Buy fresh turkey from grocery store (with three children in tow). Buy fresh chestnuts. Roast fresh chestnuts. Peel fresh chestnuts (with three children running around the kitchen with assorted rackets and balls). Make chestnut stuffing (while hoping children have found cartoons on TV to watch). Make cranberry dressing. Clean house for guests. Set table with china. Serve Thanksgiving lunch. Put up all food and clean all china (hoping everyone is in a tryptophan induced nap instead of having a shaving cream war in the bathroom). I really don’t know how my mom managed to host Thanksgiving…but she did for years without much complaint.
And while I wish I had offered to help with the mountains of food preparation and china cleaning earlier, I found myself in college finally wanting to contribute to the Thanksgiving lunch table. Due to the labors of making the chestnut stuffing, the remainder of the sides were fairly simple. So the sweet potatoes were either roasted in the oven and served with a pat of butter or….served from a can. And while I’m not knocking either of these preparations, this casserole is just so much better and has been a staple on the table ever since.
A note on the marshmallows—I like my marshmallows to melt in with the sweet potatoes and have gotten the best results by layering them in between layers of sweet potato. But if you like a crispy golden-brown marshmallow, then just add them after you have cooked the casserole. You’ll end up with a smooth sweet potato puree topped off with a crispy crumble followed by crunchy marshmallows.
A note on the sweet potatoes—I have tried this casserole using several different preparations of the sweet potato. I’ve tried peeling the potatoes and chopping them then boiling them in water. I’ve tried peeling the potatoes then roasting them in the oven. And then I’ve tried roasting them whole in their skins then peeling them. The last preparation is by far the best route to extract the sweetness of the potato which allows for limited use of sugar to enhance the natural flavors.
Sweet Potato Casserole
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 16 servings 1x
Description
The sweet potatoes were either roasted in the oven and served with a pat of butter or….served from a can. And while I’m not knocking either of these preparations, this casserole is just so much better and has been a staple on the table ever since.
Ingredients
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
- 4 pounds sweet potatoes
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbs maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 8 Tbs (1 stick) butter, melted
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- Salt, to taste
- 3–4 cups mini marshmallows
Crumble
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 8 Tbs butter (1 stick), cut into 1 Tbs pieces
Instructions
- First roast the sweet potatoes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Pierce sweet potatoes several times with a knife or fork. Roast sweet potatoes for 45-60 minutes, until you can easily pierce with a fork. Set aside a let cool.
- While the sweet potatoes are roasting, make the crumble: Combine all ingredients for the crumble in a bowl and mix until butter is well incorporated. Alternatively, can combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined.
- Once the sweet potatoes are cooled, cut open and remove flesh of the sweet potatoes from their skins. Combine roasted sweet potatoes with all other ingredients for the sweet potatoes in a bowl and stir to combine. If you like a smooth creamy texture, then puree all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
- If you like the marshmallows melted in with the sweet potato, then I like to layer the components. Start by filling a pie or casserole dish with half of the sweet potato mixture. Spread out the mixture evenly in the dish. Then top that layer with the marshmallows. Then add the remaining half of the sweet potatoes. Finally, sprinkle the crumble on top. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes, or until the crumble is golden brown.
- If you like the crunch of roasted marshmallows, then spread all of the sweet potato mixture evenly into a pie or casserole dish. Sprinkle the crumble on top and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes, or until the crumble is golden brown. Remove from the oven and cover the toasted crumble in the marshmallows. Return to the oven and cook for another 10-15 minutes, until marshmallows are golden.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Category: Sides
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Thanksgiving foods, Christmas foods, Vegetarian sides