Laura Vitale is a godsend. Try this for the holidays and you will not regret it. And yes, bake those potatoes. Do not boil them!
If you want them very smooth, I suggest using a potato ricer.
Sweet Potato Casserrole
ingredients:
For the sweet potato base: 2-1/2 lb of sweet potatoes cooked at 350 for about 1 and half hour, or until tender
2 Eggs
1/4 cup of Granulated Sugar
1/4 cup Whole Milk
1/4 cup of Brown Sugar
1/4 cup of Unsalted Butter softened at room temperature
1/2 tsp Salt
For the Topping:
1/4 cup of brown sugar. 2 Tbsp of Flour
1-1/2 Tbsp of Unsalted Butter cold and cut into cubes. 1/2 cup of Chopped Pecans.
About 1 to 1-½ cups of Marshmallows
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
Process,
1) With your oven preheated to 350F, grease a 2qt baking dish and set aside.
2) Scoop out all the flesh of the cooked sweet potatoes and place them in a large bowl. Using a potato masher, mash until smooth, add the butter, milk and both kinds of sugar and mix to combine.
3) Allow the mixture to sit and cool for a few minutes, stir in the eggs and set aside.
4) To make the topping, place the brown sugar, cinnamon, flour and butter into a bowl and using a pastry cutter or a fork, mix the ingredients together making sure the butter breaks up a bit and gets distributed well with the sugar and flour.
5) Add the sweet potato mixture to the baking dish, top with the streusel topping followed by the pecans. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden and bubbly.
6) Scatter the mini marshmallows in a single layer, pop it back in the oven for about 5 minutes or until they puff up and develop some golden color on top.
For 9 x 14 dish, multiply everything by 1.5