In my family, the Best Sweet Potato Casserole recipe is one that’s served up sweet and salty with a delicious, crunchy streusel topping!
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Every family has traditions, and in most cases, you can’t shake things up. Ever.
For instance, Thanksgiving. You are either a plain sweet potato or a mini marshmallows topped sweet potato family. There is no middle ground.
For years, my family was divided. Depending on who hosted Thanksgiving dinner, we either were served gooey, sweet marshmallow sweet potato casserole….or a sweet potato casserole with a little butter and brown sugar.
Those were the only choices. Until now.
Now I host Thanksgiving myself, and it’s my turn to determine how I want to serve my sweet potatoes. And while I love marshmallow topped, and brown sugar…today’s streusel topped sweet potato casserole are hands down, my favorite.
If you’ve ever been to a Ruth’s Chris restaurant you’ll recognize these potatoes! Sweet and crunchy, with a little salt from the pecans. So perfect. And you can enjoy the private dining in your own home!
One of the best things about these sweet potatoes is that you can have them prepped ahead of time so that you only need to bake them on Thanksgiving.
How to make Sweet Potato Casserole
Start by cooking your sweet potatoes. You can bake them in the oven (my preferred method), at 400 degrees F for an hour. Or you can peel and boil potatoes in a large pot of water (for about half an hour). The third way would be to poke them with a fork and microwave the potatoes for about 15-20 minutes. OR you can pop them in the Instant Pot!
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Once your potatoes are cooked, combine them in a large bowl with the sugar, salt, vanilla extract, eggs, and melted butter. Using a mixer, beat them for about 4-5 minutes until fluffy and smooth.
Pour this into a 2 qt casserole dish and bake in a 375 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes.
While the potatoes are baking, make your streusel topping. Combine brown sugar with flour, chopped pecans, and melted butter. Stir together with a fork and set aside.
Once your sweet potatoes have cooked, top with streusel (and extra pecans on top if desired) and return to the oven to bake an additional 10-15 minutes. Serve hot.
Making ahead of time
There is nothing worse than trying to figure out what goes in the oven, and when. Fortunately, this sweet potato casserole gets it’s “BEST” rating because of the flexibility.
First, you could bake as written above, if oven space is not an issue.
Or, you could bake the 25 minutes, top with the streusel and refrigerate until the next day. Then you would only need to pop it back into the oven for about 20 minutes.
You could also bake it as directed for entirety and allow to sit on the table for about 30 minutes (covered with foil to keep hot). This gives you time and space to warm up some dinner rolls and get the rest of your food heated and ready.
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What you need – Ruth Chris Steak House Style
- 4 large sweet potatoes (about 3 cups of mashed sweet potatoes)
- granulated sugar and brown sugar
- salt
- vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- chopped pecans
- all-purpose flour
- 2 qt baking dish
Family Favorites – Side Dish recipes for Thanksgiving
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This Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole recipe is true comfort food. Made with frozen hash browns and plenty of cheese, I can guarantee your family is going to enjoy this one!
A sweet, fruity side dish, this Frozen Cranberry Orange Salad is great for the holidays. This recipe can be made days in advance!
Looking for something new to serve with Grandma’s green bean casserole this year? Check out this great collection of Thanksgiving side dishes from around the web! Be inspired!
A classic, easy 7 layer Salad recipe served in a trifle bowl. So many options for the seven layers, you choose what you love. Perfect for potlucks!
Don’t forget the Green Bean Casserole! Everyone loves the creamy mushroom soup with the crispy fried onions!
The Best Thanksgiving Dessert recipes
While you’re here, how about we take a peek into my dessert archives? I’ve got some of the best Thanksgiving treats you could ever want!
Delicious layers of homemade Spice Cake with a Pecan Pie filling. This Pecan Pie cake is topped with a creamy Brown Sugar frosting! Drooling yet?
Smooth and decadent, French Silk Pie is a chocolate lovers dream! You’ll love the flaky pie crust, topped with smooth and silky chocolate!
Easy to assemble Turkey Rice Krispie Treats decorated for Thanksgiving! Loved by kids and adults!
Pumpkin Cheesecake Cake: two layers of delicious pumpkin cake with a creamy cheesecake center. Frosted with cream cheese frosting!
Look at those beautiful layers in this Pumpkin Magic Cake! This is a must make recipe for the holidays!
Apple Crumble. The comfort of home in an easy, no pie crust recipe!
The best (and easiest) Pumpkin Pie recipe you’ll need this holiday season. Make Thanksgiving dessert in no time at all with this delicious pie recipe!
What to serve with Sweet Potato Casserole
So many dinner ideas pair nicely with these sweet potatoes. Here are a few of my favorites!
- Baked Pork Chop Recipe
- Meatloaf Recipe
- Peach Pork Chops
- Meatball Subs
- French Dip Recipe
- Mississippi Pot Roast
- Instant Pot Turkey Breast
- Mashed Potatoes
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The Best Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe
The Best Sweet Potato Casserole recipe with a crunchy pecan streusel topping!
Ingredients
For the Mashed Sweet Potatoes:
- 4 large sweet potatoes
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
For the streusel topping:
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Cook sweet potatoes in desired manner, until soft. See notes.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 2 qt baking dish with nonstick spray (I use coconut oil spray). Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine cooked sweet potatoes, granulated sugar, salt, vanilla, eggs and melted butter. Beat with an electric mixer for about 4-5 minutes, until fluffy and smooth.
- Pour into prepared dish. Bake for 25 minutes.
- While baking, prepare streusel topping by combining brown sugar, flour, pecans, and melted butter in a small bowl. Mix with a fork and set aside.
- Sprinkle the baked sweet potato mixture with streusel and return to oven for about 10-15 minutes until crumble is lightly browned. Serve immediately or cover with foil and serve in 30 minutes.
Notes
For the sweet potatoes you can cook them your favorite way. Bake in a 400 degree F oven for one hour. Or pierce with fork and microwave for 15 minutes (or more depending on size). Or peel and boil them for 30 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 359Total Fat: 23gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 72mgSodium: 226mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 2gSugar: 26gProtein: 3g
*Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.
My family loved this!! I did screw up and added a stick of butter to the topping. Threw it under the broiler for a few . Other than that it was a huge success. Will make a again. Those who ate it said this is our new holiday dish
This absolutely lives up to its name — it’s exactly what everyone at the table called it. Stephanie posted above (on 11/28/2019) that there were too many nuts, but I thought it was perfect. I baked it in a round dish, and it would have better in a rectangular dish so the sweet potatoes were more spread out. I also added about 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon and a pinch of salt to the topping. It is sweet, so could even be a dessert. This will definitely be on the permanent list! Thank you!!
Thank you! So glad you liked it 🙂
This is a really delicious recipe no doubt, but this is the first time I made it w/ the pecans & I think I like it better without. That could be tied into my dislike for pecan pie, but 1 cup of chopped pecans is a lot for a 2qt casserole dish. So folks, unless you’re a true nut lover, I would use 1/2 cup or just sprinke them on top of the coating as you wish. If you go in for the full cup, it’s going to taste like you just ate a handful of them with every bite.
Do you have to peel the potatoes after baking? Or just mash them up with it on.
What do you suggest on reheating if you already made it in its entirety?
I would just warm it up in the microwave for a few minutes until hot!
Please list the amt of sugar, salt, vanilla extract, flour, brown sugar please.
the ingredients, measurements, and directions are all listed in the recipe card.
How do you suggest this be done so I can make it the day before, to avoid doing most of the work on Thanksgiving?
I would assemble the mashed sweet potato portion the day before and put the crumble topping on before baking!
This recipe looks great 🙂 I also noticed there is no milk listed in this recipe…just want to make sure there is no mistake. You do not use milk, correct?
Nope, no milk in this one!
Do you peel the potatoes after baking?
This was great. Roasting the yams whole in foil for an hour or so depending on the size of your yams gives awesome flavor instead of boiling… The family gobbled this up!!!
This casserole was so yummy, thanks!