Sweet Potato Casserole unlike any you’ve seen before! Creamy savoury mashed sweet potato with pockets of browned butter, a crunchy parmesan-breadcrumb-sage topping sprinkled with crumbled bacon. Sinfully decadent and unapologetically rich, no marshmallows in sight!!!
Mashed potato bake is a side dish made for holiday gatherings like Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter, and Sunday Suppers with family and friends. Make ahead and feeds loads!
Sweet Potato Casserole
I am beyond excited to share with you this sweet potato casserole!! I mean, plain mashed sweet potatoes have a place in this world – for everyday midweek meals.
But imagine the possibilities when you mash up sweet potato with parmesan, sour cream and butter, swirl it into a baking dish with drizzles of browned butter, top it with a crunchy parmesan breadcrumb topping littered with crunchy bits of sage THEN finish it with crumbled bacon…….
The smell when it’s baking in the oven, that insane golden crunchy topping calling for you to crack through it and reveal that sinfully creamy, butter mashed sweet potato underneath…
Here she is. Calling your name!!
If you’re new to mashed potato bakes, welcome to your new obsession. It’s not just practical – reheats 100% perfectly, just as good made ahead as it is fresh on the day.
And it’s also outrageously delicious. I’m talking OMG-I-feel-sick-but-I-can’t-stop-eating-it good (and that’s a direct quote from a friend).
What you need for sweet potato casserole
Here’s what you need. Nothing nothing unusual here. Don’t have sage? Skip it, use another herb or dried herbs instead (options in the recipe).
How to make it
Roast it, mash it, swirl it, drizzle it, sprinkle it, bake it.
Psst. Scoring a mouthful of sweet potato with a fully sealed pocket of browned butter inside feels like winning the lottery. It’s a swoon worthy moment that you just need to hope for. You cannot game the system.
Crunchy on the top, creamy underneath, the contrasting textures is one of the things that makes this SO GOOD!!!
What to serve with mashed sweet potato bake
This is a dish that’s designed for making ahead and sharing with family and friends. I have special occasion meals in mind because it’s a little….ummm (she subtly coughs)….shall we say indulgent than your everyday potato sides? Just a wee bit more butter than your everyday mash? 😇
I see it alongside a grand roast turkey, a golden turkey breast dripping with herb & garlic butter. Alongside the most perfect Standing Rib Roast (Prime Rib), a Pork Roast with the most incredible juicy flesh and impossibly crispy crackling. A fall apart slow roasted lamb shoulder, or a perfectly cooked lamb leg that’s blushing pink on the inside.
For more ideas for your Sunday Supper or holiday feasting, head to one of these recipe collections:
Enjoy! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Savoury Sweet Potato Casserole
Ingredients
Sweet potato mash:
- 1.75kg / 3.5lb sweet potato (3 large or 6 smaller ones)
- 1/2 cup (115g) sour cream
- 1/2 cup (50g) parmesan , freshly grated
- 2 garlic cloves , finely minced
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Browned butter & crispy sage:
- 250g / 8oz butter , salted, cut into 2cm/1" cubes
- 15 sage leaves (Note 1)
Topping:
- 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs (Note 2)
- 1/2 cup (50g) parmesan , finely grated
- 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
- 150g / 5oz bacon , streaky, cooked until golden then finely chopped
Instructions
Bake & mash:
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Place potatoes on a foil lined tray. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes (small) to 1 hour 40 minutes (large) until knife can be easily inserted into the centre.
- Cool potatoes until they can be handled (but still piping hot inside!) or use tea towel to handle.
Browned Butter & crispy sage:
- Meanwhile, place butter in a large silver saucepan over medium heat.
- Once melted and starts to foam, add sage leaves. Cook 1 minute or until golden brown, then fish through the foam to find the leaves and drain on paper towels (will crisp when cool).
- Continue to leave butter on stove until foam dies down and you see black bits on the bottom of the pan (it will smell nutty).
- Strain through paper towel lined sieve - should have 180ml or so.
Topping:
- Crumble sage leaves in your hand (chop if not fully crisp) and place in bowl.
- Add 1/4 cup Browned Butter, panko, parmesan, garlic, salt and pepper, mix.
Mash:
- Cut slits down the middle of the potatoes then scoop flesh out into a bowl.
- Add 1/4 cup Browned Butter (below), sour cream, parmesan, salt and pepper. Mash or use electric beater to mash until smooth (if using food processor, be careful not to overdo as it will make potato gluey).
Assemble & bake:
- Place half the potato in a baking dish (2 litre / 2 quarts). Make swirls across surface with spoon (as catchment for butter!), then drizzle over 1/4 cup Browned Butter. Cover the butter pools with remaining potato - the less you disturb the butter, the better!
- Sprinkle over Topping. Bake 25 minutes until top is golden brown and edges are bubbling.
- Sprinkle with crumbled bacon, then bake a further 5 minutes. If you've got any leftover butter, drizzle it on then serve!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Flashback to Melbourne Cup Lunch – he got to was forced to try on everyone’s fascinator!!! 😂
So bummed, I wanted to make this tonight and I budget more than enough time for the 20 min of prep and 40 min of cook time at the top of the recipe; but I didn’t budget the extra 90 min that is required for step 2, but is not at all accounted for in your 20 and 40 min totals.
Made this for Thanksgiving the first time. Have made it 4 times since as well as my college age kids taking it to potlucks. They have demanded it be a regular for every special occasions as well as on demand. This is an amazing dish and I appreciate you sharing it with us. Thank you
Enjoyed this! Nice to have a savoury as opposed to a sweet yam/sweet potatoes side dish. I didn’t have sage leaves and skipped the browned butter step, but added a bit of butter to the sweet potatoes mash as well as to the panko crumbs.
Quick question, do I cover this casserole when in the oven?
thanks