Sweet Potato Casserole

**Edited To Include Finished Photos and More Instruction**

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When I was growing up, going out to eat was a rare treat. My mom cooked every meal and she is an excellent cook. She belonged to a Homemaker's club and every year they'd have a holiday party where everyone would bring a dish and the recipe to share. Many of the dishes we make today came from her homemaker friends. I think this Sweet Potato Casserole might be one of those.

I like sweet potatoes. And I love casseroles made with sweet potatoes and brown sugar and marshmallows. But this recipe??? It's pure heaven. It's different than any sweet potato casserole I've ever had. It's very rich and almost custardy. There are only six ingredients and it's so easy to prepare. We make this dish every Thanksgiving and we all look forward to it. I'm going to make some this evening and I'll share a photo of the finished product. But for now, in case your mouth is already watering, here's the recipe. I hope you'll try it and if you decide to, I hope you love it as much as we do.

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Sweet Potato Casserole

2 cups grated raw sweet potato, firmly packed

(we grate it on the side of a box grater so you get thin round slices)

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons vanilla

1/2 stick butter

1 1/2 cups half and half

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Just one warning :: you may be sorry if you don't double the recipe :)

I doubled the recipe and it fits perfectly in a 2 quart casserole dish. Beat sugar and eggs until light and then add the rest of the ingredients. Now, the recipe says to cover and bake in a buttered dish for 50 minutes at 350 degrees. I hadn't made this in a while and forgot that we always need to cook it much longer. I baked it covered for 50 minutes and then continued to bake it uncovered for 40 more minutes. You'll know it's ready when it looks like this: See? It's sort of custardy (yes, that's butter sitting in the crevices but it's only once a year) and the potatoes are nice and tender. Mmmmmm, the smell is amazing. Oh, and one more thing. Today I used a mandoline to slice the potatoes nice and thin. It was much quicker than using the box grater. It's after 10:00 pm and I just pulled this casserole out of the oven. Is it wrong to eat sweet potato casserole right before bed?