- 1 pound sweet potatoes
- 1/4 cup margarine or butter
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup shortening
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon finely shredded orange peel
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3 slightly beaten eggs
- 1 cup half-and-half or light cream
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons margarine or butter
- 1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
- Peel sweet potatoes. Cut off woody portions and ends. Cut into quarters. Cook, covered, in enough boiling salted water to cover for 25 to 35 minutes or until tender; drain and mash. (You should have 1-1/2 cups.) Cut up margarine; add to hot potatoes, stirring until melted.
- Meanwhile, prepare cornmeal pastry by stirring together 3/4 cup of the flour, cornmeal, sugar, and salt. Cut in 1/3 cup shortening using pastry blender, until pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle 3 to 5 tablespoons cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, over mixture, tossing with a fork after each addition until all is moistened. Form into a ball.
- Roll out on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle; ease into a 9-inch pie plate; trim to 1/2 inch beyond edge of plate. Fold under the overhanging pastry; crimp edge high. Do not prick.
- For filling, add brown sugar, orange peel, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger to potatoes. Stir in eggs and half-and-half or light cream. Place pastry shell on oven rack; pour in filling. Cover edges with foil. Bake in a 375 degrees F oven for 30 minutes.
- For Hazelnut Streusel Topping mix 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup of the brown sugar, 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. Cut in 2 tablespoons margarine or butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in hazelnuts or almonds.
- Remove foil. Sprinkle with Hazelnut Streusel Topping. Bake 20 to 25 minutes more or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool.