This Wilderness Our Home

A rich, deeply caramel, citrus-bright sweet potato dish that blends two beloved family recipes into one.

Sweet potatoes weren’t something I grew up excited about. I didn’t like yams, and the marshmallow-covered casseroles that showed up everywhere in November never appealed to me. For years, I just passed them by.

But as an adult, I stood in the kitchen one Thanksgiving and watched my grandmama make her bright orange–glazed sweet potatoes while my Aunt Karen worked on her rich caramel version. They weren’t rushing and they weren’t fussing — just cooking in that steady, practiced way that comes from years of feeding people. Watching them that day is what finally made me curious enough to give sweet potatoes a fair try.

And when I did, I understood why those dishes mattered. Sweet potatoes have deep roots in Southern and African American cooking — resilient, nourishing, adaptable — and my family’s versions carried all of that forward. They weren’t overly sweet or heavy. They were balanced, comforting, and grounded in the kind of home cooking that stays with you.

Once I started hosting holidays, I kept their recipes alive in my own kitchen. We have multiple gatherings each season, so even though I only made one recipe for each celebration, I still made both my grandmama’s and Aunt Karen’s every year. And every time, people asked for them again the next time around.

Eventually, I stopped treating the recipes as separate and developed a version that brings both flavors together — not easier, but not harder — just a way to honor two of the women who shaped the way I cook and learned to feed people well. Truthfully, I am blessed to have had so many wonderful women — and friends — help teach me to cook food that brings people together, each in their own way showing me how to care for those around me through food.

This blended version has become one of the dishes my kids and husband look forward to the most. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and even those rare summer days when someone asks for it “just because.” And with John’s EOE, we’ve built a vegan version that keeps all the warmth and depth of the original.

My grandmama has passed now, but Thanksgiving at her house hasn’t ended — it just looks different. My cousins, brothers, and sisters-in-law cook the meal now, bringing their own recipes alongside the ones Grandmama let us copy down over the years. It’s a quiet, beautiful tribute to a woman who loved and supported her family, bringing us together year after year to celebrate and share.

We won’t make it there this year, but we’ll make this dish. And in its own steady way, it will bring her back to the table — through the connection that good food carries from one generation to the next.

Why This Recipe Works

• Browned butter creates a deeper caramel base.
• Extra brown sugar plus a long simmer forms a thick glaze that actually sticks.
• Apple cider adds warmth and depth without being tart.
• Orange juice brightens everything so it never feels heavy.
• Oven finishing helps the glaze set into a glossy, spoon-coating caramel.
• Designed to perfectly cover a 9×11 pan of sweet potatoes.

🍊 Thick Caramel Orange–Cider Glaze (For a 9×11 Pan)

Rich, Sticky, and Balanced

Ingredients

12 Tbsp butter (1 ½ sticks)

¾ cup brown sugar, packed

4 Tbsp apple cider

4 Tbsp fresh orange juice

1 tsp vanilla

¼ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp fine sea salt

Instructions

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Let it cook 2–3 minutes until lightly browned and fragrant.

Lower heat to medium-low and whisk in the brown sugar until fully melted.

Add the apple cider and orange juice — whisk as it bubbles. Simmer 6–7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the glaze is glossy and thick enough to coat a spoon with a slow, steady drip.

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Let it rest 2–3 minutes — it will thicken slightly more.

Pour over hot sweet potatoes in your 9×11 pan and spread gently. Return to the oven 5 minutes to help the caramel set.

Preparing the Sweet Potatoes

Use whichever method fits your table:

Halves:

Slice lengthwise, brush with oil, and roast at 400°F for 35–45 minutes until tender.

Cubes:

Toss with oil, salt, and pepper. Roast at 400°F for 25–35 minutes, stirring once.

Wedges:

Roast at 400°F for 30–40 minutes, flipping halfway.

Once fully cooked, pour the glaze over while the potatoes are hot.

Notes & Tips

• If the glaze thickens too much to pour, whisk in 1 Tbsp hot water.
• For deeper caramel, extend the simmer by 1–2 minutes.
• Leftovers reheat beautifully — the caramel softens again without breaking.
• Keep heat low once the brown sugar has dissolved to prevent graininess.

Vegan Version (for EOE or Dairy-Free)

Swap the butter for vegan butter or ⅔ cup refined coconut oil (neutral flavored). Simmer exactly the same.

The vegan butter takes a little longer to meld into the sugar mixture — just keep stirring and it will come together smoothly. Coconut oil incorporates more quickly but thickens a little faster, so watch it closely in the last 2 minutes.

Variations

Salted Caramel: Increase sea salt to ½ tsp.

Holiday Spiced: Add a pinch of nutmeg and clove.

Bourbon Caramel: Replace 1 Tbsp cider with bourbon; simmer 1 extra minute.

All-Cider Version: Skip the orange juice for a deeper caramel profile.

Related Posts

More Holiday & Comfort Recipes

Gourmet Apple Pie – a bright, citrus-forward apple pie perfect for gatherings

Spice Blends for Holiday Cooking & Gifting – simple blends to elevate fall + winter dishes

Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies – bakery-style cookies with balanced richness

Pumpkin Pie (Scratch or Purée) – grounded, practical guidance for any level of baker

This dish is everything I love about family recipes — familiar, unfussy, and full of history. It’s a blend of two traditions that shaped the way I learned to cook, and every time it shows up on our table it carries a little of that comfort forward. Whether you make it for a holiday, for a gathering, or simply because someone in your house asked for it again, I hope it brings the same warmth and connection to your kitchen that it brings to ours.

Author’s Note

Cooking has always been one of the ways I understand my family and the people around me. If you’ve ever blended recipes, updated traditions, or created something new to honor the people who taught you how to cook, you’re in good company here. If this recipe becomes part of your table — occasionally or every year — I’d love to know. These shared stories are how we keep our kitchens connected.