Sweet Potato Casserole ♥

My recipe for the traditional sweet potato casserole topped with miniature marshmallows. It's just a little bit different, however, with the addition of vanilla in the sweet potato mixture and a little bit of ginger in the marshmallow and pecan-panko topping. Delish!

~recipe & photo updated 2010~

2007: Some holidays, you just don't mess with tradition. But still, call me surprised to feature a recipe for a traditional Thanksgiving sweet potato casserole with marshmallows on top. My taste testers loved this! Good sweet potato flavor really comes through, the texture is soft and pillowy, the sweetness is there but not over the top. But the best part is the topping mixture, mini marshmallows interspersed with crispy bread crumbs spiced with ginger and toasted pecans. If marshmallows are traditional at Thanksgiving, so be it, I'm not messing with tradition!

2010: Whoa. I'd forgotten how good sweet potato casserole can be! This recipe isn't as sweet as many other recipes. Even so, I wouldn't hesitate to serve it for dessert though I'd put on my marketing hat and call it "sweet potato pudding". The topping is delicious and the mixture of marshmallows and pecan-panko crumbs just 'looks' so pretty, which many sweet potato casseroles don't. This is a winner!

TESTIMONIALS
"This was the BEST sweet potato casserole I've ever made and eaten! It was a huge hit for Thanksgiving - people ate seconds of this instead of dessert!" ~ Laura

SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE

Adapted from an old clipping from Cooking Light
Hands-on time: 40 minutes
Time to table: 90 - 120 minutes
Serves 16 in smallish portions for a large meal with many other choices

SWEET POTATOES
Water to cover
2-1/4 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into pieces roughly the same size
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon table salt
2 teaspoons vanilla (don't skip this!)
2 large eggs
1 cup half & half (or 1/2 cup whole milk and 1/2 cup cream)

TOPPING
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup panko (what is panko?) or crisp bread crumbs
1/4 cup chopped toasted pecans

A handful of mini marshmallows (then throw away the rest so you're not tempted to eat the little pillows!)

SWEET POTATOES Place water and potatoes in a large pot and bring to a boil. Cover and cook til potatoes are soft and fully cooked. Drain in a colander.

Preheat oven to 375F.

In a large bowl, mix the potatoes, brown sugar, salt and vanilla with an electric mixer til smooth. (Be sure to work out the little nuggets of brown sugar, they'll burn.) Add the eggs and beat til smooth. Add the half & half and beat til smooth. (2007: The mixture may be quite runny. 2010: It wasn't runny at all. ) Transfer to a well-greased two-quart baking dish.

TOPPING Mix the topping ingredients.

BAKE Sprinkle the marshmallows over the top of the casserole, leaving room for the topping to be sprinkled in between. Bake for 30 - 45 minutes or until golden brown. Dig in!

TO PREP AHEAD
THE DAY BEFORE Cook the sweet potatoes and mix the casserole and the topping but keep separate.
DAY OF Return to room temperature. Top with marshmallows and topping and bake until steamy hot in the center, 45 - 60 minutes.
LEFTOVER REPORT This warms up beautifully and may in fact taste better on Day Two and Three.

ALANNA's TIPS & KITCHEN NOTES
EXTRA LARGE SWEET POTATOES (2007) My grocery only had super-sized sweet potatoes when I made this. When peeling and cubing, I could tell they were woody, and while I don't know for sure, I do attribute this to size and would recommend sweet potatoes no bigger than 3/4 pound.
STEAMING vs BOILING (2007) The inspiring recipe called for boiling the potatoes. I thought this would add too much liquid to the casserole but afterward, now believe that steaming them didn't add enough liquid. Next time, I'll boil them. (2010) I did indeed boil the sweet potatoes and think that this is the right treatment.
SWEETNESS & RICHNESS I think that this recipe is good enough to play with, reducing the sweetness and richness and letting the sweet potatoes really come through. Next time, I will drop back to 1/4 cup of brown sugar and use whole milk rather than half & half. I'd also drop the vanilla back to just a teaspoon.

NUTRITION ESTIMATE
Per Serving: 164 Calories; 3 g Protein; 5 g Tot Fat; 2 g Sat Fat; 2 g Mono Fat; 28 g Carb; 2 g Fiber; NetCarb 26; 16 g Sugar; 54 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 204 mg Sodium; 38 mg Cholesterol; Weight Watchers 3 points

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MORE THANKSGIVING SWEET POTATO RECIPES
~ Fresh Candied Yams ~
~ Maple Ginger Sweet Potatoes ~
~ Sweet Potato & Butternut Squash Tagine ~
~ Mashed Butternut Squash & Sweet Potatoes ~
~ more sweet potato recipes ~
from A Veggie Venture

~ Rustic Mashed Sweet Potatoes & Carrots ~
~ Sweet Potato Salad with Roasted Poblano, Roasted Corn & Chipotle ~
~ Mashed Sweet Potatoes ~
~ more sweet potato recipes ~
from Kitchen Parade, my food column

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Move aside, turkeys. (No, not you, dear readers! Thanksgiving turkeys!) Here at A Veggie Venture, vegetables are the real stars of the Thanksgiving table. So it's new Thanksgiving recipes all November long for a fabulous collection of Thanksgiving vegetable recipe ideas. Whether it's last year's famous World's Best Green Bean Casserole or a brand-new recipe which catches your fancy this year, move over turkeys, it's vegetables' time.
© Copyright 2007