This light Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe gets its sweetness and creaminess from low-fat vanilla yogurt instead of butter, cream, and sugar.
As a Canadian, I didn’t grow up eating the classic American Sweet Potato Casserole, or very many sweet potatoes at all. When I finally tasted this traditional Thanksgiving side dish, I didn’t love it. I’m sorry. I found it too sweet and kind of strange. Marshmallows at dinner time?
That was a long time ago though. These days I’m totally on board with it! Except for, well, I’m never sure I want to have very much because I know that it’s loaded with butter and cream and those marshmallows! I’d much prefer to save my calories for this perfectly roasted turkey, the stuffing and gravy – oh, and the pumpkin pie of course!
The goal for today’s recipe was therefore to find a sweet potato casserole that both I and traditionalists will enjoy. This recipe is a touch less sweet than the classic. But you can add some extra brown sugar if you really need to. Check out the recipe below. It tells you when to taste it and when and how much sugar to add if you like it sweeter than I do.
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Video: Delicious and Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole
Making Sweet Potato Casserole Lighter And Healthier
Video: Delicious and Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole
Making Sweet Potato Casserole Lighter And Healthier
For the lightened sweet potato recipe below, I’ve played around with the basics a bit to come up with something that’s just as creamy as the original but a bit healthier. This version doesn’t have any butter or cream. Instead, the creaminess comes from vanilla yogurt. It still has the flavor you love, just with a couple tweaks to the original recipe.
To further reduce the sugar in the recipe, I’ve tweaked the classic sweet potato casserole topping by cutting back on the marshmallows. The marshmallows are still there and their brown puffiness will please traditionalists. But they don’t cover the whole casserole in melted candy.
What About The Topping?
As for the Sweet Potato Casserole Topping, I have a trick for making sure that the marshmallows don’t get crunchy. First, you bake the casserole for awhile without the topping. Then you add the pecans and marshmallows and continue to bake just until the marshmallows are puffed softly and starting to brown. This ensures that the pecans don’t get overly dark and bitter as well.
Don’t want marshmallows at all? Try making a pecan crumble mixture for the topping! Finely chop up the pecans and mix with old fashioned oats, melted butter or coconut oil, and some brown sugar if you’d like. Mix it all up and sprinkle on top of the sweet potato mixture instead of the marshmallows.
More Thanksgiving Recipes
If you’re looking for more healthy Thanksgiving side dishes, be sure to also check out my recipe forGreen Bean Casserole from Scratch. It’s just as tasty and just as easy as the original but with fresher ingredients.
You can also browse all my Thanksgiving recipes, including turkey and cranberry sauce, in my Thanksgiving collection to complete your meal.
Podcast Episode: Making Sweet Potato Casserole
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this casserole, with some great tips along the way, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
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Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star5 from 2 reviews
Author:Christine Pittman
Prep Time:20 minutes
Cook Time:45 minutes
Total Time:1 hour 5 minutes
Yield:12 servings 1x
Category:Side Dish
Method:Baked
Cuisine:American
Print Recipe
DESCRIPTION
This healthier twist on the classic Sweet Potato Casserole uses low-fat vanilla yogurt instead of butter and cream. And there are fewer marshmallows on top.
Ingredients
UnitsScale
3lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1cup low-fat vanilla yogurt
1 tsp. cinnamon
A pinch of nutmeg
A pinch of salt
Brown sugar (optional)
4 large egg whites OR 2 large whole eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup mini marshmallows
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease or spray a 2.5 quart casserole dish.
Put the sweet potatoes in a medium sauce pan with enough water just to cover them. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer and cook until fork-tender, 5-7 minutes. Drain them.
Return the sweet potatoes to the pot and use an egg beater to mash them up (or transfer them to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat them in there.
Add the yogurt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Beat some more. Taste it. If it’s not sweet enough for you, beat in brown sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and taste.
Once you’re satisfied with the sweetness, add the eggs and beat them in as well. Transfer the mixture to the lightly greased (or sprayed) casserole baking dish.
Bake for 30 minutes. Top evenly with the pecans and marshmallows and continue to bake until marshmallows are puffed and lightly browned, 10-15 more minutes.
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The egg is the all-important binder in a sweet potato casserole: it enriches and stiffens the mixture without making it heavy. Make sure to cool the mash slightly before adding the egg so it doesn't scramble, and to stir well so there are no streaks of cooked egg white in the finished dish.
Eggs and cream help stabilize the dish and prevent it from becoming too runny (a common complaint with many sweet potato casserole recipes). Make it as smooth or chunky as you like!
The cold water bath helps rinse the starch off the sweet potatoes so they're a bit more crispy. That said, if you do not have the time, you can still get crispy baked sweet potato fries by using high heat and a little drizzle of olive oil.
The potato pulled at 1 hour reached about 180 degrees, the 2-hour potato reached about 190 degrees, and the 3-hour potato reached about 200 degrees. Only the potato that cooked for the full 3 hours boasted the creamy, soft consistency and caramelized sweetness I wanted.
– I've made this sweet potato casserole with and without eggs, both ways are delicious. The eggs act as a binder and gives the casserole a light and fluffy texture. Without eggs, the casserole doesn't have as much structure but it still silky smooth and tastes delicious.
Why is my sweet potato casserole watery? If you overcook your sweet potatoes, they may begin to absorb too much liquid, making them watery. It's important to cut your potatoes into equal-sized pieces so that they all cook at the same rate. Make sure to remove them from the steamer as soon as they are fork-tender!
Make a cornstarch slurry for a fast and easy thickener.
A few minutes before your casserole is done, add it a little at a time until you are happy with the thickness. Then, let the casserole finish baking. You can also substitute chickpea flour for cornstarch. Chickpea flour is an excellent thickener for savory dishes.
The Squeze Test - When you are wondering if your baked sweet potato recipe is done, give the sweet potato a little squeeze (with an oven mitt on!). If your baked sweet potato feels tender, it is likely ready. If it still feels firm, I'd put it back in the oven for another 15 minutes.
Boiling sweet potatoes retains more beta-carotene and makes the nutrient more absorbable than other cooking methods such as baking or frying. Up to 92% of the nutrient can be retained by limiting the cook time, such as boiling in a pot with a tightly covered lid for 20 minutes.
TIPS & TRICKS to Make this Recipe: The main secrets to achieving that incredible crispy texture, is to soak the cut sweet potatoes in cold water for at least 30 minutes. This helps remove the starch from the sweet potatoes so they´re not limp & soggy.
Give them a cold water bath: Once your fries are chopped, toss them into a large bowl. Then cover the fries completely with cold water and let them soak for at least 30 minutes (or up to overnight). This will help to rinse off the excess starch and help the potatoes crisp up beautifully in the oven.
If you are storing raw sweet potatoes, make sure you do not rinse them first. Rinsing could lead to rotting due to the extra moisture that is being introduced. Use a dry cloth to remove any dirt before you begin to store sweet potatoes. Another way to store raw sweet potatoes is to cure them for 1 to 2 weeks.
Mushy Texture: Sweet potatoes contain a lot of moisture, and overcooking can cause them to become mushy and overly soft. Instead of a firm and slightly tender texture, they may turn into a puree-like consistency. Loss of Flavor: Overcooking can lead to a loss of flavor in sweet potatoes.
There is not much difference between boiling sweet potatoes with the skins on versus peeling them, but you will get a boost of fiber and potassium if you keep the skin on. The skin also adds a subtle texture to each bite. If you're looking for a smoother mash, peel the potatoes first before boiling.
The proteins in eggs coagulate or set at different temperatures.This results in thickening but it means that eggs must be cooked gently and heated carefully or they will scramble rather than thicken a sauce or other mixture.
Eggs play an important role in everything from cakes and cookies to meringues and pastry cream — they create structure and stability within a batter, they help thicken and emulsify sauces and custards, they add moisture to cakes and other baked goods, and can even act as glue or glaze.
Adding egg yolks to a pot of mashed potatoes is an easy, dairy-free texture and taste upgrade that doesn't require any special techniques. The yolks harbor all the flavorful fats and emulsifying components and will thus effectively unify the fat and water in potatoes, translating to a smoother, uniformly creamy pot.
When eggs are balanced with liquids and fats like water, oil, and butter, they ensure that your cake doesn't turn into a soupy mess, but adding too many of them adds too much structure, leaving you with a cake that's rubbery and dense.
Introduction: My name is Nathanael Baumbach, I am a fantastic, nice, victorious, brave, healthy, cute, glorious person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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