This southern style sweet potato casserole with a crunchy cornflake topping is everything you love about Thanksgiving sides!. It starts with fresh sweet potatoes, peeled, diced, and boiled until fork-tender, then whipped with butter, brown sugar, eggs, and warm spices for a silky-smooth filling. Topped with a sweet candy-like cornflake topping and baked to golden perfection, it’s the kind of dish that steals the show on any holiday table. Serves 8-10.
I know I am not the only one who loves all the sides at Thanksgiving. Like we all pile our plates with Southern-style mashed potatoes and slow cooker green beans and all our other favorites and suddenly we are just laying a slab of fried turkey on top because the plate it full.
I know you feel me on this. 😉
Since you absolutely cannot have too many sides, I am taking the base of my old fashioned sweet potato casserole with marshmallows, tweaking it a little and adding this absolutely irresistable crunch cornflake topping that is sweet and wonderful and I could just eat it by the spoonfuls TBH. Having teh combo of the smooth sweet potatoes with the crunchy topping is beyond and I am obsessed. Let me show you how to make it!
How to Prep Ahead of Time for Thanksgiving
I am a firm believer in making as much of the Thanksgiving meal AHEAD OF TIME as possible! No matter if you are hosting the whole gathering or just bringing a dish, save yourself some time and effort the day of by having sweet potato cornflake casserole done and ready to go ahead of time!
⭐️ PRO TIP: after freezing Thanksgiving sides personally for years and learning the do's and don't of it - the biggest tip when making this ahead of time is to prep the topping right before it is needed and ready to go in the oven. Otherwise, the butter with make the cornflakes soggy and it will not be crunchy.
You have a couple of different options to prep ahead:
- The Day Before: Prep casserole all the way up to baking without the topping. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and keep stored in the fridge until needed. Make the topping right before baking and continue with the directions.
- How to Freeze: if making more than a day in advance, make all the way up to baking and skip adding the topping. Place in the casserole dish and wrap airtight with plastic wrap and/or foil a couple of times and place in the freezer for up to 6 months. Remove from the freezer and place in the fridge for 24 hours to thaw. Continue with directions to finish baking, making the topping right before needed. To bake from frozen, remove from the freezer and place in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes with a sheet of foil on top. Remove, add the topping, and place back in the oven to finish baking for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the middle is hot and bubbly and the top is a crunchy golden brown.
Recipe
Sweet Potato Casserole with Crunchy Cornflake Topping
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 8-10 1x
Description
This southern style sweet potato casserole with a crunchy cornflake topping is everything you love about Thanksgiving sides!. It starts with fresh sweet potatoes, peeled, diced, and boiled until fork-tender, then whipped with butter, brown sugar, eggs, and warm spices for a silky-smooth filling. Topped with a sweet candy-like cornflake topping and baked to golden perfection, it’s the kind of dish that steals the show on any holiday table.
Ingredients
- 3-4 Pounds Sweet Potatoes - roughly 4 large sweet potatoes
- ¼ Cup Butter
- ¼ Cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ Teaspoon Nutmeg
- ½ Cup Milk
Crunchy Cornflake Topping
- 2 Cups Crushed Cornflake Cereal
- ¾ Cup Chopped Pecans
- ¾ Cup Brown Sugar
- 1 Stick of Butter - melted
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Peel and diced the potatoes
- Place the diced sweet potatoes in a large pot covered in water, and place on a stove over high heat. Bring to a boil. Once at a boil, cook the potatoes until fork tender (about 10-15 minutes).
- Drain the potatoes and place them in a large bowl.
- Add the butter, brown sugar, eggs, and spices. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth, the butter is melted, and no lumps remain.
- Add in milk and mix until smooth and incorporated.
- Pour into a greased baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes.
- To make the topping, mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl. Remove the casserole from the oven and sprinkle on top. Place back in the oven and continue cooking for an additional 15-20 minutes.
- Remove and enjoy!
Notes
- Leftovers can be kept wrapped tightly in the fridge for 3-4 days.
To Make Ahead of Time
- The Day Before: Prep casserole all the way up to baking. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and keep stored in the fridge until needed. Make the topping right before baking and continue with the directions.
- How to Freeze: if making more than a day in advance, make all the way up to baking and skip making the topping. Place the filling in the casserole dish and wrap airtight with plastic wrap and/or foil a couple of times and place in the freezer for up to 6 months. Remove from the freezer and place in the fridge for 24 hours to thaw. Continue with directions to finish baking, making the topping right before needed. To bake from frozen, place in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes with a piece of foil on top. Remove, add the topping, and place back in the oven to finish baking for an additional 20-30 minutes or until the middle is hot and bubbly and the top is a crunchy golden brown.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Category: Sides/Veggies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 scoop
- Calories: 459
- Sugar: 27.7 g
- Sodium: 679.2 mg
- Fat: 21.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 63.9 g
- Fiber: 5.2 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Cholesterol: 74.9 mg
