YUMMY YAM AND APPLE BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake yams until very soft when squeezed. Lightly butter a 10-inch ceramic quiche pan or shallow 2 quart ceramic casserole dish. Remove baked yams from oven and when cool enough to handle, cut in half and scoop out flesh into a medium pot. Add the butter, salt and pepper, and mash until smooth. Spread half of mashed yams in prepared dish. Completely cover yams with a layer of apple wedges arranged in an overlapping circular/spiral fashion. Squeeze juice from half a lemon over apples to prevent discoloration. Evenly sprinkle cinnamon atop apples and if desired, add a few dashes each of nutmeg and cloves. Evenly sprinkle half the brown sugar and half the rum over. Dot with half the butter pieces. Carefully spread remaining yams atop apples and finish with layer of remaining apples, lemon juice, spices, brown sugar, rum and butter. May be made to this point the day before serving, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before finishing. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until edges are bubbling and apples are tender, lightly caramelized and golden-brown in colour. NOTE: I really prefer the texture of baked yams for this dish. However, to save time and oven space, I have occasionally peeled the yams, cut into chunks and boiled until tender. Drain in a colander and let sit a few minutes to thoroughly dry before mashing to ensure they are not too wet/watery.