Sweet Potato Casserole

Don and I both agreed that this was the best thing on the table for Thanksgiving this year! We ended up being so busy with preparations that I completely forgot to make the pie and didn't remember until we were sitting down to dinner. Don said though that these were so good we didn't even need pie, which made me feel a lot better! :) Our crumble/streuesel topping didn't turn out looks~wise (ended up more mushy then crumbly-I think our butter was too soft), but taste-wise was still awesome. 

No marshmallows on top this year, but that's probably for the best. While I like the look of the roasted marshmallows on top, the leftovers will keep better this way. Leftover marshmallow topping never works out. I've discovered from previous years that it gets all slimy and gross and we end up peeling it all off anyways. Our version ended up being a slight adaptation b/w this recipe and this recipe. which are pretty much identical except for a couple of ingredients and preparations. 
   

INGREDIENTS for SWEET POTATOES:

• 4 cups peeled and cubed sweet potato (This ended up being about 2 medium-large potatoes)
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 eggs beaten
• 2 Tbsp milk (Original recipe calls for heavy cream, but we didn't have any. If you happen to have cream on hand, I imagine it would be good. Milk worked out just fine though.)

INGREDIENTS for TOPPING:

• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 cup to 3/4 brown sugar
• 1/4 cup butter softened (room temp.)

PREPARATION:

1. Put cubed sweet potatoes in medium saucepan with enough water to cover. Cook over medium high heat until tender; drain and mash.
2. Preheat the oven to 325.
3. In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the sweet potatoes and mix until smooth. Transfer to baking dish. (Both original recipes called for a 9x13 but we ended up using an 8x8 and it worked out great.)
4. In a medium bowl, mix the brown sugar and flour together. Cut butter into mixture with pastry blender  or fork until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Sprinkle over sweet potato mash.
5. Bake for 30 min. in preheated oven, or until topping is crisp and lightly browned.