Sweet Potato Casserole
My classic Southern sweet potato casserole is creamy, sweet, and crunchy with toasted pecans for absolute comfort food. Add marshmallows for extra addictive gooiness.
My favorite thing about the holidays is spending time with family. My next favorite thing is the food. Sweet potatoes are naturally sweet and irresistible, but when you add spices, pecans, and marshmallows, you’ve got a celebration-worthy Thanksgiving casserole.
And the warm smell of cinnamon wafting from the kitchen will draw everyone in. That may be why the kitchen is where all the action is when family visits.
Which Sweet Potatoes Work Best for Casseroles
One of the first questions I face is the difference between yams and sweet potatoes. In the States, especially California, yams are the really sweet, bright orange sweet potatoes. True yams are a different vegetable, and we use them more like potatoes in Africa.
The Jewel and Red Garnet sweet potatoes, with orange or red skin, are moister and sweeter, perfect for casseroles. The white and purple are drier and less sweet, so if you decide to use them, know that the casserole will be denser, and you may want to add more sweetness.
How to Make Sweet Potato Casserole
- Bake the cleaned sweet potatoes wrapped with aluminum foil at 400°F for about 50-60 minutes or until soft. (Photos 1-4)
- Mash the peeled sweet potatoes with a potato masher until smooth. (Photo 6)
- Whisk the milk, eggs, heavy cream, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, vanilla extract, and salt to taste until smooth. (Photo 6)
- Spread the mashed sweet potato mixture into the greased baking dish. (Photos 7-8)
- Mix the flour, brown sugar, butter, salt, and chopped pecans in a small bowl until moistened and it forms clumps. (Photos 9-10)
- Bake at 400℉ (205℉) until the top is slightly brown, 25-30 minutes. (Photo 11)
- Top the casserole with about a cup of marshmallows, then broil for 3-5 minutes or until slightly brown. Allow to cool slightly, and serve hot. (Photo 12)
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Look for sweet potatoes with orange flesh and smooth, unblemished skin.
- Feel free to swap out toppings by using just pecans or just marshmallows.
- Leftover baked or boiled sweet potatoes work great for this recipe.
Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions
Roast or boil a big batch of sweet potatoes and freeze them still in the skin. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then make your casserole.
If you want to make the casserole a day or two ahead, assemble the filling and transfer it to a greased casserole dish. Then make the streusel topping and store it in a ziplock bag separately. Take them out of the fridge 30 minutes before baking, add the streusel topping, and bake as usual.
Leftovers last in the fridge 3-4 days or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
Thanksgiving Menu Ideas
For a large crowd, Cajun roasted turkey, and for a smaller gathering, roasted turkey crown is wonderful. Great sides include collard greens, cornbread, gravy, cranberry sauce, creamed spinach, and pecan pie.
More Delectable Sweet Potato Recipes to Try
By Imma
Watch How to Make It
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”ZxIMmUZR” upload-date=”2021-09-02T06:12:21.000Z” name=”Sweet Potato Casserole” description=”Sweet Potato Casserole – Southern classic comfort food that is sweet and creamy topped with crunchy buttery pecan, brown sugar, and toasted gooey mini marshmallows. Irresistibly delicious with its heavenly goodness in every bite. A must-have holiday side dish or dessert that will surely bring joy to your loved ones.” player-type=”collapse” override-embed=”false”]
This blog post was first published in November 2017 and has been updated with additional information, new photos, and a video.
Sweet Potato Casserole
Ingredients
The Casserole
- 3 pounds (1.5kg) sweet potatoes
- ¼ cup (60ml) milk
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup (60ml) heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons (60g) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons (25g) brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon (1g) ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon (1g) ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon (1-2g) ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
- salt to taste (see notes)
Streusel Topping
- ½ cup (60g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (100g) brown sugar
- ¼ cup (60g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 pinch salt (to taste)
- 4 ounces (113g) chopped pecans
- 1 cup (60g) mini marshmallows
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉ (205℉).
- Wash sweet potatoes and remove any blemishes or dark spots. Pierce each sweet potato several times with a fork. Then wrap them in aluminum foil.
- Bake at 400℉ (205℉) for 50-60 minutes or until a fork easily pierces into the center. Let them cool slightly.
- Once sweet potatoes are cool enough to handle, remove the skin or scoop the sweet potato flesh out. Place the sweet potato flesh in a large bowl.
- Mash sweet potatoes with a potato masher until smooth. Then add the milk, eggs, heavy cream, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, vanilla extract, and salt to taste. Whisk the mixture until smooth.
- Spread the mashed sweet potatoes into a greased baking dish.
- For the streusel topping, mix the flour, brown sugar, butter, and salt in a medium bowl until moistened and the mixture clumps together.
- Stir in the pecans and spread the streusel mixture over the top of the sweet potatoes in an even layer.
- Bake at 400℉ (205℉) for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly.
- Sprinkle the marshmallows over the top, then broil for 3-5 minutes until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven, let it cool slightly, and serve hot.
Tips & Notes:
- You can boil or steam the sweet potatoes if you don’t want to bake them. They will be moister, and if the casserole is too soupy, you can whisk in an extra egg or two.
- How much salt is salt to taste is a personal preference. I started with a ½ teaspoon, then did a taste test to make sure it was enough.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the ingredients used.
how many does this serve?
It serves about 8-10. However, it can vary greatly depending on the serving size.
All your recipes look so yummy and delicious.I will be trying a lot of them.Thanks for continuing sending them . Donna
Thanks so much for dropping by, Donna! Share with me how it turns out when you’ve tried it.
Hello! I live in Jamaica and don’t have access to the orange sweet potatoes. Can this recipe be made with Jamaican purple sweet potatoes? (White flesh) thanks!
Hello!
Yes it sure can. Enjoy!
Very tasty! Good for any season I my opinion! Just ate it for Memorial Day cookout.
Glad it turned out great for you, Jessie! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
You never cease to amaze me with your delicious recipes. I will make this recipe for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. Have a most blessed holiday and thank you!