Sweet Potato Souffle

My husband grew up in the panhandle of Florida.  I frequently tell people he didn’t really grow up in the part of Florida with beaches, but in the northern part that is nearer in its culture and people to rural Alabama.  And his mother is that quintessential southern farmer’s wife - lots of bacon, cast iron, and fried protein.  Over the years I’ve learned to make her version of cornbread, butter beans, and Sweet Potato Soufflé.  Now her recipe called for two large cans of canned yams, two sticks of margarine, and a cup of white sugar.  Mine starts with 3 to 4 whole sweet potatoes, roasted in their skin until the caramelized sugar spills out onto the half sheet pan.  And my favorite part is the wonderful buttery, pecan-studded crumble that is the perfect crunch on top of the whipped sweet potato.  If you are looking for an alternative to the mashed sweet potatoes with those overly sweet marshmallows, this might be the one for you!
 

Sweet Potato Soufflé
Difficulty - Medium
Yield - 6 to 8 servings

INGREDIENTS
3 pounds Sweet Potatoes (3 to 4 potatoes)
2 tbsps unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Topping
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsps brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
3 tbsps unsalted butter
1/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Line a baking pan with foil.  Wash sweet potatoes, and pierce them with a knife 3 to 4 times.  Place on baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until they are nice and soft and have shrunk from their skin.  Cool at least an hour, until they are cool enough to comfortably handle.
Once the sweet potatoes can be handles, peel away the skin, using a paring knife to remove any of the stubborn pieces.  Place in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Add butter, sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla, and soft.  With the paddle attachment, whip the sweet potatoes until smooth.  Place in the bottom of a 9" cake pan.
In a separate bowl combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Cut cold butter into small pieces, and using a pastry cutter work butter into the sugar and flour mixture until it resembles wet sand.  Add the pecan pieces, the spread over the top of the sweet potato mixture.
Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees, and bake for 40-45 minutes, until the sweet potatoes are set and the crisp topping is lightly browns.