It’s not Thanksgiving without my Grandma’s old-fashioned sweet potato casserole recipe. The tender mashed sweet potatoes are topped with the most scrumptious and buttery brown sugar and pecan topping. Everyone will come back for seconds!

The holidays wouldn’t be the same without my grandma’s old-fashioned sweet potato casserole recipe. I wanted to drop in and share it with you today along with some of my other favorite sweet potato recipes (you’ll find them below the recipe card). There are enough dishes here to keep your sweet potato lovers happy for a very long time!

Now, if you’re looking for a Southern sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, check out this post. This traditional sweet potato casserole doesn’t include mini marshmallows. Instead, we top our tender sweet potatoes with a deliciously crunchy and buttery brown sugar and pecan streusel topping that belongs on a fruit crumble. A smooth and creamy filling and a sweet and crunchy topping… you can just imagine how good the flavor and texture are, right?

Speaking of flavor and texture, there’s also a secret ingredient in my grandma’s sweet potato casserole… sweetened coconut flakes! I promise it’s the perfect complement to the mashed sweet potato. Luckily, this is such an easy sweet potato casserole to make. Once you boil your sweet potatoes, mash them and add the remaining ingredients. Then while that’s baking, you mix together the topping, add it to the casserole, and simply bake some more.

Your casserole will be ready in no time, which is lucky because I bet the sensational smell will make anyone near your kitchen very hungry! I hope you get to make this old-fashioned sweet potato casserole recipe soon!

Recipe Ingredients

Sweet potatoes
Sugar
Eggs
Butter (salted or unsalted butter)
Vanilla extract
Cinnamon
Sweetened coconut flakes
Brown sugar (dark or light brown sugar)
Flour
Pecans

How to Make Old-Fashioned Sweet Potato Casserole

Peel and slice sweet potatoes. Place in pot, cover with water, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and cook until fork-tender. Drain well and place in a large bowl.

Add butter and beat until smooth. Add in vanilla, sugar, and cinnamon. Beat again until well combined. With the mixer going, add in eggs, one at a time. Stir in the coconut.

Spoon this sweet potato mixture into an 8×8 casserole dish and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

While the casserole is baking, place flour and brown sugar in a medium bowl and stir together. Cut in butter with a long-tined fork until well incorporated and then stir in the pecans.

After 20 minutes, remove the casserole from the oven and sprinkle the pecan topping evenly over the top. Return to the oven and bake until golden brown (30-40 minutes).

Storage

Store leftover casserole in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat either in the microwave or in the oven.
You can also freeze leftovers for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating as above.

Recipe Notes

If you like, swap the chopped pecans in the crumble topping with chopped walnuts.
If you want to add more spices, opt for 3/4 teaspoon of ground allspice and 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.
For a dairy-free casserole, use a dairy-free butter alternative.
For a gluten-free casserole, substitute the flour for a gluten-free flour alternative like almond flour or oat flour.
To make this casserole vegan, use dairy-free butter and a flax egg.
While you can use canned sweet potatoes (often labeled as canned yams), you’ll want to adjust the amount of sugar as the canned sweet potatoes are already sweetened.

Recipe FAQs

Should I put eggs in my sweet potato casserole?

Yes, this old-fashioned sweet potato casserole needs the two eggs to act as a binder. Otherwise, your mashed sweet potatoes will turn mushy and runny and no one wants that!

Can I make sweet potato casserole ahead of time?

There are a couple of ways you can make this sweet potato casserole in advance. First, you can pre-cook your sweet potatoes and mix together the streusel topping and store them separately in the fridge for up to 3 days before assembling and baking the casserole. Alternatively, you can store the baked or unbaked casserole in the fridge up to 24 hours in advance and then either bake or reheat it in the oven.

Old-Fashioned Sweet Potato Casserole

Enjoy my Grandma's old-fashioned sweet potato casserole recipe this Thanksgiving, with sweet potatoes topped with brown sugar and pecans.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 50

Total Time: 55

Course: Appetizer, Dessert, Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: casserole, potatoes, sweetpotato

Servings:

Calories: 130.03kcal

Ingredients

4-5 medium to large sweet potatoes
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup salted or unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Topping

1 cup light or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup butter at room temp
1 cup flour
1 cup pecans

Instructions

Peel and slice sweet potatoes. Place in pot, cover with water, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and cook until fork-tender. Drain well and place in a large bowl.
4-5 medium to large sweet potatoes
Add butter and beat until smooth. Add in vanilla, sugar, and cinnamon. Beat again until well combined. With the mixer going, add in eggs, one at a time. Stir in the coconut.
1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup salted or unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
Spoon this sweet potato mixture into an 8x8 casserole dish and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

To make the topping

While the casserole is baking, place flour and brown sugar in a medium bowl and stir together. Cut in butter with a long-tined fork until well incorporated and then stir in the pecans.
1 cup light or dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup flour, 1 cup pecans
After 20 minutes, remove the casserole from the oven and sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the top. Return to the oven and bake until golden brown (30-40 minutes).

Nutrition