If you’re looking for an easy sweet potato casserole with a twist, this recipe is the one you want to start with. This Thanksgiving sweet potato recipe may have marshmallows, but it’s not cloyingly sweet.
I have never been a fan of sweet potato casserole with marshmallows on it. It’s almost always a little too sweet for me, and I’m someone with a severe sweet tooth!
Knowing that this is a classic way to serve Thanksgiving sweet potatoes, I wanted to make a version that had a better harmony of flavors–sweet, tart, and well-spiced.
To accomplish this, I brought in a few new concepts to the classic sweet potato casserole recipe:
- Pomegranate juice: I used POM but any brand of pure pomegranate juice will work. It adds a tart, somewhat sour sweetness to the potatoes to help cut through the overwhelming sweetness of the casserole. You can also use pure cranberry juice as well.
- Kafe Hawaij: The “Middle Eastern pumpkin spice” brings in flavors of ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, and clove to go beyond the flavors of a regular old pumpkin spice blend. That said, if you have pumpkin pie spice in your cabinet, use that! You can add a dash of cardamom to bring in a bit of the kafe hawaij undertones.
- Pecans: I’ve noticed that sweet potato casseroles tend to use either nutty, brown sugar toppings OR marshmallow toppings. To that I say, why not both? Raw pecans add a nutty, flavor–again–to cut through the sweetness of the marshmallow.
How to make this sweet potato casserole:
Making this recipe is a breeze!
First, peel and cube two pounds of sweet potatoes. Transfer them to a pot and cover with water and add salt. Bring to a boil and cook until the sweet potatoes are fork-tender. Drain and then transfer to a large bowl. Add heavy cream, butter, pomegranate juice, maple syrup, and kafe hawaij, and use a hand mixer to blend until smooth. Transfer to an oval baking dish.
From there, simply scatter mini marshmallows and raw pecan halves on top. Transfer to the oven and bake for 30 minutes until the marshmallows are lightly golden brown.
If you want a toastier golden brown marshmallow, broil the casserole for 1–3 minutes. Watch them carefully under the broiler–you don’t want to be known as the person who set the sweet potatoes on fire at Thanksgiving!
Looking for more Thanksgiving side dish recipes? Check my archives!
If you made this recipe, please rate it and comment below! You can also follow me and share your creations by tagging me! I’d love to feature your #triedandtruerecipes creation on my feed.
Easy Sweet Potato Casserole
Equipment
- Large pot
- Colander
- Hand mixer
- 10×7 Baking dish
Ingredients
- 2 pounds sweet potato peeled and cubed
- ¼ cup pomegranate juice
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon kafe hawaij plus more if desired, or use your favorite pumpkin spice blend
- 1½ cups miniature marshmallows plus more if you like
- ½ cup raw pecans
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Boil the sweet potatoes:
- Cover the sweet potatoes with water in a large pot. Add salt and bring to a boil. Cook for 20-25 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are fork-tender. Drain and set aside.
Blend the sweet potatoes:
- Transfer the cooked sweet potatoes to a large bowl. Add the pomegranate juice, heavy cream, maple syrup, butter, and kafe hawaij. Use a hand-mixer to blend until smooth. Taste and add more kafe hawaij and a sprinkle of salt, if you like.
Bake the sweet potatoes:
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into a 10×7 baking dish. Arrange the marshmallows on top and scatter the pecans on top.
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 25–30 minutes or until the marshmallows are lightly golden.
Broil the marshmallows (optional):
- If desired, broil the marshmallows. Turn on the broiler. Watch the casserole carefully and broil for 1-3 minutes until desired toastiness of the marshmallows is achieved.
To serve:
- Let the casserole cool for 5 minutes. Serve warm with a sprinkle more of kafe hawaij, if you like. Enjoy!
