Sweet potato casserole is a glorious thing! This sweet potato casserole is a classic, family favorite. One year when I was a kid, a family friend brought this to Thanksgiving dinner at our house. My Mom got the recipe because we all loved it so much. We have been making it every Thanksgiving since!
Like my other recipes, I’ve updated this to make it gluten and dairy-free. I’ve also cut the sugar way (like way) back from the original recipe. I prefer using maple syrup in the sweet potato part because if its lovely flavor. That being said, this is still very rich!
Those smooth and creamy sweet potatoes with a crunchy, buttery topping get me every time. This is definitely one of my favorite holiday side-dishes!
Try it once and it’s sure to one of yours too!
Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Praline Topping {Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free}
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Prep Time: 15 minutes -
Cook Time: 25 minutes
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Total Time: 40 minutes
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeIngredients
For the filling:
- 3-4 large sweet potatoes
- 2/3 cup coconut milk
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup melted butter or coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1 egg
For the topping:
- 1 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup gluten-free, all-purpose flour*
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar (or coconut sugar)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup butter or coconut oil, in solid form
Instructions
- Peel and chop the sweet potatoes into large 2-inch chunks. Place the chunks in a large saucepan and cover with cold water, bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Simmer until the sweet potatoes are fork tender, about 15-20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a quart-size casserole dish. In a bowl, combine the pecans, flour, sugar, salt, and vanilla, Cut in the butter or oil with a fork until the mixture is sandy with pea-sized chunks of butter. Set aside.
- When done cooking, drain the sweet potatoes well. Process the sweet potatoes in a food processor until smooth and creamy. You may have to do this in batches. Alternatively you can whip them up with a hand or stand mixer. Measure out 3 cups of the mashed sweet potatoes and place into the bowl of a stand mixer or bowl to use with a hand mixer. Any extras make a yummy snack for later!
- Add the coconut milk, maple syrup, butter or oil, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to the bowl. Whip to combine. Add the egg and continue to whip until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the sweet potatoes into the prepared dish and top with the pecan mixture. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the top is golden and the sweet potatoes are bubbling. Enjoy!
Notes
I usually use the brand King Arthur Flour or Better Batter for all-purpose flour. You can use your own favorite mix or whatever you have on hand for this. The only kind I don’t recommend is a bean flour based all purpose blend.
This is a great make-ahead dish. You can prepare the sweet potato base and pour it into the baking dish. Keep the prepared topping in a separate container. Store everything in the refrigerator. When ready to bake cover the sweet potatoes with the topping and bake as directed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 8
Hi there!
Thanks so much for posting!!! My boys are GFDF and I am making this now for Thursday!!
One thing – I think you left out WHEN to put the egg in!
Thanks again and Happy Thanksgiving!
Elizabeth in Atlanta
Thanks for pointing that out! You add it in with the mashed sweet potatoes 🙂 I’ll update the recipe!
Can you do this without the egg?
Yes this would work great without the egg! You can easily leave it out.
We are making this too! I had pinned another recipe but I much prefers yours, of course. Wish we could be celebrating with you guys!
This was absolutely delicious! It was a HUGE hit at our Thanksgiving. I left out the maple syrup and only used a tbsp of brown sugar for the topping, and it was still the perfect amount of sweet!
I’m so glad you liked it!
[…] OH MY GOODNESS. You guys should definitely make this as a Christmas dinner side dish. I used this recipe. It’s gluten-free, dairy-free and has all kinds of wonderful ingredients such as coconut […]
I made this for Christmas dinner. SO YUMMY!
I’m so glad you liked it!
I made this a couple weks ago and everyone LOVED it!! I LOVED it!! I ate the leftovers for breakfast, lunch and dinner the next day : ) The praline topping is perfect! I am loving your website so much! I’ve been gluten and dairy free for a year and half now and getting away from refined sugar for the past few months and your website has been so refreshing. Thanks for all you do! It really makes a difference in peoples’ lives.
What a lovely comment! Thanks so much! Glad you liked the sweet potatoes 🙂
The recipe looks great. I was wondering if you could sub almond milk for the coconut milk.
Yes that should work great!
Is the coconut milk what you buy in the grocer’s dairy section – like plain ol’ unsweetened coconut milk? Can you sub unsweetened almond milk instead? (I have that on hand all the time). Thanks!
Yes you can substitute almond milk just fine! I buy canned coconut milk on Amazon and never use the boxed refrigerated kind. I like the brands Native Forest or Natural Value. You can also usually find it in the Asian food section or at Trader Joe’s!
Will refrigerated almond coconut milk work? That is all I have on hand.
Yes! In a lot of my recipes you can only used canned coconut milk, but this is one where you can use refrigerated almond or coconut milk. It’s just to thin the filling out slightly so it should work great!
This recipe is fabulously delicious! My sister-in-law has a dairy allergy and I wanted be sensitive to her, so I made this recipe to test it out. My boys thought it was better than the traditional one I make and didn’t know it was gluten and dairy free. Thank you for helping us keep one of our favorite traditional Thanksgiving dishes on the table.
This is great to hear! I’m happy it will be on your table this year!
I just tried this today on a Thanksgiving Pot Luck here at work. One of my co-workers made it and I was absolutely in heaven and asked for the recipe. I have never ever commented on a recipe, but this one is just fantastic!!! Can’t express how delicious it was.Thank you. I will be making one myself next weeek.
I’m a little confused. Are you using ALL of the sweet potatoes that you boiled initially?
I am so wanting to make this for thanksgiving! But is there any replacement for the egg?? Thanks! 🙂
This recipe will be great without the egg! You can just leave it out 🙂
Can you replace the egg with anything? Thanks!
You can just leave the egg out! It will still be delicious!
Oh awesome! And which do you like using better, coconut oil or butter? Mine would be earth balance butter (vegan) as I am allergic to dairy. Thanks so much! Really excited to make this! I was thinking about adding some marshmallows to the topping 🙂
Hi!
I have 30 people for Thanksgiving so anything I can make ahead and freeze is a life-saver. Does this freeze well?
Thanks!
Pam
Hi Pam! I haven’t tried freezing this ahead of time so I’m not sure! However, I have made this 2 days in advance and kept the topping in a seperate bag. I sprinkle the topping on just before baking and it works great. Good luck with your Thanksgiving for 30!
Can I make this with canned yams? How many cups of sweet potato do you think you end up with? Not sure how many cans to use….
Hi Kirstin! I wouldn’t make this with canned yams. I don’t think the flavor/texture would be the same. Sorry about that!
[…] Sweet Potato Casserole w/ Pecan Praline Topping {Dairy & Gluten Free!}: Meaningful Eats […]
Thank you so much for sharing all your wonderful recipes! I battle inflammation in my back so badly that I could hardly get out of bed on my one. I got sick of western medicine and turned to an awesome natural path to avoid surgery…. long story short, gluten free and dairy free. I can get out of bed on my own, I can put on my shoes and socks without trouble, I can bend over and touch my toes while standing and most of all… I can pick my 3 and 5 year old girls up!!!! Your recipes have made this transition for me so much easier!! Thank you!
This comment brought tears to my eyes! I’m so glad my recipes have been helpful. It’s amazing what food can do. I’m glad you found something to help your pain! Thank you!
Would have any tips on how to make this in the crock pot??? I don’t think my oven is big enough for this and a turkey lol
I think this might work in the slow-cooker, but the topping won’t get as crispy. You could spread the filling on the bottom, then top it with the pecan topping. I would try cooking it on low for 4 hours. I hope this helps! Let me know if it works out.
i can’t have gluten, rice, or corn. Do you think almond flour or coconut four would work?
Hi Lynsie! Have you tried my grain-free flour blend? It would work perfectly here. That would be best, but you could try half almond flour and half starch (like arrowroot or potato) for the flour as well.
[…] Recipe and Photo – Meaningful Eats […]
This got rave reviews last night at our dinner – thank you!
Hi there!
Could I use a butter substitute made from coconut oil in this recipe instead of the butter? If so would I measure it out the same?
Definitely! That should work great!
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[…] Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Praline Topping from Meaningful Eats […]
Could I use a rice flour or sorghum?
You could try it – the topping might be a little more grainy though!
We love the praline topping of the unmodified recipe. I keep hoping to find a gluten free that replicates the same crunchiness. I made this version anticipating that it would be just what I was looking for. While it was good, I am looking for perfect. 🙂 Wondering if results are better with coconut oil than butter? Or one flour better than another? The topping was drier than normal so it didnt melt and crystalize.
[…] so Luke could enjoy it. After searching online I came across a dairy- and gluten-free recipe from Meaningful Eats. As I started making it, I realized with just a few small changes I could make it vegan as […]
I loved this dish! But I really hoped the mash bit would be more like ‘mash’, thicker and less liquidy. Could be because I used coconut oil… any advice would be much appreciated!!!
It probably has to do with how you steamed your potatoes and how much water the sweet potatoes naturally contained. When I’ve used smaller sweet potatoes and steamed then they have more water. I would try using large sweet potatoes and just add less coconut milk so you get the consistency you like. I hope that helps!
This is my very first sweet potato casserole and it was a hit! I am allergic to gluten so most store bought Thanksgiving sides are out of the picture. I prepared this as a trial several days prior to Thanksgiving to see how it comes out. It was delicious!!! My 4 y.o. twins loved it, one of them even asked for seconds! Thank you! Fantastic recipe!
So glad you like it! 🙂
Only using 3 cups of the Sweet Potatoes looks too watery to me. Does it thicken when baked?
The consistency can depend on how watery your sweet potatoes are when they are mashed. I make sure to leave my sweet potatoes in larger chunks (3-4 inches) when steaming them so they don’t get too watery. Smaller chunks absorb more water and create a more watery mash. You can always add more sweet potatoes or less coconut milk to the consistency you like too. The mash won’t thicken much in the oven!
Loved, loved, loved this! It was absolutely delicious! We used walnuts (the store was out of pecans). This will be a favorite for many years!
So glad you liked it! Walnuts would be delicious too!
Is this soy free?
While this dish is very flavourful, mine was soupy—that is, the sweet potato part. It wasn’t at all like the photos here. That’s how I would like it to be, but it was extremely soupy. I don’t know what I would’ve done wrong. I went completely non-dairy, so used coconut oil solid form (the only way I can find it anyway in the stores). Can someone advise?
Thanks for the recipe! I use almond milk…. To make it MUCH easier you can boil the sweet potatoes WHOLE, let them cool (or to make it faster, dump out the hot water and put cold water with ice to cool faster). Drain the potatoes, or be very gentle if you can’t wait. The peeling will tear off easily. I do this with white potatoes also.
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Hi. I am making this tomorrow for Easter & only have a 2 qt sized glass dish. Do I need to adjust the baking time? My friend made this months ago & I loved it so I can’t wait to eat it again! Thanks.
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