Sweet Potato Casserole is inspired by Ruth's Chris Steakhouse with a decadent sweet potato filling and crunchy brown sugar streusel topping. It's a fantastic autumn and holiday dish that is comforting, sweet, and full of flavor.
Serve up this Thanksgiving dish with an amazing, foolproof Spatchcock Turkey, and other sides like my Southern Baked Mac and Cheese that broke my site last Thanksgiving, my grandma's Southern Candied Yams, these Slow-Cooked Southern Green Beans with ham hocks, and my favorite Easy, Creamy Mashed Potatoes.
I'm happy to announce that this recipe is part of the 2020 Black History Month Pot Luck, where there are 29 amazing black food bloggers creating recipes from all across the Diaspora -- vegan and vegetarian is the theme this year, so this is my addition: sweet potato casserole with brown sugar topping! Sweet potatoes have been a part of our
I have a list of the other bloggers and their recipes in this post, so don't forget to give them a view and try their recipes!
What is Sweet Potato Casserole?
Sweet Potato Casserole is a classic Southern holiday dish that is originally made without marshmallows. The marshmallow addition was actually a marketing ploy by...a marshmallow company.
Yep.
A form of sweet potato casserole has been around since 1795, found in old cookbooks made with things like rose water, then it was changed to be more sweet with cinnamon and whipped egg whites.
Then a marshmallow company wanted people to use their product more in everyday life so they pushed out the sweet potato-marshmallow dish in a cookbook and it ended up sticking around.
What's the difference between Yams and Sweet Potatoes
If you see an old southern recipe calling for 'yams', know that they are not actual yams. The “yams” are actually just a softer type of sweet potatoes. True yams are starchier, tougher, and drier tubers that are native to Africa and parts of Asia.
Real yams look more like yucca, with brown treebark-like skin and white, starchy insides. The sweet potatoes we know as ‘yams’ are orange-fleshed sweet potatoes which are easy to find at the local grocery store, and some variations have deeper sweeter flavors. Which is why they’re great for pies and candied yams.
How to make Sweet Potato Casserole
A great sweet potato casserole has really simple ingredients!
Baked Sweet Potatoes. We need these to be baked, honey. Baked sweet potatoes have a richer, deeper, more caramelized flavor than boiling them. And they retain more nutrients this way!
Brown Sugar and Granulated Sugar.
Kosher Salt.
Vanilla Extract.
Cinnamon and fresh Nutmeg.
Unsalted Butter.
Large Eggs.
All-Purpose Flour.
Chopped Pecans, which are optional but are really good.
Old Fashioned Rolled Oats.
First thing first, press the sweet potatoes through a ricer. Sweet potatoes tend to have tough strings all throughout them, so a ricer not only mashes the potatoes in a way that makes them light and fluffy but it also catches the strings in it.
Next, mix all the filling ingredients in a large bowl. If you didn't use a ricer, use an electric hand mixer to whip everything together and break up those sweet potato strings.
Mix the streusel topping ingredients together in a separate bowl, then layer the sweet potato filling and topping in a prepared baking dish.
Bake for an hour, and let cool a little.
And that's all you need for sweet potato casserole! Easy as pie (preferably a sweet potato pie).
Is Sweet Potato Casserole a Make-Ahead Recipe?
You can make sweet potato casserole days in advance. Prepare all the ingredients then put the sweet potato filling in the baking dish and cover it with plastic wrap. Keep the topping separate and covered as well. Keep both in the fridge for up to 3 days. Sprinkle the topping over the filling and bake when you need it!
How to Freeze Sweet Potato Casserole
Prepare the sweet potato casserole filling and spread it into a freezer-safe baking dish. Wrap the dish tightly with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
When you're ready to bake the casserole, remove it from the freezer and allow to safely thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Make the streusel topping and place on top of the sweet potato filling and bake as directed.
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Sweet Potato Casserole
Sweet Potato Casserole is inspired by Ruth's Chris Steakhouse with a decadent sweet potato filling and crunchy brown sugar streusel topping. It's a fantastic autumn and holiday dish that is comforting, sweet, and full of flavor.
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Filling
- 5 cups baked sweet potatoes, mashed through a ricer (about 5-6 medium sweet potatoes)
- ½ cup (95g) light brown sugar
- ½ cup (95 g) granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 tablespoon (1 stick; 100 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 teaspoon (10 mL) vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, well beaten
Brown Sugar Streusel Topping
- 1 cup (190 g) light brown sugar
- ½ cup (70 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (112 g) chopped pecans
- 6 tablespoon (150 g) unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup (24 g) old fashioned rolled oats
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F (190° C). Spray a 9x13 oven-safe baking dish with non-stick spray or grease it with a little butter.
- In a large bowl, combine the sweet potatoes, brown and granulated sugars, kosher salt, unsalted butter, vanilla extract, and eggs with a whisk or hand mixer until the sweet potato mixture is creamy, about 3 minutes.
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into prepared baking dish. Set it aside.
- Mix the brown sugar topping ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl with a rubber spatula, then sprinkle the mixture generously and evenly over sweet potatoes in the baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 50-55 minutes, the topping should be brown and crunchy. Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
How to Freeze Sweet Potato Casserole
Prepare the sweet potato casserole filling and spread it into a freezer-safe baking dish. Cool completely, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and store in the freezer up to 3 months. When ready to bake, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Make streusel topping mixture and place on top of casserole and bake as directed.
How to Make Sweet Potato Casserole in Advance
Prepare all the ingredients, put the sweet potato filling in the baking dish and cover it. Keep the topping separate and covered as well. Keep both in the fridge for up to 3 days. Sprinkle the topping over the filling and bake when you need it!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 237Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 82mgSodium: 251mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 3gSugar: 6gProtein: 4g
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Eden Westbrook is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind Sweet Tea and Thyme. A classically trained chef, Eden has inspired home cooks into the kitchen with cultural comfort foods, easy family-friendly eats and sweets, and glorious spreads for date night and entertaining since 2015.
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