This Sweet Potato Casserole With Marshmallows is my favorite version of this classic holiday side dish. It’s filled with warm mashed sweet potatoes, brown sugar, and cinnamon, and topped with ooey-gooey mini marshmallows.
This dish’s recipe twin, Sweet Potato Casserole with pecan crumble topping, is another delicious option to add to your Thanksgiving menu if you want to try something a little different.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The marshmallows are part of the sweet potato filling, too. Half of the mini marshmallows are melted into the buttery brown sugar mixture before it’s stirred into the potatoes, giving the casserole extra gooey sweetness from the inside out.
- It has a deeply cozy brown sugar and spice flavor. Dark brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and butter add warm, caramel-like flavor that pairs beautifully with the naturally sweet potatoes.
- An easy make-ahead Thanksgiving side. You can prepare the sweet potato mixture the day before, refrigerate it overnight, then add the marshmallows and bake it when you’re ready to serve.
Sweet Potato Casserole With Marshmallows
What kind of Thanksgiving would it be if there wasn’t a sweet potato casserole on the table? Topping these brown sugar mashed sweet potatoes with gooey marshmallows is my favorite way to prepare this holiday classic. The sweetness of the marshmallow topping mixed with buttery brown sugar and mashed sweet potatoes is a match made in Thanksgiving heaven.
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Another reason to love this side dish is that it’s insanely simple to prep and can even be made a day in advance. Feel free to sprinkle with chopped pecans, if that’s your thing, or leave it as is.
Key Ingredients
- Sweet Potatoes – try and find sweet potatoes that have smooth, copper skin with deep orange flesh. For this recipe, you’ll want to wash and peel before dicing and cooking.
- Butter – we like unsalted butter for this recipe.
- Brown Sugar – we like to use dark brown sugar because of its deep molasses flavor, but you could also use light brown sugar.
- Cinnamon – any kind of ground cinnamon will work.
- Nutmeg – this adds a nice warm flavor.
- Marshmallows – you’ll want to use mini marshmallows for this recipe.
How to Make Sweet Potato Marshmallow Casserole
- Boil the potatoes. Fill a pot with water to cover the diced potatoes and bring to a boil. Continue to boil and cook sweet potatoes for 15-20 minutes, or until they are fork-tender.
- Mash. When the sweet potatoes have finished cooking, strain and put them back into the cooking pot, then use a potato masher to mash the sweet potatoes until they are smooth.
- Make the brown sugar marshmallow topping. In a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Bring to boil and boil for 30 seconds, then reduce the heat slightly, add 1 1/2 cups of the marshmallows and continue to cook and stir until the marshmallows are melted.
- Spread over the top. Pour the melted butter and marshmallow mixture into the sweet potatoes and stir until combined. Spread this sweet potato mixture into a 9 x 13″ baking dish and top evenly with the remaining 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows.
- Bake. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until the tops of the marshmallows are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Drain well. After boiling, drain the sweet potatoes and return them to the hot pot for 1 to 2 minutes so extra steam escapes. This keeps the casserole from turning watery.
- Mash while warm. Warm sweet potatoes mash smoothly and soak up the brown sugar butter.
- Melt half the marshmallows into the sauce. This is what makes this version extra gooey inside.
- Watch the marshmallows. They brown fast at 400°F. Check at 10 minutes, and pull the dish as soon as they’re golden.
- Add a pinch of salt. About ½ teaspoon brings out the sweetness. Add it to the brown sugar mixture.
Sweet Potato Casserole Variations
This classic sweet potato casserole is easy to make your own. Here are a few favorite ideas:
- Pecan and marshmallow. Sprinkle ½ cup of chopped pecans over the casserole before adding the marshmallows on top.
- Pecan streusel instead. Skip the marshmallows and use a crunchy brown sugar pecan topping. Try my Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Streusel.
- Half and half topping. Can’t decide? Top half the dish with marshmallows and half with pecan streusel to please everyone.
- Baked sweet potatoes. Instead of boiling, bake whole sweet potatoes at 400°F for 45 to 60 minutes until soft, then scoop out the flesh. Baking brings out more natural sweetness.
- Canned yams shortcut. Use two 40-ounce cans of yams (cut sweet potatoes), drained, in place of fresh. Skip the boiling step and mash right away.
- Maple. Swap ¼ cup of the brown sugar for pure maple syrup.
- Orange zest. Stir 1 teaspoon of orange zest into the sweet potatoes for a bright, fresh flavor.
- Smaller batch. Cut the recipe in half and bake in an 8×8 dish.
Want something simpler? Try my Mashed Sweet Potatoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Make the sweet potato mixture, spread it in the baking dish, let it cool, then cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Let it sit out for 30 minutes, bake covered at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes until hot, then add the marshmallows and bake uncovered at 400°F for 10 to 15 minutes until golden.
Both yams and sweet potatoes are root vegetables but are actually not the same thing. Yams come from Africa and Asia and are much more starchy and dry than sweet potatoes. Real yams aren’t often found in grocery stores in the United States, so while your grocery store may label something as a yam, it may not actually be a yam!
Soft Sweet Potatoes: these are the ones with deeper orange flesh inside and often have a copper skin. These are often labeled as “yams” at the grocery store, but they are the ones you will think of when you think of a typical baking sweet potato.
Firm Sweet Potatoes: these have lighter flesh and more of a golden-colored skin.
Long story short – it’s best to just look at how they look and ignore labels! You want to choose the ones that have smooth copper-colored skin with tapered ends.
Cut peeled sweet potatoes into 1-inch pieces and boil for 15 to 20 minutes, until a fork slides in easily. Larger pieces will take longer.
Yes! Use two 40-ounce cans of cut sweet potatoes (often labeled yams), drained well. Skip the boiling step, mash them, and continue with the recipe.
The sweet potatoes weren’t drained well enough after boiling. Drain them thoroughly, then return them to the hot pot for a minute or two to let the extra steam escape before mashing. Baking the sweet potatoes instead of boiling them also helps.
Marshmallows brown fast at 400°F, so check them at 10 minutes and pull the dish as soon as they’re golden. If they’re browning too quickly, move the dish to a lower rack or tent it loosely with foil.
Yes! Spread the mashed sweet potato mixture in a greased slow cooker and cook on low for 2 to 3 hours until hot. Top with marshmallows for the last 30 minutes, with the lid on, until they’re melted and puffy. They won’t toast, so you can run the insert under the broiler, if it’s oven-safe, for a toasted top.
This recipe serves 8 to 10 as a side dish, and fits perfectly in a 9×13-inch baking dish. Double it for a large Thanksgiving crowd.
Storing and Reheating
- Make Ahead: Follow the recipe all the way through until just before adding the mini marshmallows on top. Spread the sweet potato mixture evenly in your baking dish and let cool completely. Cover with plastic and store in the fridge overnight.
- Make Day Of: Let the dish sit out for 30 minutes, bake covered at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes until hot, then add the marshmallows and bake uncovered at 400°F for 10 to 15 minutes until golden.
- Refrigerate: For Leftovers, Cover with an airtight lid or plastic wrap. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 4-5 days.
- Oven Reheat: Cover with foil and warm at 325°F until hot. If the top is soft, uncover for a few minutes to re-crisp.
- Microwave Reheat: Place on a microwave-safe dish and heat for 1-minute increments or until the potatoes are heated throughout.
Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows
Ingredients
- 4 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
- 1 cup butter
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- 3 cups mini marshmallows, (divided)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Wash and peel the sweet potatoes, cut into 1" pieces and add to a large pot. Fill the pot with water to cover the potatoes and bring to a boil. Continue to boil for 15-20 minutes, or until they are fork-tender.
- When the sweet potatoes have finished cooking, drain well. Put them back into the cooking pot and use a potato masher to mash the sweet potatoes until they are smooth.
- In a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Bring to boil and boil for 30 seconds, then reduce the heat slightly, add 1½ cups of the marshmallows and continue to cook and stir until the marshmallows are melted.
- Pour the butter and marshmallow mixture into the sweet potatoes and stir until combined. Spread this sweet potato mixture into a 9 x 13" baking dish and top evenly with the remaining 1½ cups mini marshmallows.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until the tops of the marshmallows are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
- Storing Leftovers – Cover with an airtight lid or plastic wrap and store in the fridge for 4-5 days.
- Make-Ahead – Let the dish sit out for 30 minutes, bake covered at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes until hot, then add the marshmallows and bake uncovered at 400°F for 10 to 15 minutes until golden.
- To Reheat- Place on a microwave-safe dish and heat for 1-minute increments or until the potatoes are heated throughout.
Nutrition
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More Sweet Potato Recipes
- Air Fryer Sweet Potatoes
- Best Sweet Potato Fries
- Chili Spiced Sweet Potato Chunks
- Roasted Sweet Potato with Lime and Chipotle
- Sweet Potato Breakfast Casserole
- More Potato Recipes
- More Thanksgiving Recipes
This Sweet Potato Marshmallow Casserole is my favorite version of the holiday classic. The sweetness of the marshmallow topping mixed with buttery brown sugar and mashed sweet potatoes is a match made in Thanksgiving heaven.
Categories:
Christmas, Fall Recipes, Gluten-Free, Holiday Favorites, Nut-Free, Potatoes, Reader Favorites, Sides, Thanksgiving, Winter Recipes,
