Sweet potato casserole is probably the most favorite holiday side dish. This classic dish is made with soft mashed sweet potato filling and crunchy pecan topping. Many people also prefer to make sweet potato casserole with marshmallow topping. Although we prefer the crunchy pecan topping, I’ve included directions for both types of topping.
SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE
My husband always says that my sweet potato casserole rivals my sweet potato pie. I would have to agree with him because it’t not just the similar flavors of both dishes that we love, it’s also the fact that we can eat this sweet treat with the main meal.
Sweet potato casserole adds a delicious touch of sweetness to the holiday plate. You get a little turkey, some stuffing, mashed potatoes, some green bean casserole, and some sweet potatoes on your plate. The combination of sweet and savory flavors is quite satisfying and bring nothing but comfort and joy.
But don’t just think that you have to wait for Thanksgiving and Christmas to have some. Since sweet potatoes are available year-round, this side dish will compliment any family dinner, any time of the year.
HOW TO MAKE SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE WITH PECAN TOPPING
For sweet potato casserole, it’s best to boil sweet potatoes rather than baking it. When sweet potatoes are baked, they retain and even release more of the natural sweetness. If you add sugar to bakes sweet potatoes, it would just be too sweet. (If you do happen to bake them, or have some leftover, use much less sugar in a casserole or omit it.)
Peel sweet potatoes and chop them into 4 pieces. Place sweet potato chunks into a pot and fill it with water, just enough to cover the potatoes. Bring water to boil and cook potatoes until fork-tender. Strain all the water out of the pot and let potatoes cool for a few minutes. (If you add egg to hot potatoes, you will end up with partially scrambled eggs.)
Add butter, eggs, milk, brown sugar, and vanilla extract and mash it all together using a potato masher. I do not like using a mixer because it whips the potatoes and leaves it with a completely different texture. That’s why I recommend to mash sweet potatoes by hand, and get a little workout in a process.
Grease a 9×9 casserole pan with some butter all over the bottom and up the sides. Spread potato mixture evenly in the pan.
For Pecan Topping:
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped pecans in a mixing bowl and mix until all evenly incorporated. Pour in melted butter while stirring with a fork. Continue to cut and stir with a fork until coarse crumbs form. The topping should look like crumbs, not paste.
Spread the pecan topping over sweet potatoes evenly and bake the casserole for 40-45 minutes.
HOW TO MAKE SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE WITH MARSHMALLOWS
Marshmallows make a beautiful presentation and a tasty, creamy addition to the casserole. You can choose to add marshmallows on top of the crunchy pecan topping or just stick to pecan and marshmallows. Either way, wait to add the marshmallows until the last 10 or so minutes of baking.
I’ve made a mistake of trying to bake the marshmallows at the same time as the whole casserole…but only the one time. Marshmallows will get over-done within 15 minutes or so and the casserole needs it’s time to completely cook through because of the raw eggs. So it’s important to wait to add the marshmallows.
Follow the same instructions to make the sweet potato mixture as above through the step of spreading the mixture in the greased casserole pan.
You can either make the pecan crunch topping as above or simply spread a cup and a half of chopped pecans over the sweet potatoes and bake it for about 30 minutes. Take the casserole out and spread marshmallows over the top. If you want to get super creative, sprinkle a little bit of coarse salt on top and a few more pecans as well. Bake for another 10-15 minutes, until the marshmallows are golden brown.
CAN I MAKE IT AHEAD OF TIME?
Absolutely! It’s very easy to make the casserole ahead of time either part of the way of completely.
Option 1: Prepare sweet potato filling and spread it in the casserole dish. Cover the dish air-tight with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and refrigerate until ready to bake. When ready, prepare the topping, spread it over the sweet potatoes and bake at 350° for about 45 minutes.
Option 2: Casserole can also be completely baked and stored in the refrigerator. Bake the casserole as directed in the recipe and let it cool to room temperature. As soon as it’s cooled, cover it air-tight and store in the refrigerator.
Reheating Sweet Potato Casserole
When ready to reheat the casserole, preheat the oven to 325° and take off all plastic wrap. Cover with aluminum foil and reheat for about 20 minutes. Take off the foil and finish reheating for another 10 minutes.
MORE SIDE DISH RECIPES TO TRY
Orange and Lime Cranberry Sauce
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Sweet Potato Casserole
Classic holiday side dish made with soft mashed sweet potato filling and crunchy pecan topping. (Recipe also includes marshmallow topping option.)
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Filling:
- 2.5 lbs sweet potatoes
- 6 tbsp butter chopped into pieces
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Pecan Crunch Topping:
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 3/4 cup chopped pecans
- 4 tbsp butter
Marshmallow Topping Option:
- 1 1/2 cups pecan halves (or chopped) (or pecan topping from above)
- 2 cups marshmallows
Instructions
Sweet Potato Filling:
Peel sweet potatoes and chop them into 4 pieces. Place sweet potato chunks into a pot and fill it with water, just enough to cover the potatoes.
Bring water to boil and cook potatoes until fork-tender. Strain all the water out of the pot and let potatoes cool for a few minutes.
Add butter, eggs, milk, brown sugar, and vanilla extract and mash it all together using a potato masher.
Grease a 9×9 casserole pan with some butter all over the bottom and up the sides. Spread potato mixture evenly in the pan.
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Pecan Crunch Topping:
Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped pecans in a mixing bowl and mix until all evenly incorporated.
Pour in melted butter while stirring with a fork. Continue to cut and stir with a fork until coarse crumbs form. The topping should look like crumbs, not paste.
Spread the pecan topping over sweet potatoes evenly and bake the casserole for 40-45 minutes.
Marshmallow Topping Option:
For the marshmallow topping, you can choose to add marshmallows on top of the crunchy pecan topping or just stick to simple pecan and marshmallows.
Spread pecans (or pecan crunch topping) over the sweet potato filling and bake for about 30 minutes.
Take the casserole out and spread marshmallows over the top. (If you want to get super creative, sprinkle a little bit of coarse salt on top as well.)
Bake for another 10-15 minutes, until the marshmallows are golden brown.
Recipe Notes
NOTE: nutrition is calculated for Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Crunch Topping.
All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe. Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have a slight variation.
Barbara says
You mention butter twice in your directions, but no where do you mention amount and if it should be melted or warmed etc
LyubaB says
Hi, Barbara! I did forget to add the amount of butter to the pecan crunch topping but it’s fixed now, its 4 tbsp. Thank you for letting me know!