American · Sides

Sweet potato casserole with pecan topping

Name: Sweet potato casserole with pecan topping
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Yield: 10 side servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 3 pounds orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1-inch chunks; 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and divided; 1/3 cup whole milk; 1 large egg; 2 tablespoons maple syrup; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided; 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 3/4 cup chopped pecans; 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar; 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

Orange sweet potatoes whipped with butter, vanilla, and warm spice beneath a crisp brown-sugar pecan crumble.

About 1 hr 10 minTotal

About 1 hr 5 minActive

$$Cost

ModerateDifficulty

Makes 10 side servings

Equipment

Use a similarly sized oven-safe dish; a larger footprint makes a shallower, faster bake.
Best everyday dish
OXO Good Grips 2-Quart Glass Baking Dish with Lid
View at Amazon
Another workable path: Use a similarly sized oven-safe dish; a larger footprint makes a shallower, faster bake.
Paid links. As an Amazon Associate, Kwilt earns from qualifying purchases.
How we chose
Research-backed · reviewed Aug 2026
We compared stated capacity, thermal-use limits, handle safety, cleanup, storage usefulness, stable model identity, and the recipe’s requested footprint. Kwilt has not cooked with this dish.
OXO Good Grips 2-Quart Glass Baking Dish with Lid: Its two-quart capacity closely fits recipes calling for a small casserole dish, while the transparent sides make browning and bubbling easy to monitor. Trade-off: Glass is heavier than metal and this dish is not intended for broiler use, so follow each recipe’s heat method carefully.
Another workable path: Use another oven-safe dish close to the requested capacity; a larger footprint will make the filling shallower and can shorten baking time.
Sources
OXO model 11176200 specifications
Amazon exact product listing

Ingredients

1× recipe · Makes 10 side servings

3 pounds orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1-inch chunks
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and divided
1/3 cup whole milk
1 large egg
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

Instructions

Heat oven to 375°F and butter a . Put sweet potatoes in a pot, cover with cool water, and simmer 12 to 15 minutes until completely tender; drain and steam-dry 2 minutes.
Mash potatoes smooth with 3 tablespoons melted butter, milk, maple syrup, vanilla, 3/4 teaspoon salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Let cool 5 minutes, then beat in the egg so it enriches rather than scrambles.
Spread the filling in the prepared dish. Mix pecans, brown sugar, flour, remaining salt, and remaining 3 tablespoons butter until clumps form; scatter evenly over the potatoes without pressing it flat.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes until the edges bubble, the center reaches 165°F, and the pecan topping smells toasted. Tent loosely with foil if the nuts darken before the center is hot.
Rest 5 minutes and serve warm. The casserole may be assembled without the topping one day ahead; refrigerate, add crumble just before baking, and allow 5 to 10 extra minutes from cold.

Southern United StatesSouthern American household and holiday cooking

From the table

About this recipe

Sweet-potato casseroles became American holiday standards through nineteenth- and twentieth-century Southern cooking, with nut toppings offering a less confectionary alternative to marshmallows.

Sweet potato casserole became a defining American Thanksgiving side in the twentieth century, in both marshmallow-topped and pecan-streusel branches. This version chooses the crisp pecan branch and keeps sugar measured so the sweet potato still tastes like a vegetable. Maple, vanilla, and spice amplify its natural sweetness instead of turning the filling into pie custard. This Kwilt version follows the reviewed household adaptation: Choose the familiar pecan branch, apply the comparison lesson of restrained sweetness, and use a straightforward boiled-potato method with a make-ahead boundary rather than adding a separate roasting project.

Sources

Dinner does not stop at the recipe