There is (was?) a restaurant in the Silver Lake section of Los Angeles
where I ate sweet potato tamales. They were very good, although I
though they needed more sweet potatoes. Since then I have been trying
to get my tamal making friends to make some with sweet potatoes.
Nobody was interested, so yesterday I decided to do it myself -- my
first attempt at making tamales.

I made three kinds using cooked (boiled) sweet potatoes and masa with
sugar, home-made chicken broth, and "I Can't Believe it Isn't Butter"
instead of lard. I wanted to use brown sugar, but my store here in
Mexico doesn't carry it. I wish I put in some nutmeg or pumpkin pie
spice. The three kinds we

1. the potatoes blended into the masa with no filling – a little too
strong on the potato
2. mashed potato filling -- good
3. chunks of potato filling -- best

All three turned out quite tasty although they looked pretty deformed.
I certainly need more practice in assembly. They were better cold
this morning. With a little whipped cream, they would be a good
desert.