poon was a tradition, so was torturing his mother while she was making it for Thanksgiving dinner. Once the kids could smell the divine combo of spices wafting from the kitchen, they knew it was almost time for her to add the marshmallows and shove it under the broiler. At which point they’d do anything they could to distract her.
One of them would be sent to enter the kitchen. “Mom, so where’s that, um, big blue bowl?” She’d start rummaging through a cabinet, and before long, black smoke would billow from the oven. Their giggles would have infuriated her if they weren’t blocked out by the sound of the fire alarm. But his mother finally figured out how to beat them at their own game. One day after they’d had their fun, she calmly pulled a backup poon out of the refrigerator.
Serves: 8
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
¾ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
¾ cups canned crushed pineapple, drained
1 (12-ounce) bag large marshmallows
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the sweet potatoes and cook until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Add the butter and use a potato masher to mash the butter into the sweet potatoes. Stir in the brown sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice and stir until well combined. Fold in the crushed pineapple and transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish.
Bake until the sweet potatoes are lightly browned on top, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and preheat the broiler.
Place the marshmallows in a single layer on top of the sweet potatoes. Broil for a minute or two to toast the top of the marshmallows — they brown fast, so don’t walk away! Let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.