Watershed Sweet Potato Casserole.

Watershed Restaurant, just outside Atlanta in Decatur, has been on my radar to visit for quite some time. Emily Saliers, one member of the singing duo Indigo Girls, (my perpetual favorite music... others may come and go, but the Indigos never leave me) is a part-owner, and the restaurant is named after one of her songs. However, since it's opening around 10 years ago, the restaurant has developed quite a reputation and a following. So, now it is not just a stop on a musical pilgrimage. It is a destination all on its own!

I was just watching a show on Thanksgiving on the Food Network, and they went to Watershed to show how to make Sweet Potato Casserole, so I know that the recipe must be fabulous! They have a few recipes on the restaurant site, so I'm grabbing them before they are gone! And if you browse through the "Press" section on their website, you will see some of the amazing coverage that the restaurant and chef have gotten. Here is one other article on Chef Scott Peacock.

Sweet Potato Casserole

The filling:
5 pounds small sweet potatoes (about 10 potatoes)
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups milk, heated
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

The topping:
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons homemade baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground Ceylon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
1 cup chopped pecans

To make:
Wash the sweet potatoes and put them on a foil or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350* F. oven for 1 - 1 1/2 hours until they are very tender. Remove from the oven and allow to cool briefly before peeling. Put the peeled sweet potatoes into the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with beaters or a whip attachment. Mix the hot sweet potatoes on low speed to begin mashing them. Add the butter and mix until it is absorbed . Add the salt, nutmeg, honey, and both sugars and mix until they are thoroughly blended. Add the lightly beaten eggs and vanilla and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add in the heated milk. When the milk is incorporated, taste carefully for seasoning and add more salt, nutmeg, or sugar as needed. Thoroughly butter a 9x13x2 baking dish with the softened butter and pour the sweet potato mixture into it.

The topping:
Put the brown sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt into a mixing bowl and mix well. Use your fingers to work the chilled butter into the mixture until it resembles oatmeal with some large pea size pieces of butter in it. Stir in the pecan pieces and mix well. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the top of the sweet potatoes and bake in a preheated 375* F. oven for 30 to 45 minutes until the topping is golden brown and crisp and the sweet potatoes are set but still slightly loose in the center. Serve hot.

makes enough to serve 12