Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows

Sweet potato and marshmallow casserole isn’t just my favorite Thanksgiving dish: It’s my favorite dish period. Creamy, sweet, earthy, fluffy, buttery and sticky, it’s full of flavor and texture that’s unlike any other dish on the table. Every year, my Aunt Carol makes a double—sometimes triple—batch of sweet potato and marshmallows for my extended family of 35, and there are no leftovers. While this isn’t her exact sweet potato and marshmallow recipe, it’s just as good and will make a splash at your Thanksgiving. If not, please bring it around to mine; we’ll gladly take it.

Sweet Potato and Marshmallow Ingredients

• Sweet potatoes: We recommend roasting the sweet potatoes whole to concentrate their flavor and give the flesh a jammy consistency. Avoid boiling as they’ll soak up a bunch of water and lose their flavor. Once the roasted sweet potatoes are cool enough to hold, peel off the outer skin by hand. No need to break out the vegetable peeler!
• Eggs: Four eggs make the sweet potato filling nice and airy.
• Orange juice: Orange juice helps create a puree-like consistency and brightens the flavor of the sweet potatoes.
• Butter: Use the best butter you can get your hands on.
• Sugar: Brown sugar can be used in place of granulated sugar for a caramel flavor.
• Nutmeg: If you can, grate the nutmeg fresh. It provides a bolder nutmeg taste that turns the flavor up about five notches.
• Marshmallows: Mini marshmallows disperse more easily, but regular-sized marshmallows can be used in a pinch.

Directions

Step 1: Mash the sweet potatoes

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Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, mash sweet potatoes until they’re mostly lump-free (you’ll be doing a bit more mixing in the next step).

Editor’s Tip: Avoid over-mashing or the potatoes will turn gummy.

Step 2: Make the filling

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Add the eggs, orange juice, butter, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg and salt and stir everything together until well combined.

Step 3: Bake

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Transfer the filling to a greased 3-quart baking dish. Bake until it’s set, 35 to 40 minutes.

Step 4: Toast the marshmallows

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Scatter the marshmallows all over the filling. Return the baking dish to the oven and bake until the marshmallows just begin to puff and melt, 5 to 10 minutes.

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Recipe Variations

• Leave the sweet potatoes whole: My Aunt Carol roasts her sweet potatoes, then cuts them into very big chunks and peels the skin off, no eggs or orange juice required. The texture of the chunks creates a nice mouthfeel against the sticky marshmallows.
• Add a crunchy pecan topping: I grew up in the Midwest where a marshmallow topping on Thanksgiving sweet potatoes is the norm. Once I moved to the East Coast, I found out that this is not normal, and they prefer their sweet potato casserole with pecans. I have to admit, it is lovely, but not better than marshmallows. If you like a lot of texture in your food, I suggest combining these two toppings for the ultimate sweet potato casserole.
• Omit the orange juice: Swap the orange juice for milk if desired. If you still want some orange flavor in the sweet potatoes and marshmallows, grate in the zest from half an orange.
• Top with extra marshmallows: Personally, I love my sweet potato casserole with so many marshmallows that you can hardly see the color orange anywhere. Add as many or as few marshmallows as your heart desires.

How to Store Sweet Potatoes and Marshmallows

If you miraculously have leftovers, let them cool to room temperature, then cover the pan with storage wrap or transfer the leftovers to an airtight container. They can be kept in the fridge for up to three days.

Can you make sweet potatoes and marshmallows ahead of time?

Yes, you can make sweet potato and marshmallow casserole ahead of time. The name of the game on Thanksgiving is timing, and make-ahead Thanksgiving recipes are key.

To make sweet potatoes and marshmallows in advance, create the sweet potato filling and pile it into the 3-quart baking dish. Cover it with storage wrap and keep it in the fridge for up to two days. When you’re ready to bake it, follow the recipe’s baking instructions and serve.

Sweet Potato and Marshmallow Tips

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Are yams and sweet potatoes the same?

Sweet potatoes and yams are not the same. Yams are milder in taste than sweet potato’s sugary flavor. They also have a tougher, tree bark-color skin that needs a paring knife to remove, not a vegetable peeler. Sweet potatoes are sweeter than yams, plus their skin is much thinner and easier to peel than yams’ skin.

Do I have to serve this on Thanksgiving? What could I serve with it on a regular day?

You absolutely do not have to wait for Thanksgiving to whip up this sweet potato and marshmallow recipe. Besides typical Thanksgiving foods, this dish pairs beautifully with pork. Try an apple and pork dish like apple cider pork chops, or our highly reviewed cinnamon-apple pork chops. A simple caramelized pork tenderloin or our contest-winning sage pork chops with cider pan gravy would taste delicious with the sweetness of the casserole, too.