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I feel like I need to stand up for my sweet potato casserole. See, I’ve told lots of people about my Thanksgiving menu, the deep fried turkey and dressing, gravy, rolls, southern style green beans, rolls, cranberry relish, the pecan pie, and OF COURSE, my famous sweet potato casserole.
Reactions vary. Some are stiffly polite, asking about my sweet potato casserole. Others sneer in disgust, “Sweet potato casserole?” they choke, as if they are saying “pickled cow brains smothered in moist spooge.”
Some seem mildly interested until I say that my recipe most certainly does not include marshmallows or canned sweet potatoes. I can tell I’m losing them as soon as I talk about baking the sweet potatoes a day ahead and topping it with pecans and brown sugar.
All I have to say is that anyone who wouldn’t even consider trying my sweet potato casserole is being FOOLISH and they are MISSING OUT. My goodness, it’s practically dessert!
Recipe for Sweet Potato Casserole
5-6 fresh baked sweet potatoes (I usually wrap these in foil and bake a day ahead)
1 C Sugar
2 eggs
1/2 stick butter, softened (yes. butter.)
1/2 C milk
1 TB vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
Topping:
1 C brown sugar
1/3 C flour
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 C pecans, chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mash the potatoes. Mix in remaining ingredients and beat well with a mixer. (There may be some bits of butter that don’t get mixed in completely. It’s okay. Don’t panic. They’ll melt during the baking process.) Pour into a greased casserole dish. Mix together the topping ingredients and spread over the sweet potato mixture. Bake 45 minutes, cover with foil if the pecans look like they are getting too dark.
*******
Have a very Happy Thanksgiving! Eat, drink, be merry, and most of all, BE THANKFUL!
this recipe is almost identical to the one i use. except i won’t be using it this year. it was vetoed from our thanksgiving dinner so i just might have to make it for my family and then eat most of it myself!!
monica´s last [type] ..on the afternoon of the sixth day – chiang rai
Vetoed?! I’m crying for you.
Just curious, because I either mash my sweet potato or roast it or frittata it. This looks like it could be a dessert. Is that the case?
Technically it’s not dessert, but it is very similar to sweet potato pie. In fact, I like it almost better than dessert!
Sweet potatoes should be cut into chunks, drizzled with oil, baked with a couple of heads of garlic and sprinkled with salt.
The end.
End of story.
OMG.
(yeah, us Aussies have completely different tastes to our American friends. And yes, I have tried a sweet version and could not bear even one mouthful. I cannot even imagine how I would cope with marshmallows added to the mix!)
CAN YOU HEAR MY INDIGNANCE?!
I like savory, roasted sweet potatoes also, but on Thanksgiving, I LOVE my casserole.
Hey Jenn – so, my family neverhad sweet potato anything…. but Dave’s family always had it. So, I tried making something sweet potato-ish our first Thanksgiving, and he made the very rude man mistake of saying, “that’s not how my mom….. ” WHAT???
Lol! haha. So, I’m still trying to figure out exactly how his mom does it, so his little boy heart can be happy on Thanksgiving. I know they cut they cook them, then cut them length-wise with some menagerie of toppings, and then bake them for a bit.
Yup, that’s the recipe I use too (it came from my aunt in Alabama). No one in my family will eat sweet potatoes, no mattter how they are cooked, but I make it anyway and eat it all myself! It’s the best part of Thanksgiving next to the rolls
I’ve had this…Oh my ..it is so wonderful!! I wish we could be there to enjoy it with you guys. Love ya
Yum! I would totally make your sweet potato casserole if I didn’t already order my favorite sweet squash from a local restaurant. It’s the one thing we’re not making ourselves.
Saving your recipe for later though.
Kim- Mommycosm´s last [type] ..Mommycosm Reviews live 11-23-2010 at 8pm ET
I make an almost identical dish. The only difference is I put some diced apples with my pecans.
Chatting with new friends this year it is amazing how many people don’t like sweet potatoes, it is truely a crime. I tell them it is just because they haven’t tried mine yet (haha). That and the stuffing what is up with that??
Have a fabulous Thanksgiving!!
Heather´s last [type] ..Pumpkin Bread Pudding
Diced apples? Do you cook the apples first or just chop them up and put them in raw? What kind of apple do you use?
That sounds really good!
Sweet potato casserole is da bomb. Even if it has marshmallows on it.
P.S. Love, love, love your fireplace!
Rima´s last [type] ..Thankful That I’m Not a Turkey
Thank you! We love it, too…just wish I was a more creative mantle decorator!
That is the exact same recipe that I make every year! Great minds think alike!
HaB´s last [type] ..Mayhem and MADS-isms- edition 1
Hi Jennifer. My mom makes this recipe and it is delicious. I used to despise sweet potatoes with marshmellows. I love them cooked this way. I’m getting anxious for Thanksgiving dinner. Yummy!
I’ve made this the past couple years, and everyone loves it, though I cook my sweet potatoes in the pressure cooker, like I do for mashed potatoes — even easier and faster. And sometimes I add coconut to the topping — my husband LOVES coconut.
Shannon´s last [type] ..Birth Story- finally
I never appreciated sweet potatoes until I married someone from the South. Oh boy. Sweet potato casserole is To Die For.
You can bake them ahead of time? I had no idea. What do you do with them – leave them in foil and stick them in the fridge to mash the next day?
Shelly Overlook´s last [type] ..Thankful
Yes! I leave them in the foil and since they tend to leak, I pile the wrapped sweet potatoes in the casserole dish I plan to use and put it in the fridge. I do take the potatoes out of the fridge and let them warm up on the counter before mashing and adding the other ingredients.
The restaurant where I used to work had a side dish just like this….and then we added vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce to it and put it on the dessert menu. I dislike sweet potatoes, but would totally eat that- off someone else’s fork if I had to.
Sharon Byrne´s last [type] ..Ten reasons the hamster that lives in my house should cease to exist
Oh… I love sweet potatoes.
I seem to be the only one in my entire family though.
Colleen´s last [type] ..I suppose Im thankful shes learning to spell
I abhor sweet potatoes. yuck. But I do fix them at Thanksgiving for family. I have a VERY similar recipe but mine uses crushed pineapple and it’s called Sweet Potato Souffle. Ooh fancy pantsy. (In case you’re interested it’s on my blog this week, posted from Monday I think. Maybe Saturday. Hell, I can’t remember.)
Texan Mama´s last [type] ..My Wedding Dress Story
Thank you ! Thank you! I was looking for a recipe to make a different type of sweet potatoe recipe and I have just found it! I can’t wait to try it. I’ll post how my family likes it.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Awww, this made my day. Do you have any idea how many hours I’ve spent on your blog trying to figure out how to blog?! I hope you’re going to Blissdom again so I can hug your neck.
I will think of you today when I make my sweet potatoes. I’m going out on a limb and trying a new Tyler Florence recipe.
Happy Thanksgiving my friend!
lots of love,
edie
edie´s last [type] ..Skirted Table Dessert Buffet
This sounds delicious! If my thanksgiving menu wasn’t set in stone – which it is ONLY because I refuse to return to the grocery store – I would definitely add this casserole…I might try it between now and Christmas for sure!
this is a lot like my recipe. love love love it. not doing it this year because mom got assigned the sweet potato dish and she’s being B O R I N G.
bah.
s’ok though, i’m wowing with my pumpkin soup, mac&cheese and pecan pie.
nom nom nom
happy thanksgiving!!!
MommyNamedApril´s last [type] ..Happy Fourth Birthday Casey- and Thanks for Making Me a Mommy
Just finished making my own sweet potato casserole right now and it is totally the shizzle. Yes, I also end up eating more than anyone else, then throwing a bunch out. So sad, people just don’t know goodness when its right in front of them.
Oh, and my mom thinks cow brain is the shizzle. Not pickled, but still. To each his/her own.
I LOVE sweet potato casserole! I make it every year even though I’m usually the only person who eats the stuff. lol
Your recipe is similar to mine; with mine the brown sugar goes into the casserole, not the topping.
I also use fresh sweet potatoes. The first time I made it was with the canned stuff – and that’s fine! – but I prefer using sweet potatoes that I have roasted and mashed myself.
very nice, I am very attracted with your sweet potato, will try it and give you feedback.
hope to find some more interesting recipes. thanks!!!
samantha icecreammaker´s last [type] ..Cuisinart ICE-20 Review
oh, that sounds amazing. I’ll bet it would be good with a touch of cinnamon too.
Judy Schwartz Haley | CoffeeJitters.Net´s last [type] ..Thanksgiving
This was wonderful. I had to halve the recipe since there were only four of us. I ate the leftovers yesterday. Yum!
I’m so glad you liked it!
I like sweet potato. Any recipe will do.. One of my favorite is the potato-que. Does anyone knows how to cook it?:) simple recipe but delicious….
I have a friend who is from the South. She makes her sweet potatoes the same way. And they are delicious!
My mother-in-law makes this every Thanksgiving and it is hands down my favorite side dish at the table! I always have second helpings.
[...] Sweet potato casserole recipe | Playgroups are No Place For Children Recipe for sweet potato casserole with pecans and brown sugar. … Some seem mildly interested until I say that my recipe most certainly does not include marshmallows or canned sweet potatoes. I can tell I’m losing them as soon as I talk about baking the sweet potatoes a day ahead and topping it with pecans and brown sugar. All I have to say is that anyone who wouldn’t even consider trying my sweet potato casserole is being FOOLISH and they are MISSING OUT. … Jan 01, 1970 12:00am [...]
Sneering at sweet potato casserole in disgust? Really? I’m not even a Southern gal and I love my sweet potatoes!
Emily´s last [type] ..lucky shot
I am literally drooling over your recipe. I have to try this!
Jess´s last [type] ..Winging It
ohmigosh! this is very close to the recipe i fell in love with from my sister. only we add coconut to the topping mixture. and i *don’t like* coconut! go figure.
glad your holiday was yummy.
(i make the sweet potato souffle for my christmas dinner)
mpotter´s last [type] ..better left unsaid
your sweet potato casserole recipe is nearly identical to the one that has been in my (southern) family for YEARS! it is the best thing I put in my mouth all year long. thanks for sharing:)