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Home > Side Dishes > Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping {Gluten-Free}

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping {Gluten-Free}

LAST UPDATED: November 6, 2019 PUBLISHED: Oct 15, 2019 70 Comments
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image for pinterest of sweet potato casserole being scooped from white casserole dish with red and orange napkin

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping has delicious mashed sweet potatoes with a buttery, brown sugar pecan topping. This gluten-free sweet potato casserole is a FAVORITE Thanksgiving side dish every year.

Complete your Thanksgiving feast with these Gluten-Free Dinner Rolls and a Gluten-Free Pumpkin Roll for dessert!

gluten-free sweet potato casserole being scooped out of baking dish

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping

Sweet potato casserole is my all-time favorite Thanksgiving side. This sweet potato casserole with pecan topping is a long-time, favorite family recipe. My Mom would make it for Thanksgiving every year and she’s given out the recipe countless times.

Over the past few years I’ve been making it with gluten-free 1:1 baking flour. However, nobody can EVER tell this sweet potato casserole is gluten-free! 

The sweet potato filling is smooth and creamy while the topping is crunchy, buttery and laced with brown sugar. It’s hard for anyone to resist this sweet potato casserole! It’s also so easy to make gluten-free (and dairy-free if needed). 

step by step photos of how to make sweet potato casserole

How to Make Gluten-Free Sweet Potato Casserole

These how-to numbered pictures match up with the instructions below. 

1. Steam the sweet potatoes. You can do this in the instant pot or on the stove top.

2. Peel the steamed sweet potatoes and add the filling ingredients.

3. Whip the filling until smooth and creamy with a hand mixer. 

4. Measure out the ingredients for the pecan praline topping.

5. Mash together the ingredients for the topping until you have pea-sized chunks of butter.

6. Spread the filling into the pan.

7. Top with the pecan topping.

8. Bake until golden, bubbly and delicious!

 

scooping gluten-free sweet potato casserole from baking dish into bowl

What is the best way to steam sweet potatoes for sweet potato casserole? 

How you steam the sweet potatoes is an important step to ensure your filling comes out smooth, but not watery. Lately, my favorite way to steam the sweet potatoes is in the instant pot. It’s so easy to do and the sweet potatoes come out perfect every time. 

Cooking Sweet Potatoes in the Instant Pot

  • Place a rack in the instant pot and add 1 cup of water.
  • Place the washed sweet potatoes on the rack and cook on MANUAL (high pressure) for 15 minutes.
  • Allow the sweet potatoes to natural release until the valve drops on its own.
  • The sweet potatoes will be soft and easy to peel!

If you don’t have an instant pot you can also steam the potatoes on the stovetop. You do this by adding the sweet potatoes (whole and unpeeled) to a large pot and covering with water. Cover with a lid and boil for 10 minutes. Puncture the sweet potatoes 3 times, then boil for another 20-30 minutes until cooked through.

 

Can I make this sweet potato casserole in advance?

This sweet potato casserole is a great make-ahead dish. I’m always looking for recipes I can make in advance before Thanksgiving. This one turns out great!

Up to 3 days in advance you can prepare the sweet potato filling and smooth it into a baking dish. Then prepare the topping and store it in an airtight container. Store everything in the refrigerator. When ready to bake, top the sweet potatoes with the pecan mixture and bake as directed.

 

sweet potato casserole on white serving dish

I hope you enjoy this sweet potato casserole as much as we do! It’s a long-time family favorite and nobody will be able to guess it’s gluten-free. (PS I think it tastes delicious straight out the fridge next day!)

If you love this recipe be sure to leave me a comment below. I’d love to hear how it turned out for your holiday meal!

 

More Thanksgiving Side Dishes:

Gluten-Free Stuffing everyone needs to eat stuffing on Thanksgiving!

Christmas Cranberry Fluff  not just for Christmas. My 2nd favorite Thanksgiving side.

Holiday Fruit Salad another delicious fruit salad option. 

Gluten-Free Green Bean Casserole wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without it!

Kale Salad with Cranberries  festive and tasty. 

Hungry for more? Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter for all of the latest updates.

sweet potato casserole being scooped from white casserole dish with red and orange napkin

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping {Gluten-Free}

Author: Erin Collins
Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 30 mins
Total: 1 hr
Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping has delicious mashed sweet potatoes with a buttery, brown sugar pecan topping. This gluten-free sweet potato casserole is a FAVORITE Thanksgiving side dish every year.
5 from 20 votes
Servings: 8 -servings
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Ingredients

For the Filling:

  • 3-4 large sweet potatoes
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk, or whole milk
  • 1/3-1/2 cup sugar, or 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 1:1 baking flour
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup softened butter, or coconut oil in solid form

Instructions

STEAM THE SWEET POTATOES

  • In the INSTANT POT (preferred method): Place a rack in the instant pot and add 1 cup of water. Place the washed sweet potatoes on top of the rack. Cook on MANUAL (high pressure) for 15 minutes. Allow the sweet potatoes to natural release, until the valve drops on its own.
  • On the STOVE TOP: Place the sweet potatoes (whole and unpeeled) in a large pot and covering with water. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes. then puncture each sweet potatoes 3 times. Boil for another 20-30 minutes until cooked through. 
  • Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9x13 casserole dish. In a bowl, combine the pecans, flour, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or mix with your hands until the mixture is sandy, with pea-sized chunks of butter. Set aside.
  • Peel the sweet potatoes and add them to a bowl with with the other filling ingredients. Use a hand mixer to whip the sweet potatoes until smooth. Taste and add more salt, sugar or milk as needed. (You may need to adjust the consistency/flavor based on how big your sweet potatoes are.) Whip the sweet potatoes until they are creamy and completely smooth.
  • Smooth the sweet potato filling into the prepared dish. Top with the pecan mixture. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the top is golden and the sweet potatoes are bubbling. Let cool 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

How you steam the sweet potatoes is an important step to ensure your filling comes out smooth, but not watery. Lately, my favorite way to steam the sweet potatoes is in the instant pot. It's so easy to do and the sweet potatoes come out perfect every time.
Just be sure to NOT cut the sweet potatoes into small pieces to steam them. The will absorb too much water and make the filling wet/watery.
MAKE IT AHEAD: Prepare the sweet potato filling and smooth it into the baking dish. Prepare the topping in a separate container. Store everything in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to bake, top the sweet potatoes with the pecan mixture and bake as directed.
MAKE IT DAIRY-FREE: Use Earth Balance buttery sticks or coconut oil in place of the butter. 
MAKE IT EGG-FREE: You can easily omit the egg from the filling to make this egg-free. 
Nutrition Facts
Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping {Gluten-Free}
Amount Per Serving
Calories 438 Calories from Fat 270
% Daily Value*
Fat 30g46%
Saturated Fat 16g100%
Cholesterol 20mg7%
Sodium 332mg14%
Potassium 331mg9%
Carbohydrates 41g14%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 24g27%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 6955IU139%
Vitamin C 1.6mg2%
Calcium 67mg7%
Iron 1.8mg10%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
NUTRITION INFORMATION:
Calories: 438kcal
Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Praline Topping! The favorite Thanksgiving side dish every year. A gluten-free, dairy-free holiday side everyone will love!
Erin of Meaningful Eats

Hi, I'm Erin!

BS Food Science, MS Nutrition
I believe you can make amazing, gluten-free food with everyday ingredients that everyone will enjoy. I'm here to share my tried-and-true recipes with you! More About Erin

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Rochelle says

    November 14, 2018 at 9:50 pm

    5 stars
    This sounds amazing! How many does it serve?

    Reply
  2. Sarah says

    November 15, 2018 at 8:19 am

    Thank you so much for this recipe! My daughter has PKU so we will be leaving out the egg or using an egg replacer and we will make this dish with only the topping on half of it since she can’t have the nuts, but I’m happy that she’ll be able to have this with everyone else!

    Reply
    • Erin Collins says

      November 15, 2018 at 7:16 pm

      I hope she likes it! It will work totally fine with no egg!

      Reply
  3. Meghann says

    November 21, 2018 at 7:41 pm

    I was wondering what the serving for this recipe?

    Reply
  4. Jaden says

    November 12, 2019 at 7:14 pm

    5 stars
    My sister made this a few years ago and this is now out families favorite sweet potato casserole recipe!! Sooo delicious!!

    Reply
  5. Dana says

    November 25, 2019 at 11:00 am

    5 stars
    This was unbelievably good! I have celiac disease and wanted to make something everyone could enjoy, that didn’t taste gluten free. This will be my go-to dish!

    Reply
    • Erin Collins says

      November 25, 2019 at 12:20 pm

      I’m so happy you liked it! Thanks for the comment 🙂

      Reply
  6. Margo says

    November 25, 2019 at 11:48 am

    Hi there! Excited to try this recipe this Thanksgiving! I can’t use butter (kosher), so wondering if you would recommend a good butter alternative that would also crystalize, or if coconut oil is just as good? Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Erin Collins says

      November 25, 2019 at 12:28 pm

      Earth Balance buttery sticks or Miyoko’s Vegan Butter both work great. I like those because they still have a buttery taste but coconut oil will also work.

      Reply
  7. Hannah says

    November 30, 2019 at 1:54 pm

    5 stars
    Tastes like the family recipe (containing gluten) my grandmother used to make. Your recipe was enjoyed by all at Thanksgiving! My husband requested I make it again – ASAP. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Erin Collins says

      December 02, 2019 at 6:15 am

      I’m so happy to hear you liked it! Thanks for the comment 🙂

      Reply
  8. Ashley S. says

    November 25, 2020 at 8:23 pm

    5 stars
    Thank you so much for this recipe! My family loves it! I love how easy it is to make the sweet potatoes in the instant pot too! Have you ever tried to make regular mashed potatoes with this method before? Steaming whole and then peeling? I would love to know if it works well for those.

    Reply
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Erin of Meaningful Eats

Hi, I'm Erin!

BS Food Science, MS Nutrition
I believe you can make amazing, gluten-free food with everyday ingredients that everyone will enjoy. I'm here to share my tried-and-true recipes with you! More About Erin

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Join my free email list to receive this Gluten-Free Dinners cookbook!

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