Sweet Potato Tamales

Instructions

Make the mole amarillo

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

Place all of the chiles on a rimmed baking sheet and roast for 5 minutes. Remove the chiles but don't turn off the oven. Put the chiles in a medium heatproof bowl, add enough boiling water to cover, and let sit until softened, about 20 minutes.

On the same baking sheet, spread out the cloves, bay leaves, cumin, pimiento, and allspice. Roast, stirring the spices around halfway through baking, until toasted and aromatic, 7 to 10 minutes.

In a medium pot over medium-high heat, warm 1/4 cup oil. Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeño, lower the heat to medium, season with salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are very softened and the onions are translucent, 10 to 15 minutes.

Add the tomatoes and their juices and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thick and jammy, 25 to 30 minutes.

Dump the tomato-onion mixture into a blender and add the spices, tomatillos, pepitas, peanuts, drained reconstituted chiles (reserve the soaking water), and a generous pinch of salt. Process, adding some of the soaking water a little at a time, until the mixture is smooth and thick.

In a large pot over medium-high heat, warm the remaining 3/4 cup oil until hot. Turn off the heat and add the tomato-onion mixture quickly and all at once (be careful as the mixture will splatter). Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer and let cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 2 hours. Taste and add more salt if needed.

In a clean blender, working in batches if needed, combine the masa with about 1 cup water and blend until very smooth.

Pour the contents of the blender slowly into the tomato mixture and let cook for 30 minutes more. Taste and add more salt as needed. The mole can be fully cooled and stored at this point for up to 5 days. TESTER TIP: This recipe makes more mole than you'll need for the tamales, but that's not a problem. Spoon any leftover mole over grilled or roasted meats or tuck it inside a burrito.

Make the masa mixture

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.

Rub the whole sweet potatoes with olive oil and wrap them, side by side, in a single sheet of foil and place on the baking sheet. Bake until extremely soft, 75 to 90 minutes. About halfway through baking, place the diced sweet potatoes on the baking sheet and roast until al dente, 20 to 40 minutes.

Once cooled, peel and quarter the whole sweet potatoes. Add them to a food processor, and puree until smooth, about 2 minutes. Reserve the roasted diced sweet potatoes for the filling.

To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add 1 cup of the puree. Add half each of the masa, butter, salt, and baking powder, and beat until well combined. (Alternatively, you can mix the ingredients by hand, but the stand mixer creates an airier result.)

Move this mixture to a larger bowl and then repeat the mixer processing with another 1 cup of the potato puree and the remaining masa, butter, salt, and baking powder. Combine with the first batch, then taste and adjust the seasoning as needed (it should taste well-seasoned). Reserve any remaining potato purée for another use.

Make the sweet potato filling

In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, warm 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the onion, jalapeño, and garlic, and season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally and reducing the heat if necessary to avoid browning the onions, until the onions are translucent, 5 to 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the onion mixture, the roasted diced potatoes, and 2 cups of the mole amarillo. Taste and add more salt as needed.

Assemble the tamales

Soak the corn husks in a large bowl or a sink filled with very hot water until softened, about 20 minutes. Remove from the water (no need to dry them off). Working with one at a time, place a husk on a clean work surface with the curved side facing up and the narrower end facing you. (Some husks will be smaller than othersif necessary, use a couple of small husks together, overlapping their long edges slightly.)

Using a spoon or your hands, place a heaping 1/4 cup of masa over the center of each corn husk, leaving a 1 1/2-inch (4-cm) border clear along the wide, flat end of the husks. Spread the masa out to form a round that's about 3 inches (8 cm) across. Add about 3 tablespoons of the chunky sweet potato filling in a line down the center of the masa and spoon some of the sauce over the top. Fold the long edges of the corn husk over the filling to cover, first one side and then the other. Finally, fold the pointy end of the husk over to form a packet (the opposite end of the tamal should remain open). At this point, you can cover and refrigerate the tamales for up to 2 days or freeze the them. Add an extra 15 minutes of steaming time if starting with frozen ones.

Prepare a bamboo or metal steamer over high heat.

When steaming, put the tamales in the steamer, piling them as needed to fit, either horizontally or with their open ends facing up. Steam until the masa has firmed, adding boiling water as necessary, 60 to 120 minutes. (To test, open the husk: a toothpick inserted into the masa should come out mostly clean.)

Let the tamales cool slightly prior to devouring.

Mains