Maple Bourbon Sweet Potato Casserole with Sweet and Spicy Bacon Pecans

There are two methods for roasting the sweet potatoes.

1. Microwave method: Take sweet potatoes and pierce them several times with a fork. Then place on plate and microwave about 6 minutes. This will depend on how high you have your microwave set to. The sweet potato should be soft when done.

2. Oven method: Preheat oven to 400 F and place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet. Bake in the oven for about 45-50 minutes or until sweet potatoes are nice and soft. Remove them from the oven and turn your oven to 350 F.

3. Scoop out the flesh of the sweet potato into a large bowl and mash. Add the remaining potato ingredients and stir to combine. Set aside.

4. Heat a large skillet on high and cook bacon until crispy on both sides. Once finished, remove and place bacon on paper towel. Chop.

5. In the same skillet, add the pecans, brown sugar, flour, butter, cayenne and sage. Stir until thick and toasty. Remove from heat and add in the chopped bacon.

6. Place the sweet potato mixture into a large baking dish (I used an 8×8) and top with the pecan and bacon topping. Bake at 350 F for about 30-35 minutes or until the pecans and topping starts to look nice and brown. Enjoy!

Note: The listed prep time is for the microwave version of the sweet potatoes. It will be longer if baking the potatoes in the oven.

Inspired by Half Baked Harvest.