Thanksgiving without sweet potatoes and marshmallows is like the 4th of July without sparklers: Sure, it’s still a holiday, but where is the pure unadulterated joy!? This side dish—not dessert—is a staple, served right alongside the cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and green beans on many Southern Thanksgiving dinner tables. If you haven’t tried this combo yet, it’s time to get on the candied-carbohydrate train. And if you want to call the dish candied yams (even though sweet potatoes and yams aren’t technically the same thing), go for it.
For this particular sweet potato casserole recipe, you’ll toss and bake diced sweet potatoes with plenty of butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, and light brown sugar. (Prefer mashed sweet potato casserole? Here’s another favorite recipe topped with a graham cracker streusel topping.) Keep the potatoes covered so that the sugar doesn’t burn, then peel back the foil, scatter mini marshmallows and almonds all over and cook until the nuts are crunchy and the toasted marshmallow topping is appropriately gooey and delicious. If chopped pecans, walnuts, or pistachios are more your jam, feel free to sub those in.
Cooking the sweet potatoes in this way instead of a boil-and-drain method means that the natural sugars and earthy flavors that make this Thanksgiving side dish so delicious aren’t rinsed away. Instead, they’re concentrated in the casserole dish during the cook time. Joy, indeed.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published in the November 1994 issue of ‘Bon Appétit’ and first appeared online August 20, 2004.
Recipe information
Total Time
1 hour 25 minutes
Yield
Serves 8
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat oven to 375°F. Arrange potatoes in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Combine sugar, butter, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and ginger in heavy small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Pour over potatoes; toss to coat. Cover dish tightly with foil.
Step 2
Bake potatoes 50 minutes. Uncover; bake until potatoes are tender and syrup thickens slightly, basting occasionally, about 20 minutes.
DO AHEAD: Bake the potatoes to this point up to three days ahead of time. Cool, then store covered in the refrigerator. Reheat, covered, in a 375°F oven until warmed through, 8–10 minutes.
Step 3
Increase oven temperature to 500°F. Top potatoes with marshmallows and nuts. Return to oven; bake until marshmallows begin to melt and nuts begin to brown, about 3 minutes.
