Sweet Potato Casserole with Brown Sugar and Pecan Topping

This Sweet Potato Casserole with Brown Sugar and Pecan Topping is a delicious fall side dish and a perfect Thanksgiving staple. Made with a creamy and spiced sweet potato filling and topped with a buttery streusel made with brown sugar and pecans, this dish will steal the show at your Thanksgiving dinner. It’s also a make-ahead dish to save you time during the holidays!

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Course: Side

Cuisine: American

Keyword: casserole, Sweet Potato, Thanksgiving

Prep Time: 1

Cook Time: 45

Servings:

Calories: 524kcal

Author: Shannon

Ingredients

Butter for greasing pan

Sweet Potatoes

7 pounds sweet potatoes 6-8 medium

Streusel

8 tablespoons butter softened and cut into small pieces
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup packed brown sugar
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup pecans

Filling

6 tablespoons butter melted
2 teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vanilla
4 teaspoons lemon juice
¼ cup packed brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 cup half-and-half

Instructions

Roasting Sweet Potatoes:

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 400°F.
Poke sweet potatoes several times with a knife and space evenly on a rimmed baking sheet.
Bake potatoes, turning them once, until they are very tender and can be squeezed easily with tongs, about 1 to 1 ½ hours.
Remove the potatoes from the oven and cut in half lengthwise to let steam escape; cool at least 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F.

Sweet Potato Filling:

Butter a 13x9-inch baking dish.
After the sweet potatoes are roasted and have cooled slightly, use a spoon to scoop the flesh into a large bowl.
Add the melted butter, kosher salt, nutmeg, pepper, vanilla, lemon juice, brown sugar and eggs.
Beat with a hand mixer until ingredients are smooth. You could also use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment to beat ingredients together, or a potato masher to combine ingredients. (I like to have a little texture to my casserole, so I leave some potatoes a little chunky.)
Next pour in half-and-half and mix until blended.
Pour the sweet potato mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread into an even layer with a spatula.

Pecan Streusel:

Pulse flour, brown sugar and kosher salt in a food processor until blended.
Sprinkle butter pieces over the flour mixture and pulse until coarse crumbs form.
Sprinkle nuts over the flour mixture and pulse until combined, but some large pecan pieces remain.

To Assemble & Bake Casserole:

Sprinkle the pecan streusel over the sweet potato mixture.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the topping gets crispy.
Cool 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

To make ahead, assemble casserole and wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Bake as directed, increasing the cooking time to about 50-6o minutes if baking dish directly from the refrigerator.

Nutrition

* The nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.