Sweet Potato Casserole

One cool, crisp fall day, when I was in college, I was at a friend’s in-law’s farm out in the country and we were playing around with the “toys”. At this particular time, it was 4-wheelers (quads) and we were just running around on them or racing/chasing each other with engines wide open enjoying the beauty of the day and the clean fresh air blowing in our faces and through our hair.

Nearby was a man-made lake with a high levee surrounding it and the boys started running their 4-wheelers up, down and all round the top of the levee. However, being the girl I am, I was scared to do what they were doing. So, my friend’s husband jumped on the back of my bike to “show” me how it’s done.

With his coaching, I turned away from the levee for a distance, then followed his instruction to go head-on, straight up the levee then cut right. Against my better judgment I did so. Ok, fine so far…or so I thought….NOT!!! He yelled that I needed to give it more gas, so I did….but not to his satisfaction. He put his hand over mine and pushed my thumb down on the accelerator, HARD, and gunned it. Big mistake.

Before I realized it, he had gunned that damned bike straight up the levee and straight into the air like a rocket with only the two rear wheels on the ground and it was starting to flip over backwards! Holy Sh*t!!! I yanked my hand out from under his thus moving his hand off the accelerator just in the nick of time. Together, we fell off the back of the bike and landed on our backs, me on top of him. Next thing I knew, I was flipped over with my face down in the dirt when he jumped up and went after the bike.

By the time I got myself up and to the top of the levee, the bike was submerged in the lake and my friend’s husband was slogging waist deep after the bike! *SNAP* (conjure a little sassy neck movement here) Serves his a$$ right! He yelled at me to come help him get the bike out before the engine got wet, so there I am pulling on him with him pulling on the bike. He lost his grip and there we go, on our backs, this time he was on me, in the mud and water!

His weight pressed me down into the soft mud, my head went in too, and I had to work against some serious suction to get up and out!! Not pretty! I was madder than a wet cat…I WAS A WET CAT! I evacuated myself from the bowels of hell and with the last shred of dignity that I could muster and a withering glare at anyone who dared to find amusement at my predicament, I stomped off to the main house only to be met by a cold hose bath before I could get within 10 feet of the door. Baptism by frigid water.

Anyway, it was my friend who gave me the following recipe for Christmas one year. It was wonderful and I’ve been making it ever since. The orange juice and raisins offer a unique twist to an old classic.


3 lbs sweet potatoes
3/4 cup orange juice
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup white raisins

TOPPING
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Scrub sweet potatoes, cut in half and boil until tender. Allow to cool then slip the skins off and mash well. Add orange juice, eggs, raisins, vanilla, melted butter, sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir until sweet potatoes are smooth and well blended. Spoon potatoes into buttered 2 quart baking dish.

Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon in medium bowl. Add butter and pecans, stir well. Sprinkle pecan mixture on top of sweet potatoes. Bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes.

***Note: This can be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to cook.