This is a side dish you’re going to want on the holiday dinner table. Or maybe, on your regular fall dinner table. Because who can wait for the holidays? It is sweet potato season after all, which means in this house we’re cooking them a couple times a week. Give me all the sweet potatoes, please. They are the edible equivalent to a big warm hug.
Now that it’s officially November (plus chilly and dark at 6pm…tear…sob), I figure some of us are thinking about happier things…like the holidays and all the delightful holiday food. I know I am. It’s my favourite time of the year to cook and bake. For some reason, I always have oodles and oodles of recipe ideas floating through my mind this time of the year and can’t keep up with testing them all out. You should see my “to make” list…it’s massive!
In preparation for the holidays, I decided to do something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time; I revamped my old sweet potato casserole recipe from 2009. It’s a good recipe, but with 5 years of recipe development under my belt I knew I could improve upon it. This version got lightened up and given a crazy good pecan oat maple crumble topping. It totally blew us away and the previous recipe is all but history in my mind.
Just look at this crunchy crumble…
Here are a few things I changed up:
1) cut sweetener by over half (you won’t even notice)
2) added some heart-healthy virgin coconut oil
3) added a new and improved crunchy topping – gives it a great texture contrast!
4) made this one gluten-free as the old one wasn’t
5) amped up the maple + cinnamon flavours
6) new photos…because 2009 wasn’t my best year for photography…hehe
I recommend serving each portion with a pat of vegan butter or coconut oil on top to really take it over the edge. The butter/oil melts and cascades all over the casserole. Bliss!!
I love you, sweet potatoes.
PS- If you haven’t tried it already, check out my Sweet Potato Oatmeal Breakfast Casserole. Dessert for breakfast!
Sweet Potato Crumble Casserole
Yield
12 large side servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This is a side dish you're going to want on the holiday dinner table! The crunchy nut crumble tastes just like an oatmeal cookie. I recommend serving this casserole with a pat of vegan butter or coconut oil to really take it over the top. Also try serving it with Coconut Whipped Cream for a decadent twist. In this recipe, I swapped out half the vegan butter for virgin coconut oil to add some heart-healthy fats while still retaining that lovely butter flavour.
Ingredients
For the sweet potato mash:
- 4 1/2 to 5 pounds sweet potatoes (about 4 to 5 large)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons (22 mL) vegan butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons (22 mL) virgin coconut oil
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (37 mL) pure maple syrup, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon (5 mL) pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon fine grain salt, or to taste
For the Crunchy Nut Crumble:
- 1 cup rolled oats (use certified gluten-free if necessary)
- 1 1/3 cups pecan halves, chopped
- 1/3 cup almond meal or almond flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 2 tablespoons (30 mL) virgin coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons (30 mL) vegan butter, melted
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (37 mL) pure maple syrup
Directions
- Peel and roughly chop sweet potatoes into large chunks. Place into a large pot and cover with water. Bring water to a boil, reduce heat to medium-high, and gently boil for 10 to 20 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly grease a 2 1/2-quart (10-cup) casserole dish and set aside.
- Prepare the crumble topping: Pulse the oats in a food processor until coarsely chopped. In a medium bowl, stir together the chopped pecans, oats, almond meal/flour, cinnamon, and salt. Pour on melted coconut oil, melted butter, and maple syrup. Stir until combined.
- Once cooked and drained, place sweet potatoes into a large bowl.
- Mash potatoes with the butter and coconut oil until smooth. Now, stir in the maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Adjust to taste if desired. Spoon into casserole dish and smooth out.
- Sprinkle the crumble topping all over the sweet potato mixture, evenly.
- Bake, uncovered, at 375°F (190°C) for 16 to 23 minutes, until the dish is hot throughout. Plate and serve immediately with a pat of vegan butter or coconut oil.
Tip:
- For a creamy twist, try subbing some of the butter/oil in the sweet potato mash for full-fat canned coconut cream.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
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Eating this as I type- holy cow!!!! Sooooo good!!! I cannot wait to take this to Thanksgiving dinner next week!!! Thank you, thank you!
Curious if i could make this ahead of time and bake it the day of thanksgiving? Possibly make crumble separate until day of baking. thoughts?
Hi Lisa, I think thats a great idea! I would maybe bake the potato mixture on a low oven heat to warm it up then use the topping and bake at 375. Also make sure you bake the crumble topping for 16 min and keep your eye on it after that because the topping can burn fast. Good luck!
Also, does anyone hand mash or use a mixer to whip the potatoes? thanks in advance!!
Hi Lisa, I made this recipe and would recommend using a hand mash because you still want some texture to the potatoes. I personally think a mixer might make it too smooth but I guess thats a personal preference. Enjoy!!
Thank you Tiffany! Will take your advice! happy Thanksgiving!!
Hi Angela,
I am wondering if you think it would be just as fine making this recipe a few days ahead of time and just warming up in the oven on the big day? Or would I lose something if I make it in advance?…
Thanks so much,
Orna.
im sure that would be fine! i would just be careful not to overcook the topping and dry it out.
Angela, this recipe is a true favorite! Thank you!! I cut the recipe in half and it still made plenty! The only change I made is that I added a little more salt in the sweet potato mixture.
Love your recipes so much! Your food is made in my house weekly. :) Any suggestions for an almond meal replacement in this one? It’s so hard for me to justify spending $10 on a bag of it.
Totally making this for my moms thanksgiving! I can’t wait to taste it!
I made this for our firm’s Thanksgiving pot luck and it was a huge hit. I even added a bit of unsweetened coconut shreds and brown sugar to the topping. Everyone loved it!
I made your old recipe for Thanksgiving last year (my first as a vegan) and it was good, but not as dessert-like as I’m used to. Is this version more like a traditional sweet potato casserole despite the reduced sweetener? Also, would it be possible to make this in a crock pot?
Do you think I make this day before and not bake it until the next day? Or do you think I should bake it day before and then reheat it on thanksgiving? Thanks!!
I’d like to take this dish to a potluck. Would it taste okay if not served immediately? Thank you always for the wonderful recipes.
Made this for Friendsgiving last weekend and it was a huge hit! No one would ever have guessed it was a healthy take on sweet potato casserole ;) Thank you for another great recipe!
hi! I am very excited to make this for thanksgiving. I was wondering if whole wheat flour will work instead of almond flour?
thank you!
I used whole wheat flour and it was amazing
I’m allergic to almonds. Could I use a gluten free flour instead?
While I’m not vegan, (gluten free/refined sugar free), this is EXACTLY what I went looking for. Yay! Hands down, my favorite Thanksgiving dish!
Can you make this the night before?
Vegan Thanksgiving for the win! I made this today in preparation for tomorrow’s feast and I love it, Angela! I made the recipe as you suggested, and added some acorn squash since I was about a pound short on sweet potatoes. I did not put the oat crumble on yet– mashed everything in my crock pot and will add the crumble mixture tomorrow and then turn it on the keep warm setting to free up oven space. I snuck a spoonful already and it is delish! Also, my mom just bought me the oh she glows cookbook and I want to bake and eat everything in it! Mouth watering recipes and photos… Can’t wait to cook my way through it! So thankful for your fantastic blog!
Those are not sweet potatoes you are cooking my friend. … Those are YAMS! Big difference! But nonetheless I tried it and your recipe is FAnTasTiC!!
Made this for my family today; it was a hit! Love the maple flavor! I kept licking the spoon while mixing the crumble and the sweet potato mix….so good!
This was on my Thanksgiving menu today and OH MYYY….this has become a new favorite dish in my house. I can’t believe I hadn’t tried this till now. Absolutely amazing!
I’ve been dying to make this and finally made it yesterday for Thanksgiving. It was amazing! It was my favourite part of the meal and the favourite part of a lot of my guests too-
Such a hit! Also, for those of you wanting to do some advanced prep I did baked, mashed my potatoes the night before and prepared the dry crumble ingredients then on the big day I just had to melt the oil, butter and syrup and mix up the crumb topping. Note that I did cook it for about 15 mins longer to ensure it was well heated through. Thanks Angela for the excellent recipe! You never disappoint!
Oh my goodness, this looks delicious! I’m definitely making this! thanks for sharing! A healthier option for a family favorite.
I made this and brought it to Thanksgiving dinner yesterday. Everyone loved it! Thank you!!
Made this for my family yesterday (Thanksgiving) everyone LOVED it and said the recipe is a keeper. Leftovers are even good cold right out of the fridge!
Wow, made this yesterday and LOVED it!!! thank you so much for a great recipe!
Angela, I made this saweet potato casserole this weekend for our US Thanksgiving and it was delicious!! The crunchy nut topping was by far my favorite part. It matched perfectly and contrasted the mashed sweet potatoes well. I feel like that nut topping would make a really great granola base. Thanks again for the amazing recipe. Can’t wait to make this for years to come!
Made this for Thanksgiving…AH-MA-ZING! Will now be a holiday staple in our house.
I have been craving a vegan seasonal dessert and this totally hit the spot! So easy and delicious. I think it’s my new favorite :)
I took this to a Thanksgiving potluck this year and at first everyone was reluctant to try it as it wasn’t wearing marshmallows and coated in sugar, but once people tried a little, it ended up being the most popular side dish. Thank you for being the first person to show me that plant-based food can be savory and delicious :-)
I made this for my vegan/non-vegan family for Thanksgiving and it was INCREDIBLE. This is an absolute keeper.
I made these today to bring to my family’s small group meeting for church. Sweet potato casserole is one of my favorite dishes for thanksgiving, and this being my first vegan thanksgiving I must say these are great! It seemed an easy enough dish to veganise, but I really liked that you also didn’t even use sugar for sweetening it. It was perfect, in my opinion! Thanks so much for sharing!!
I forgot to mention!–the rest of my group (all omnivores) enjoyed these too!
Oh my goodness! Was introduced to this last night and my socks were completely blown off! A fantastic combination of flavours and a wonderful way to indulge in my favorite tuber. I can not get enough of this. In planning out my weekly menu I noticed that I have this listed for 3 meals and two snacks…. a day….. for the next seven days.
I made this for our extended family for Thanksgiving – my first sweet potato recipe, as I’ve traditionally made squash in the past. I received raves from everyone who tried it, and my 10-year-old daughter absolutely LOVED it (she said to put LOVED in all caps, that’s how much she loved it :).
Made this for Thanksgiving last week. All of my non-vegan relatives (which is all of them) were very impressed.
Thanks for this awesome recipe. It was a big hit at Thanksgiving for vegans and non-vegans!
Amazing recipe! Just had this for an early Christmas dinner and it was the talk of the table! Made no changes – perfect as is! Thank you for sharing!
I made this for the first time at Thanksgiving and it was so so delicious – will definitely be added the the menu for years to come. Thank you for this recipe and your wonderful blog!
Are these sweet potatoes or yams? Yams are more orange. Just curious. Thanks!
Hey :) sorry if this has already been asked, I did have a little look – just wpdering whether this could be frozen before cooking? Trying py get a load of Christmas prep done! Thanks x
I remember making something like this before and my culinary skills have improved also so will give it a try again. It seemed like effort the last time and I nearly ate all the sweet potato mash before it went in the casserole dish haha. This time it looks easy and delicious. Thanks for the lovely pics for inspiration. I feel this will be making an appearance on the 25th!
Very good. I did not make any adjustments to the recipe, and I added a little dab of coco oil on top of some leftovers. This dish has lasted my partner and I 3 days, and it tastes even better the next day. Thanks AGAIN, Angela! 5 stars!
First time to prepare this Saweet! Potato Casserole with Crunchy Nut Crumble after searching for vegan menu. After reviewing menus, I consider it very healthy food, I prepared it for the holiday party yesterday. My friends and I love it. Right now I am prepare a second one for Vegan Society holiday party this evening.
I am wondering if I could use coconut nectar instead of maple syrup ?
I used to make a recipe called Pumpkin Pie Cake. It was an awesome pumpkin mixture topped with a cake mix, butter and nuts – full of sugar and bad fats. This tastes almost like that decadent dessert. AWESOME! I would eat this guilt free as a dessert any day.
Can I just say this is the bomb?! I just made it for Christmas Eve tomorrow and I really wish I made more because my boyfriend and I can’t stop eating it! Thanks for the recipe!
This is crazy good!
I just tried it tonight and I must say it was delicious! I didn’t sweeten the mashed potato and added a bit of hazelnut to the crumble and it was very tasty!
Based on what I’ve read, it seems to be quite a traditional dish in the US, but here in Québec we’ve never heard of it. That’s a shame really!
I’ll certainly make it again! Happy Holidays! :)
This is fantastic! I had ~1/2 lb. of some leftover diced butternut squash that I threw in with the sweet potatoes to boil, and then mixed in two diced Corland apples (skins intact) after the potato/squash was done and ~1/2 lb. I added 1 1/2 tsp. of Flax seed to the crumble mixture and decreased butter/maple syrup by a tad. It still came out as great as the original! Angela, you have such a way of crafting recipes and inspiring us to experiment in the kitchen. It’s all great!
Made this for a family get-together and I got so many compliments, it was almost embarrassing! :) Thanks for a great recipe!
These were so perfect for Christmas. Just the right amount of sweetness, but not to the point that you felt like you were already having dessert and therefore could not have a “real” dessert too ;). Thank you!