Nothing beats my mom's sweet potato pie casserole with canned yams. It's crustless, so it's really more of a casserole, and she always served it as part of dinner not dessert, and yet, we always call it sweet potato pie...go figure 🙄.
It has a creamy sweet potato filling, a sweet and crunchy pecan topping, and not a marshmallow in sight. It's made with pantry ingredients, so you'll be making it from Thanksgiving to Passover and beyond.
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Quick Look
- 🥧 Why you'll love it: Classic Thanksgiving flavor without the extra work. No crust, no peeling, just let the can opener do the work.
- ⏲️ Time: 15 minutes prep, 35-40 minutes bake, 55 minutes total.
- 🍠 Key ingredient: One 40 oz can of yams or sweet potatoes, drained and mashed.
- 🧊 Make ahead: Two ways. Mix it and refrigerate it unbaked for up to 2 days, or bake it a day ahead and reheat.
Key Ingredients
- Canned sweet potatoes: One reason this recipe is so simple is that you start with a can of already cooked sweet potatoes. I like Bruce's Yams or Princella Cut Sweet Potatoes. Both come in a 40 oz can, and I use them interchangeably depending on what my grocery store has. Drain off the syrup before you mash.
- Flour: I use King Arthur All Purpose Flour. For Passover, I swap in matzo cake meal.
- Milk: Dairy or plant-based both work.
Swaps: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Nut-Free, and Passover
- Dairy-free: Swap the butter for any plant-based butter. The recipe is written with almond milk, but soy milk or non-dairy creamer work too.
- Gluten-free: Swap the flour in the topping for a gluten-free alternative. I'd use King Arthur's Gluten Free Flour Mix or Trader Joe's all purpose gluten-free baking mix.
- Nut-free: Swap the almond milk for soy or dairy milk, and swap the pecans for old fashioned oats.
- Passover: Swap the flour for matzo cake meal.
How to Make Sweet Potato Pie Casserole
Step 1: Start by preparing an 8" springform pan by spraying it liberally with cooking spray and wrapping the bottom in aluminum foil. This will prevent any of the sweet potato pie mixture from leaking onto your oven and making a giant mess!
Step 2: In a large mixing bowl combine the drained canned sweet potatoes, sugar, almond milk, vanilla extract and large eggs.
Step 3: With an electric mixer on medium speed, mix until the ingredients are well combined.
Step 4: Pour the smooth sweet potato filling mixture into the prepared springform pan.
Step 5: Make the topping by combining the brown sugar, flour, pecans and butter.
Step 6: Once combined, spread evenly on top of the sweet potato casserole filling.
Step 7: Bake. Place the springform pan on a baking sheet and bake at 400℉ for 35-45mins until the middle is set.
🔥My Tip's
If the sweet potato casserole is getting too dark on top, but the middle is not yet set, lightly cover the whole thing with aluminum foil and continue baking. When the center of the pie is no longer "jiggly", you'll know it's done.
Slice it or scoop it: Baked in the round springform, it slices like a pie. Doubled and baked in a 9x13 pan, it scoops like a casserole.
The topping is essential: The pecans and brown sugar are what keep the topping crunchy.
Serving Suggestions
- Thanksgiving: Along with the turkey, I like garlic butter dinner rolls, Soy Vey Green Beans, a big platter of vegetables (roasted sweet potato, broccoli or cauliflower), and a this crispy gnocchi with sage.
- Hanukkah: For a meat meal, serve it with your favorite brisket, homemade potato latkes, and roasted baby carrots. For a dairy meal, serve it with noodle kugel, tuna fish, and potato bourekas.
- Passover Seder: We serve sesame ginger salmon at our second night seder, and this is a perfect accompaniment with roasted broccoli and farfel muffins.
Recipe FAQ's
Yes, you can. Roast or bake large sweet potatoes ahead of time so they can cool before you use them. Peel off the skin, then mash the sweet potatoes really well with a potato masher. Or, put the cooked flesh in the bowl of a stand mixer and whip it with the paddle attachment until smooth. For the right texture, you want the filling really smooth, like I do in my sweet potato puree.
Simply swap the flour for matzo cake meal, and voilà: Kosher for Passover sweet potato pie. Looking for more Kosher for Passover recipes? I've got you covered here.
More Great Thanksgiving Side Dishes
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📖 Recipe
Sweet Potato Pie Casserole with Canned Yams (No Crust)
Ingredients
Filling
- 40 oz Can sweet potatoes/yams drained
- ½ cup Sugar
- ½ cup Almond milk or whole milk, soy milk, coffee rich
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 2 Eggs
Topping
- ¾ cup Brown sugar packed
- ½ cup Flour
- 1 cup Chopped pecans
- ¼ cup Butter or margarine, plant based butter substitute
Instructions
- Prepare an 8" springform pan by spraying liberally with cooking spray and wrapping the bottom in aluminum foil. Preheat the oven to 400℉.
- In a blender or large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, combine drained sweet potatoes, sugar, almond milk, vanilla, and eggs. Pour smooth filling mixture into the prepared springform pan.
- In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour, pecans and butter. Once combined, spread evenly on top of sweet potato mixture.
- Bake at 400℉ for 35-40 minutes, until the middle is set. If it's getting too dark, but middle is not yet set, lightly cover with foil.
Notes
Make Ahead Tips
- To make and freeze ahead of time: Bake the sweet potato casserole all the way through, and then let it cool completely. Wrap it well in layers of plastic wrap and then top with foil for best results and then put into the freezer. Sweet potato casserole freezes well up for up to three months.
- To make ahead unbaked: assemble, cover, and refrigerate up to 2 days without the topping, add the topping just before baking and bake as directed.
- To make a day in advance: Follow the recipe as directed and let cool. Cover well and refrigerate once cooled completely. Before serving, bring to room temperature on the counter and then reheat on 300℉ for about 20 minutes. You don't want to dry it out, just warm it up.
Marni Katz says
Our favorite sweet potato casserole and the one that is one every holiday table.