Leftovers Recipe: Cranberry Apple Sweet Potato Crisp

The sweet potato casserole is often a favorite, so you may not always have many leftovers, but if you do, it sometimes seems lacking on subsequent days. Here is a creative and interesting way to dress up that leftover casserole, and make it shine anew. The tartness of the apples and cranberries provide a perfect foil to the sweet creaminess of the leftover casserole, and the addition of a crunchy topping provides textural interest as well as tantalizing your taste buds!

Cranberry Apple Sweet Potato Crisp

Ingredients:

4 cups leftover sweet potato casserole
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup chopped tart apples
2 cups leftover cranberry orange relish
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp brown sugar
3 cups oat or corn flake cereal

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a shallow casserole dish.
2. Put the leftover sweet potatoes in a bowl with the cream cheese and mix with an electric mixer until smooth.  Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and mix again until smooth. Note: If your sweet potato casserole is very sweet, you can omit the added brown sugar and cinnamon.  If your sweet potatoes are unsweetened, then be sure to add these ingredients. 
3. Layer the sweet potato mixture into the casserole dish, distributing evenly.
4. Sprinkle the apple pieces evenly over the top.
5. Spoon the cranberry orange relish evenly on the top.
6. Sprinkle the walnuts over the top.
7. Put the butter, flour, and brown sugar in a bowl and cut with pastry cutter or with forks until mixture is crumbly. Add the cereal flakes and toss until combined.
8. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the casserole.
9. Bake, uncovered, in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until the casserole is hot and bubbly and the crunchy topping is lightly browned.