This sweet potato casserole is the ultimate Thanksgiving side dish with a delicious creamy filling of tender sweet potatoes, butter, brown sugar and streusel pecan topping.
One of my favorite Thanksgiving side dishes (and of course with a big slice of pumpkin pie).
Table of Contents
Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping
We always make this delicious dish for our Christmas dinner and Thanksgiving menu. It’s a holiday staple and one that my family requests every year, along with my cheesy green bean casserole, corn casserole, easy cheesy potatoes, and cranberry sauce.
You will love this sweet and savory sweet potato casserole recipe filled with tender sweet potatoes, brown sugar, and butter with toasty pecan streusel topping. While this can be made ahead, if you want something easier, try these candied yams.
Recipe Ingredients
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Sweet potato filling: The key to this casserole is using pre-baked sweet potatoes. Mashed and mixed together with sugar, eggs, melted butter, evaporated milk, salt, and vanilla.
- Brown sugar and pecan crumble: The nuttiness of pecans is paired with the depth of sweet brown sugar and a little bit of cinnamon for spice. Softened butter and flour bring it all together to create an irresistible crumble.
How to Make Sweet Potato Casserole
- Baking your sweet potatoes is the key to making the best sweet potato casserole. It brings out such amazing flavor and makes them tender and caramelized. It’s super easy and my favorite way to cook them.
- Mix. Scoop cooked potatoes into a bowl and mash. Add white sugar, eggs, salt, butter, milk and vanilla. Mix together until smooth. Pour into a 9×13″ baking dish (or 11×8″ dish if you’d like your casserole a little thicker).
- Topping. In a separate bowl, mix together the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and butter with a fork or pastry cutter. You may need to use your hands to create the crumble. Then stir in the pecans.
- Bake. Sprinkle the topping over the sweet potatoes and then bake at 325°F for 25-30 minutes.
Toppings
The topping is really what makes sweet potato casserole!
- Pecan crumble: The crumble topping on this casserole is seriously the BEST part! It pretty much tastes like candied pecans on top of the sweet potatoes and will become your new favorite after just one bite. It’s made with a mixture of brown sugar, cinnamon, flour, butter, and pecans.
- Marshmallows: If you want to make this a dessert-like holiday dish, make sweet potato casserole with marshmallows. Add mini marshmallows during last few minutes of cooking.
Helpful Tips
- Sweet potatoes. Choose the right sweet potatoes! A sweet potato should be firm and have a bright orange flesh coloring to it. If you can find sweet potatoes without bumps and cuts on them, that would be best.
- Prepare. Peeling the sweet potatoes Cut the sweet potato in large chunks evenly to help ensure the cubes cook together at the same time.
- Seasoning. Add seasoning to the sweet potato casserole. A pinch of ground cloves, allspice, or with any fall seasoning you love.
- Overcooking. Try not to overcook this classic sweet potato casserole recipe. The texture will become dry. Bake just until the sweet potato casserole is heated through.
Do you love holiday dinners?! This sweet potato casserole dish deserves a main event like this oven-roasted turkey or smoked turkey.
More Holiday Side Dishes
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Sweet Potato Casserole
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
Brown Sugar Topping
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup salted butter , softened
- ½ cup chopped pecans
Casserole
- 5 prebaked sweet potatoes *see notes
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup unsalted butter , slightly melted
- ⅓ cup evaporated milk (can use milk or cream)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
Optional: 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- In a medium bowl, mix together 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/4 butter butter with a fork or pastry cutter. You may need to use your hands to create the crumble. Stir in the pecans.
Casserole
- Scoop flesh from 5 pre-baked potatoes into a large bowl and mash with a potato masher. It should be about 3 cups.
- Stir in 1/2 cup sugar, 2 large eggs, 1/4 cup butter, 1/3 cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1/2 teaspoon salt until smooth. Spread evenly in a 9×13-inch baking dish (or an 11×8-inch baking dish for a thicker casserole). Sprinkle the pecan topping evenly over the sweet potatoes.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until the topping is lightly browned and caramelized.
- If adding marshmallows, sprinkle over the top and broil for 2 minutes, or until golden brown and gooey.
Notes
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Place sweet potatoes on a baking sheet and pierce with a fork. You can wrap them with foil if you prefer.
- Bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until fork tender.
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Recipe FAQs
That, my friend, is completely up to you. There are differing opinions on whether marshmallows belong in sweet potato casseroles, and it all comes down to what you want to do. I have added instructions to the recipe if you would like to go the route of a sweeter side dish.
You absolutely can! It can be made and frozen up to 3 months in advance. Cover the unbaked casserole with a double layer of aluminum foil. The day before serving, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator. Let it come to room temperature 30 minutes before baking.
Not at all. You can always opt to use canned or boil them instead. I prefer the flavor you get from baking, as it adds an extra element of sweetness, but do whatever works best for you.
Place the cooled casserole in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for three days. When ready to reheat, place in the oven or heat in the microwave until it is warmed through.
Categorized as: American, Christmas, Potatoes, Side Dishes, Thanksgiving
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
Very yummy! I added a quarter cup of fresh squeezed orange juice to the potatoes and a dash of all spice.
So glad you enjoyed the sweet potato casserole! The orange juice addition sounds lovely!
Very good thanks for sharing
So glad you enjoyed them!
Love it!!
Happy to hear that you love the sweet potato casserole as much as we do!
I have been making this recipe every year for Thanksgiving and everyone loves it
So glad the sweet potato casserole is a holiday repeat hit!
I made this today and everyone loved it!
So glad everyone enjoyed the sweet potato casserole!
I have made this recipe every Thanksgiving for probably the last 5 years because the whole family requests it. I am a toddler mom now though and need to be way faster with it- I am going to use canned yams (drained and rinsed) this year but am not sure how much would substitute for the real sweet potatos. Do you think a 29 oz can or a 40 oz can? Thanks so much.
Sorry using canned sweet potatoes has not been tested. I would probably go with a larger can just to ensure you have enough for the casserole. Let us know how it goes!
Delicious!! Not too sweet like many recipes!!
So happy to hear you enjoyed it!
This was amazing!
Made this for potluck at church. Had hoped there would be some to take home. Will be making again. Subbed gluten free flour for the so-purpose flour.
Thank you sharing for the recipe.
So glad you enjoyed it and everyone else, too! More reason to make it again ;0
This was an absolute hit with my family! It was simple to put together and turned put great. Added to my recipe book!
Doubled the recipe, just to make sure that I had PLENTY of letovers for myself! DELICIOUS!
This recipe is delicious!! We love it for Thanksgiving!
This recipe is so good! My whole family loved it.
First time I used this recipe it most definitely was a hit! Since my crew loves the layers of sweet, I include the marshmallows on top. I let them brown until they are gooey. Many times we don’t even have dessert after this. It has become a staple in our holiday meals.
Sounds delicious! So glad your crew enjoyed the sweet potato casserole!
One of my Thanksgiving standards and a family favorite! Delicious recipe!
I’m so glad to hear! Thanks Glenda!
I loved the pecan and brown sugar topping on this. It was superb.
The topping is definitely the best part! Glad you enjoyed the sweet potato casserole!
OMGOSH,…I make them this way for years. I peel chop and boil like you do for mashed potato. Never used the marshmallows because they are sweet enough. This recipe will not disappoint
I love it without the marshmallows too! So yummy with the pecan topping!
This looks so good and I plan on making it! Did you use salted or unsalted butter for the topping?
I used salted for this :)
Made this recipe for Thanksgiving and Christmas last year. It was so good, even my picky toddler was eating it up! That says a lot about the dish! I’m gonna make it this eve for dinner cause a friend of ours gave us some extra sweet potatoes. This is a go to recipe for me now that its such a hit. :)
Yay, glad to hear the recipe was such a hit with your family! Thanks for your comment and review, Bethany :)
I have made this two years in a row now – it is so delicious and is now my go to recipe. Since I love this so much I’m basing the rest of my Christmas dinner off of your recipes. Thank you.
Aw, this makes me so happy to hear! I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, Mallory! :)