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   We spent quite a few years trying to recreate these the way Bill's grandmother made them. She had passed away when he was 13 and did not leave a recipe.  One recipe after another just produced cooked sweet potatoes with a sauce, good but not what we were after.  What we were trying to make was one where the sweet potatoes take in the butter/sugar mix and turn into something new and wonderful. Finally we found a recipe that got us there. There's something magic about the way these change at the end of cooking.  All through cooking they taste the same, then suddenly they change. 
                  Candied Sweet Potatoes
4 medium to large orange fleshed sweet potatoes
1 stick butter (1/4 pound)
1 cup light brown sugar
1 Tbs molasses
salt to taste

Instructions

Peel and cut sweet potatoes into chunks no bigger than 1 inch thick. Microwave on high in a vented covered bowl with a little water for 10 minutes or until they start to soften.
 
In a large pan melt the butter, sugar, salt, and molasses. Drain potatoes and add to pan. Stir to coat the potatoes.
 
Cook on low heat. Cover for a while stirring occasionally until water comes out of potatoes. You want to see just a little bubbling. Remove the lid and stir more frequently until the water has evaporated and only a thick sauce remains. Tasting is necessary because until the change happens they will taste like sweet potatoes in sauce. Keep cooking on low, adding a little water if necessary to prevent burning, until the flavors meld and they taste like something different. It's hard to describe but you will taste the difference when the magic happens. Cooking time is at least 30 minutes.  

Suggested additions would be rum or orange zest.

< This is what they look like when they begin to cook. You don't want to see any more than a little slow bubbling or they will cook too quickly and the magic may not happen.