Sweet Potato Casserole With Cinnamon and Bourbon Pecan Topping
Get the recipe for a sweet potato casserole with cinnamon and vanilla filling paired with a crunchy bourbon-pecan topping worth savoring.
Sweet Potato Casserole With Cinnamon and Bourbon Pecan Topping
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Category
Side dish
Cuisine
American
Author:
This recipe comes to us from Casey Bard, CEO of Tacticalories Seasoning Co. and longtime collaborator and friend of Montana Knife Company.
Servings
10
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
90 minutes
Calories
380
A good sweet potato casserole doesn’t need a holiday to earn a spot on the table. This sweet potato casserole with cinnamon brings together a creamy, spiced filling and a crunchy bourbon-pecan topping that works just as well at a Sunday cookout as it does at Thanksgiving dinner.
The secret to this sweet potato casserole is building flavor in layers. The filling gets its warmth from cinnamon and vanilla, and the topping adds crunch and depth with brown sugar, pecans, and a splash of bourbon. This isn’t a side dish that sits quietly on the table; it’s the one everyone goes back for twice.
Ingredients
A great sweet potato casserole starts with roasted sweet potatoes, warm spices, and a topping worth fighting over.
Sweet potato filling:
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5 to 6 whole sweet potatoes (about 3 cups mashed)
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1 cup granulated sugar
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1 stick butter, melted
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2 large eggs
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1 tsp. vanilla extract
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1/2 Tbsp. your favorite cinnamon seasoning (a cinnamon-sugar blend works great here)
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1/4 cup heavy cream
Bourbon pecan topping:
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3 Tbsp. butter, melted
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1 cup brown sugar
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1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup pecans, roughly chopped with a sharp, clean knife
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1 splash of bourbon
Directions
This sweet potato casserole with cinnamon takes a little patience up front, but the payoff is a side dish your guests won’t forget:
Roast the sweet potatoes
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Place whole, unpeeled sweet potatoes directly on the oven rack and roast for about one hour, or until a sharp kitchen knife slides through the center without resistance. Let them cool enough to handle, then peel and mash until smooth.
Mix the sweet potato casserole filling
Combine the mashed sweet potatoes, sugar, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon seasoning, and heavy cream in a large bowl. Stir until the mixture is smooth and the spices are evenly distributed. The filling should be creamy, not lumpy.
Build the topping
In a separate bowl, mix the melted butter, brown sugar, flour, chopped pecans, and bourbon. Stir until the dry ingredients are coated and the mixture is crumbly. The bourbon adds a subtle warmth that pairs well with the cinnamon in the filling.
Assemble and bake the sweet potato casserole
Spread the sweet potato filling into a cast iron skillet or baking dish. Spoon the pecan topping evenly across the surface. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the filling is bubbling around the edges.
Let the sweet potato casserole rest for five to 10 minutes before serving.
Recipe Note
Chef’s Secrets for a Standout Sweet Potato Casserole With Cinnamon
The difference between a forgettable side and the best sweet potato casserole on the table comes down to a few details:
- Roast, don’t boil. Roasting sweet potatoes concentrates their natural sugars and keeps the filling from getting watery. Boiling adds moisture you don’t want in a casserole.
- Chop pecans by hand. A clean, sharp knife gives you rough, uneven pieces that create the best texture in the topping. A food processor turns them to dust too fast.
- Don’t skip the bourbon. It doesn’t make the casserole boozy. The alcohol cooks off and leaves behind a caramel warmth that rounds out the brown sugar and pecans. If you’d rather skip it, a teaspoon of vanilla extract in the topping works as a backup.
- Use a cast iron skillet. It holds heat evenly and gives the edges of the sweet potato casserole a slightly caramelized finish that a glass baking dish can’t match.
- Let it rest. Pulling the casserole straight from the oven to the table means a loose, runny filling. Five to 10 minutes of resting lets it firm up enough to hold its shape on the plate.
This sweet potato casserole with cinnamon and a bourbon-pecan topping earns its place at any table, any time of year. It’s rich, crunchy, and just sweet enough without tipping into dessert territory. Once you’ve made it, you’ll stop waiting for the holidays to pull it out.
