Candied Yams (Candied Sweet Potatoes)

- Preheat oven to 375F. Spray a 3 quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- Peel sweet potatoes and rinse clean. Slice potatoes to 1/2 inch thick slices. Try to keep them roughly the same thickness so they cook evenly.
- In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar, melted butter, maple syrup, ground cinnamon, vanilla extract and salt. Whisk until smooth. If the mixture is very thick, pop in the microwave for 30 seconds to loosen it up.
- Transfer sliced sweet potatoes to the prepared baking dish and spread evenly.
- Drizzle the brown sugar mixture over the top of the sweet potatoes and toss to combine. You want each piece of sweet potato coated in the mixture.

Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and gently stir. Bake for another 15 minutes (no foil) and again, gently stir. Check to see how tender the sweet potatoes are at this point. Bake for another 5 to 15 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of your potatoes. Make sure they are tender (but not falling apart) before removing.
If adding marshmallows, sprinkle marshmallows on top and pop back in the oven for 5 minutes. Serve immediately.