Oatmeal streusel topping for sweet potato casserole

This Sweet Potato Casserole with Streusel Topping is a classic Thanksgiving side dish and it’s also great with marshmallows!

Ok guys, are we ready to start talking about Thanksgiving dishes????  How many of you are going to be hosting Thanksgiving this year???  I am hoping to supply you with a few staple recipes and a how-to guide to help ease some of the stress it takes when planning for a big holiday meal.  So first up is this sweet potato casserole with streusel topping!!

Some of my other Thanksgiving dishes to include are these Homemade Green Bean Casserole, Cranberry Pomegranate Sauce, and Homemade Turkey Gravy.

Tell me how many of you prefer streusel topped or marshmallows on your sweet potato casserole?  I could eat it either way.  I grew up eating it with marshmallows and only a few years ago started making it with streusel on top.  This year is my first for making it more of a smooth casserole…..usually, I would leave the potatoes in chunks and then top it.

But that is because I discovered a more flavorful way to make sweet potato casserole.  You have to bake the potatoes not boil or microwave them.  Trust me guys, it makes all the difference!! 

Baking the sweet potatoes actually makes them sweeter and so you don’t have to add so much sugar to the dish!!  It also intensifies the flavor of the sweet potato and so your sweet potato casserole actually tastes like sweet potatoes!  I do realize that baking takes a little extra time but you can do that up to 2 days in advance!

A little about this Sweet Potato Casserole with Streusel Topping:

• When choosing sweet potatoes don’t automatically reach for the biggest one.  Smaller ones will bake much quicker!  Try to choose potatoes that are roughly the same size and also uniform in shape so they will cook evenly.
• Baking the sweet potatoes will make this dish naturally sweet so I greatly reduced the amount of sugar.  Taste your sweet potatoes and if you find them bland add in more sugar.  But you may find them sweet enough to even leave the sugar out!
• You can make this in advance by baking the sweet potatoes and scraping out the pulp into a container.  Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.  Or mix up the sweet potato filling and place into your desired baking dish, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.  Bring this out of the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before baking.  You can also make the streusel and keep separate in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.  Bring the streusel to room temp before topping the casserole.
• If you are serving this on Thanksgiving with several other side dishes this will be enough to serve 10-12 guests.
• You may choose to add in cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.  I chose not to because I wanted to keep this dish more on the savory side instead of dessert like.
• You can also top this with marshmallows instead of the streusel topping or top the casserole with both toppings.  The choice is yours!

And also….this dish is great anytime of the year…..not just at Thanksgiving!!  I hope you enjoy!

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Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: classic sweet potato casserole, sweet potato casserole with streusel

Sweet Potato Filling

• 4 pounds (1890g) sweet potatoes, baked and scraped from skins
• ¾ cup (175ml) milk or half and half
• ¼ cup (56g) butter, melted
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• ¼ cup (45g) packed dark brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Streusel Topping

• ⅓ cup (44g) all purpose flour
• ⅓ cup (35g) old fashioned oats
• ¼ cup (45g) packed dark brown sugar
• pinch of salt
• ¼ cup (56g) butter, melted
• ½ cup (54g) chopped pecans

Sweet Potato Filling

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).  Lightly grease a deep dish pie pan, 10 inch cast iron skillet, or 9×9 baking dish and set aside.

   In a large bowl combine the cooked sweet potatoes, milk, butter, eggs, brown sugar and vanilla.  Mix well to combine.  Spread into prepared pan.  Set aside.

Streusel Topping

1. In a small bowl combine all the flour, oats, brown sugar, and salt.  Stir in the butter and pecans.  Sprinkle over casserole.  Bake for 25 minutes or until heated through.  

1. See post for make ahead tips.
2. To bake sweet potatoes: Pierce potatoes several times.  Place on a foil lined baking sheet.  Bake at 400 degrees F (204 degrees C) for 1- 1 1/2 hours or until they are soft when you squeeze them.  Slice open the potato to let steam escape and let cool slightly before scooping out the pulp.  
3. Can also top with mini marshmallows instead of streusel or both.  Bake as directed.