Candidate Barack Obama, on pie, in South Philly:
http://www.youtube.com/...
He likes sweet potato pie, his mother in law makes the best. I knew right then that my decision to vote for him was right.
First because I like REALLY like sweet potato pie, and second, that was probably one of the most brilliant between-the-lines and over a lot of heads comments I've ever heard.
The reason a chubby balding middle aged white guy like me knew what Obama was actually saying (his point really wasn't about pie) was because a lot black people that were my acquaintances, if not actual friends, have, over the years, done me a big favor. Once they figured out I wasn't a knee jerk racist, (and I usually got the benefit of the doubt on that, maybe because I am, like most here on DKos, an outspoken liberal) I got cut a lot of slack.
So those moments for me... where I stumbled into uttering some racial insensitivity were met with a bit of education, only occasionally irritation, but almost never accusations of racism.
I'm talking about the late 60's early to mid 70's. Those days are over, I guess, and everyone SHOULD know by now what it means to be a minority. And be aware of all the cultural references, pitfalls, and knowledge of what the real racists use as code words.
But my real point isn't about race and why, rather than be accused of racism, I got things explained to me (thank you friends from my past) my real point is about Sweet Potato Pie.
No recipe. Just some general advice. Find the simplest recipe you can find, skip anything from any "gourmet" magazine. The spices are nutmeg and cinnamon, maybe a touch of others, but go easy on them, this isn't pumpkin pie, real sweet potato pie is about the sweet potatoes. And DON'T make it into some whippy fru fru foamy stuff, it's suppose to be dense, with tiny chunks of sweet potato if you get it right.
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream on top. Because the contrast in color, texture and flavor can work so damn well together.