1) Preheat oven to 350F. In a a large pot, add sweet potatoes and fill with water until the potatoes are just covered. Bring to a boil, turn heat down and gently boil until potatoes are fork tender, about 15 minutes. In a large bowl add: beaten egg, sugar, evaporated milk, orange zest from the orange, 3 tablespoons of butter and vanilla.

2) Add cooked and drained sweet potatoes to the large bowl and break up the sweet potatoes with a wooden spoon or a mixer on low speed.

3) Add the freshly squeezed orange juice (about 1/4 cup) and mix until combined and potatoes are smooth. Put sweet potato mixture into a greased 9 x 5 loaf pan.For the crumb topping, mix brown sugar and flour, cut in the 2 tablespoons of butter then stir in the pecan pieces. cover the sweet potato casserole completely with the crumb topping. Decorate with pecan halves if desired.

4) Bake for 25 minutes.