5 from 7 votes

Sweet Potato Casserole

Name: Sweet Potato Casserole
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 105 min
Ingredients: 3 lbs sweet potatoes ((see note)); ¼ cup heavy cream; ⅓ cup salted butter (melted ); ½ cup dark brown sugar (firmly packed ); 2 large eggs (room temperature preferred, lightly beaten); 3 Tablespoons maple syrup; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; ½ teaspoon salt; 1 cup chopped pecans ((optional, see note)); 2 ½ cups mini marshmallows

By Sam MerrittUpdated Sep 21, 2026

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11 Comments

Servings: 12 servings

1 hr 45 mins

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My sweet potato casserole recipe is made with a smooth, creamy sweet potato filling topped with toasty marshmallows and crisp-crunchy pecans. Roasting the potatoes (instead of boiling!) makes for the best possible flavor and texture, and a drizzle of maple syrup adds unparalleled depth of flavor. Includes instructions on how to make in advance to save time on Thanksgiving, and a how-to video!

Overhead of creamy sweet potato casserole in a white dish on pink linen.

The Sweet Potato Casserole My Family Demands Every Year

Sweet potato casserole is a Thanksgiving staple, but it can be hard to strike just the right balance of flavor. A good version shouldn’t be too sweet or bland, and should never be watery or loose. After years of largely avoiding this particular dish at the holiday dinner table, I finally perfected a version that strikes just that balance. It’s become a staple side dish around our holiday table, holding its own among its ever-popular peers (like my mashed potatoes recipe and cranberry sauce recipe, at least in our house anyway!).

What to know about this recipe:

You’ll roast the sweet potatoes. Yes, this takes a little more time than boiling, but it gives a deep, toasty flavor and doesn’t introduce any extra water (important for avoiding a watery casserole).
Creamy, not runny or loose. Butter and cream (and an optional stint in the food processor if you really like things smooth) add a velvety texture, and eggs help it set up properly in the oven.
Not too sweet. A good sweet potato casserole should have a healthy note of sweetness, and there is sugar (and marshmallow!) here. However, I was careful to keep the filling balanced so the sweet potatoes still shine, and you don’t feel like you’re eating an early dessert.
Pecans & marshmallows are the perfect combo. Of course you could use just one or the other, but using the two together gives us the best of both worlds. You’ll get a buttery crunch from the pecans, with a classic, gooey, toasted marshmallow topping.

What You Need

This recipe is considered a side dish for the dinner table, but the ingredient list certainly reads a lot like a dessert, doesn’t it!? Here are the most important ingredients you will need (besides sweet potatoes, of course!).

Overhead view of the ingredients needed to make sweet potato casserole.

Sweet potatoes. Exactly how many you will need to get to the 3 pounds required will vary depending on your exact sweet potatoes. I’ve used a range from 8 small-ish sweet potatoes to 3 larger ones.
Melted butter. I tried this sweet potato casserole recipe with browned butter thinking that would be a slam dunk for flavor, but surprisingly I couldn’t even tell the difference! So we’ll keep things easy and stick with regular melted butter (save the extra step for a batch of brown butter chocolate chip cookies).
Brown sugar. Dark brown sugar is my preference. It has more molasses than its light-brown counterpart which adds a touch more sweetness as well as a greater depth of flavor. If you don’t have any on hand, light brown sugar will work just fine.
Maple syrup. Instead of sticking strictly with brown sugar, I like to introduce another level of flavor by adding a healthy pour of maple syrup. Make sure to use the real stuff, not pancake syrup. If you don’t like maple syrup or don’t have any on hand, you can just use another 3 tablespoons of brown sugar instead.
Eggs. Critical for adding structure to the casserole so it’s not loose or watery. They also add some richness, but the main purpose is to help the sweet potato casserole set up properly in the oven.
Cinnamon and vanilla. While cinnamon and vanilla aren’t necessarily traditional, I find that these flavor boosters are what really set this sweet potato casserole recipe apart. If you made a batch of homemade vanilla extract for your holiday baking, feel free to use it here!
Pecans and mini marshmallows. I like using pecans here (they tend to be a Thanksgiving tradition!), but walnuts would also work well, or you can leave the nuts out entirely. To up their flavor, toast the pecans before adding them.

SAM’S TIP: Don’t forget the salt! I use salted butter and salt to help counteract all the sweet. If you only have unsalted butter on hand, add an additional pinch of salt (about ⅛ teaspoon).

Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!

How to Make Sweet Potato Casserole

Roasted sweet potatoes on a baking sheet being pierced with a gold fork.

Peeling the skin off a roasted sweet potato to make sweet potato casserole.

Roast the potatoes. Scrub them, dry them, and pierce them all over with a fork first, then bake them in a 375F oven until they’re tender when pierced with a fork. Exactly how long this will take will vary depending on the size of your potatoes, but mine are typically finished after somewhere between 45 and 60 minutes in the oven.

Remove the skins. Let the sweet potatoes cool until they’re not too hot to handle (don’t burn your hands!) then remove the skins. They peel off easily by hand. You can discard them, but in my house my pups love when I make this dish because they love snacking on the sweet potato skins.

Pureed roasted sweet potatoes in the basin of a food processor.

Mixing together all the filling ingredients for sweet potato casserole with a whisk in a clear mixing bowl.

Mash or puree the sweet potatoes until smooth. I used to skip the pureeing and just mash them with a masher, but these days I take the few extra minutes (and, yes, the extra dish) to pulse everything in the food processor until it’s smooth. Sweet potatoes can be stringy, and the food processor guarantees a smooth, creamy filling.

Mix everything together. Regardless of whether you mashed or pureed, everything (except for the marshmallows and pecans) goes into a mixing bowl and gets mixed until smooth. If you didn’t puree your sweet potatoes, I’d recommend using an electric mixer for this step to help make things as smooth as possible. Things are going to start smelling really good right about now.

Scattering marshmallows and pecans over the unbaked sweet potato casserole.

Overhead view of sweet potato casserole with golden brown mini marshmallows on top.

Add the toppings. Pecans first and then marshmallows are sprinkled evenly on top, then everything goes into the oven.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the marshmallows are golden brown.

Sam’s Tip: Make Ahead!

Making this for Thanksgiving? You can prepare the sweet potato filling as instructed and spread it into your baking dish up to 3 days in advance. Cover tightly and refrigerate. When you’re ready to bake, let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes while the oven preheats. Add the pecans and marshmallows just before baking and bake as indicated (if the dish is still quite cold it may require a little longer in the oven).

Overhead view of a casserole topped with toasted mini marshmallows.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is my sweet potato casserole runny?

The casserole will be very soft while it’s hot, but it should never be watery or soupy, and my method of roasting the sweet potatoes is especially helpful for keeping the casserole from being too loose. Make sure you measure all the ingredients appropriately, and don’t skip the eggs. They’re important for helping to bind the filling and giving the sweet potato casserole structure.

Could I use canned sweet potatoes instead of fresh?

While I recommend roasting fresh sweet potatoes for the best flavor, canned sweet potatoes will also work. Make sure to drain the sweet potatoes very well before mashing or pureeing. Since canned sweet potatoes are already very soft and contain more moisture, the finished casserole may have a slightly different texture. Also, make sure you don’t buy the kind sold in syrup, as they will be too sweet.
You will need about 4 cups (926 g) of mashed sweet potato.

Can I boil the sweet potatoes instead of roasting them?

While you technically can (and it would likely even be faster) I strongly recommend roasting them if you have the time. Boiling introduces extra water, while roasting concentrates the flavor of the sweet potatoes for a deeper flavor. Boiled potatoes can sometimes result in a looser, more watery filling, so if you do boil your potatoes, make sure to drain them very, very well before proceeding with the recipe.

What are some common mistakes to avoid when making sweet potato casserole?

The biggest mistake is accidentally introducing too much moisture into the dish, which can make the casserole loose, runny, or watery. This is one of the reasons I strongly recommend roasting the sweet potatoes over boiling them. Also, don’t over-bake the casserole. Overbaking so can make the filling less creamy and can burn the marshmallows.