Sweet Potato, Carrot, Fruit Casserole

I finally got around to making this casserole recipe that is similar to my fave camping breakfast (dried sweet potato and carrots with cream and cinnamon). It tasted so good and oatmeal like! It does not seem to have been originally conceived as a breakfast dish, I just highly recommend it that way.

I edited the original recipe a bit, primarily to include less sugar/fruit, and it still was plenty sweet and delicious. You could still remove the prunes and it would be good too. I ate it this morning with some cream and coconut flakes on top. Mmm. Though the original recipe calls for peeling everything and cutting it small, I went the less fussy way and just cut everything up. Still good! I could see the high maintenance way being nice if you were hosting a fancy party or something. I mean, the photo is quite lovely with hose perfectly diced and peeled things. This makes a lot - I halved it and had enough for several meals. The recipe here serves 8.

2+ tablespoon butter 
6 medium carrots (about 1 1/2 pounds), cut in 3/4-inch dice
3 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 1/4 pounds), cut in 3/4-inch dice
2 Granny Smith (or other tart) apples, cored and cut in medium dice
1/4 cup pitted prunes, quartered
2 tablespoons mild honey
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Salt to taste (about 1/2 teaspoon)
2/3 cup water
lemon (or orange) zest (of half a fruit or so)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Melt butter in a 3-quart baking dish in the oven while it preheats.
2. Place the carrots and sweet potatoes in a steamer set above 1 inch of boiling water, and steam for five to 10 minutes, until just tender. Drain and toss with the remaining ingredients in the buttery baking dish. Place in the oven, and bake 40 to 50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes, until the sweet potatoes and carrots are thoroughly tender. Dot the top with a little more butter, and bake another 10 minutes until the top is lightly browned. Remove from the heat, and serve hot or warm.
Advance preparation: You can assemble this dish several hours before baking. You can bake it a day or two ahead of serving; reheat it in a medium oven.