Looking for the perfect Thanksgiving side dish? This Brown Sugar Pecan Sweet Potato Casserole is a health(ish) option, and is ready in under an hour! I promise, there won’t be leftovers!
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Here Comes Turkey Day
I cannot believe that we are just one week away from Thanksgiving! Where has the time gone? For me, the holiday season means cooking for parties, entertaining, and spending time with family/friends; three of my favorite things! When it comes to Thanksgiving my favorite food has always been the sweet potatoes. Every year, my grandma would make candied sweet potatoes and I would eat as much as I could without getting a bellyache. It took me years to realize how unhealthy they were! One Thanksgiving I watched her dump almost an entire bottle of King syrup into the sauce pot… I was astonished. After that I cut back two one large potato each holiday. Everything in moderation, right?
True Love
Aside from my husband, this casserole comes in close second to my heart. For those who do not know, my husband and I had a long distance relationship for the first 4 years of dating. He was at school in Richmond, VA and I was back here in Lancaster. When he officially asked me to be his girlfriend, he had plan to take me out to dinner at a nice restaurant. Little did I know that we were going to a Ruth’s Chris Steak House! That night, we ordered a side of their sweet potato casserole to go along with our steaks. We both agreed that we had never tasted anything more incredible in our lives. Each dating anniversary we went back to the same Ruth’s Chris and got the casserole dish. Now, we make this healthier Brown Sugar Pecan Sweet Potato Casserole instead!
It’s Healthy(ish)…
When I first started to test my own copycat recipe, there was a ton of butter and sugar in it. As Allen and I started to be more conscious of our sugar and dairy consumption, I slowly adjusted the recipe. Each holiday, I would make a casserole and attempt to cut out more and more unhealthy ingredients. Every year I was successful! This year, I managed to cut out all of the processed sugar in the filling, substituting it with maple syrup. However, I did leave a small amount of brown sugar in the crust. It’s literally the icing on the cake!
I hope you enjoy my favorite part about the holidays. If you make this dish, I would love to see your masterpiece! And your face when you try a bite!
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Brown Sugar Pecan Sweet Potato Casserole
Equipment
- 9.5 inch pie pan
- hand mixer
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Filling
- 6 sweet potatoes medium-large, approx 3 cups
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup non-dairy butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 tbs coconut or avocado oil to coat pan
Pecan Topping
- 1 cup pecans chopped fine
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup non-dairy butter
- 1/2 cup brown cane sugar
Instructions
- If you are using whole sweet potatoes, cut large slits in them and place them on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave for 13-15 minutes, until skin easily peels off. If using canned sweet potatoes, place them in a large bowl.
- Melt the filling butter
- While the sweet potatoes are cooking, place the filling ingredients in a large bowl.
- Preheat oven to 400F
- Melt the pecan topping butter
- Place the pecan topping ingredients in a medium bowl until the dry ingredients are wet and coated with the melted butter. Set aside.
- When the sweet potatoes are finished, CAREFULLY separate the inside from the skin and place the potatoes with the other ingredients in the large bowl.
- Using a mixer, whip the filling carefully for 2 minutes, until the mixture starts to get smooth
- Spray/coat a 9.5 inch pie pan with the oil. Dump the sweet potato filling inside, smoothing it flat
- Bake for 20 minutes uncovered on the middle rack
- Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the crumbled pecan topping over the entire casserole. Break up any large bits, allowing the entire top to be covered in pecan crust
- Return the pan to the oven and bake for 10 more minutes
- Remove from oven and enjoy! Can be refrigerated for up to a week.
Notes
Nutrition
All images and text ©Alexis Stambaugh for Passport Flavor™
I'm a 20-something foodie with a passion for travel. As a self taught chef, I believe food is what brings us together. When I'm not in my kitchen creating recipes, I love connecting with people as I experience cuisines from other cultures. Come join me on my culinary and travel adventures!