Make-Ahead Sweet Potato Casserole with Crisp Pecan Streusel
Sweet potato casserole you can prep up to two days ahead. The roasted, mashed filling chills in the fridge while the pecan streusel waits in its own container, so the dish needs only a 40-minute bake on the day.
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Aluminum foil
- 8x8-inch baking dish
- Fork
- Potato masher
- Hand mixer
- Spatula
- Colander
- Small bowl
Ingredients
For the filling
- 1.5 lb sweet potatoes roughly 2 medium-large, orange-fleshed (680 g)
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter softened (28 g)
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar (50 g) or 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 3 tbsp milk or heavy cream (45 ml)
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch ground nutmeg freshly grated if you have it
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
For the pecan streusel
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour (30 g), rice flour for gluten-free
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar (65 g), light or dark
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter melted (42 g)
- 1/3 cup pecans roughly chopped (40 g)
Instructions
- Cook the sweet potatoes. Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Scrub the potatoes, prick them a few times with a fork, and set them on a foil-lined sheet. Roast for 45 to 60 minutes, until a knife slides in with no resistance. Thinner potatoes finish sooner, so start checking at 40 minutes. Faster option: peel and cube the potatoes into 1-inch pieces, boil in salted water for 15 to 20 minutes until fork-tender, and drain them very well.
- Mash. When the roasted potatoes are cool enough to handle, split them and scoop the flesh into a large bowl, leaving the skins behind. Mash while still warm with the butter so it melts in. Stop as soon as it is even, since overbeating makes sweet potatoes gluey.
- Season the filling. Stir in the brown sugar, milk or cream, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Taste now and adjust the sugar or salt. Then beat in the egg until no streaks remain.
- Fill the dish. Butter an 8x8-inch dish or a 1.5-quart casserole, spread in the filling, and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Make the streusel. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Pour in the melted butter and stir with a fork until it clumps like wet sand with some pea-sized crumbs. Fold in the pecans.
- Make-ahead stop point. Let the filling cool, cover the dish tightly, and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Refrigerate the streusel in a separate container. Keep the streusel off the filling until you are ready to bake, because it soaks up moisture overnight and will not crisp.
- Bake. Take the dish out of the fridge 30 minutes before baking and heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Break up any large streusel clumps and scatter them evenly over the top. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes if the dish came from the fridge, or 25 to 30 minutes if baked the same day, until the topping is deep golden and the center no longer wobbles when the dish is nudged. Crowded ovens may need 10 minutes more. If the pecans darken before the center sets, lay a loose sheet of foil over the top.
- Rest. Let it sit for 10 minutes before serving so the filling firms up and the streusel crisps as it cools.
