Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole

My absolute favorite thing to eat at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse isn't their steak...it's the sweet potato casserole!  It's the best sweet potato side dish I've ever had!  So, I'm totally making it tomorrow for my family's Thanksgiving potluck.  It tastes like it's complicated, but actually only requires a few basic ingredients--my favorite type of recipe!

Here's an instructional video from a Ruth's Chris chef making this delicious dish:

Ruth's Chris special sweet potato casserole 

Makes 12 servings

Crust

1 cup brown sugar 
1/3 cup flour 
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans preferred) 
1/3 stick butter, melted 
Combine brown sugar, flour, nuts and butter in mixing bowl. Set aside.

Sweet Potato Mixture

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes 
1 cup sugar 
½ teaspoon salt 
1 teaspoon vanilla 
2 eggs, well beaten 
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a medium-size casserole dish with nonstick spray.

Combine sweet potatoes, sugar, salt, vanilla, eggs and butter in a large mixing bowl in the order listed. Beat thoroughly with a hand mixer to increase the fluffiness of the sweet potato mixture.

Pour mixture into the baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes. (At this point, dish can be covered and refrigerated.)

Sprinkle the surface of the sweet potato mixture evenly with the crust mixture and return to oven for 10 minutes. Allow to set at least 30 minutes before serving.

The brown sugar and pecan crust should be slightly browned and crunchy.