What's for Dinner: Housewife Pie!

In high school I dated a guy whose family is from Newfoundland.  At a big family gathering one day, his aunt said to me, "You need to try my Newfie potato salad."  "Oh," I replied, "What's different about it?  What makes it Newfie potato salad?"  "A Newfie made it" was her answer.

Following along with that logic, I present to you Housewife Pie.  It's Sheppard's Pie, made by a housewife.  But, this housewife prefers sausage and sweet potatoes over ground beef and white potatoes, so that is my spin on this traditional dinner fare. 

This is what I started with.  Ground Johnsonville sausage, frozen mixed vegetables, and sweet potatoes.  Pretty simple so far, right?

Peel and dice the sweet potatoes and boil in a large pot until tender.  In the meantime, cook the ground sausage, and when it is almost cooked through, add a few handfuls of mixed frozen veggies.  Then, drain the sweet potatoes and mash them with a bit of butter, maple syrup and brown sugar.  Put the sausage mixture in a casserole dish, top with the mashed sweet potato, and put the whole thing in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes, just to make sure it's heated through and so that when you cut into it, it stays together and doesn't all fall apart.  Then, eat it up! 

Here are a couple extra tips for you.  You can assemble your Housewife Pie in a freezer safe dish, and freeze for a quick meal that is ready to go when you need it.  Just pull it out of the freezer, thaw it a bit, and cook at 350 degrees until it is heated through.  Another great tip is to cook a little extra Johnsonville ground sausage, and leave a few sweet potato cubes un-mashed.  Then, the next morning, warm up the sausage and sweet potato in the microwave, and top with a couple of eggs, cooked the way you like them.  Drizzle with maple syrup and enjoy.