Sweet potato casserole has never really been my go-to holiday dish—mostly because the traditional version is loaded with butter, oil, and heavy cream. For years, I never even went near it. But then I tried a version at a friend’s house and… WOW. I instantly knew I needed a lighter, cleaner version that still had all the flavor but without the heaviness.
This recipe is my low-fat, plant-based take on the classic Thanksgiving sweet potato casserole, it is made with just 4 tbsp of vegan butter and some nuts in the topping, which keeps the total fat pretty low. And I have to admit it turned out so amazing you’d never miss the extra butter and cream.
A Lightened-Up Holiday Classic
The base is made from perfectly baked sweet potatoes, which you can prepare ahead of time to make your Thanksgiving cooking day easier. Once mashed, the sweet potatoes are mixed with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, vanilla, and some vegan butter—giving you a flavor profile that tastes almost like sweet potato pie. Sweet potatoes are deeply supportive for digestion, rich in antioxidants, and packed with minerals. Their natural glucose helps stabilize blood sugar, supports energy, and nourishes the liver. Combined with the warm spices and mineral-rich nuts in the topping, this casserole brings both comfort and sustaining nourishment to the table.
Many recipes use almond meal in the filling or topping, but I prefer cashew meal because almonds contain L-arginine, which isn’t ideal for those healing or managing chronic illness. Cashews offer a creamy flavor and neutral profile that works beautifully in this dish. If you don’t buy cashew meal, it’s pretty simple to make your own. I grind raw cashews in a dry Vitamix, but a clean coffee grinder works just as well.
The crumble on top is everyone’s favorite, it is a crunchy, sweet, nutty topping. It brings a nice change in texture and extra warmth from the spices. I mix together oats, walnuts, pecans, coconut sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg to create a topping that pairs perfectly with the silky sweet potato layer underneath. It seriously tastes like fall! The topping works just as well if you leave out the walnuts and pecans to help this recipe be more low fat. But if you are serving it at a holiday table or making it for special occasions, you might want to splurge on the walnuts and pecans for that added crunchy, nutty flavor.
This recipe is kid-friendly. The natural sweetness from the potatoes, nutty topping, and warm spices lend a flavor profile that kids will already be familiar with. Plus it goes down easy… the whole family can enjoy this casserole, I’m making it this year for Thanksgiving and can already tell it will be gone fast! It also is great if you are serving it as leftovers the next day!
For the best flavor and cleanest ingredients, I recommend using Monty’s Plant-based Butter. It’s made from coconut oil, almond oil, organic cashews, and sea salt—it is this simple, clean ingredient list that makes me confident in recommending it. Also, the owner of Monty’s wanted to create a really clean product that did not have any additives. I buy the butter in the 2 lb size and keep it in the freezer, that way I always have a stock for when we make desserts and we need to use it.
If you make this sweet potato casserole, I’d absolutely love to hear how it turns out for you. Feel free to tag me in your photos on Facebook or Instagram.
To your health and happiness,
Muneeza
P.S.
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Irresistible Sweet Potato Casserole with Crunchy Pecan Topping
Equipment
- 1 Baking sheet
- 1 Vitamix dry blender or coffee grinder
- 1 medium mixing bowl
- 1 sauce pan
- 1 potato masher or standing mixer
- 1 baking or casserole dish
Ingredients
- 3-4 pounds sweet potato or garnet yams
- 4 tbsp vegan butter
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 cup gluten-free oats
- ½ cup walnuts
- ½ cup pecans
- 1 cup cashews
- 3-4 tbsp coconut sugar
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Instructions
- I recommend making the sweet potatoes and the crumble on top separately.
- The sweet potatoes can be made ahead of time, especially since they have to be cooled down before handling. I prefer to do this step the day before I make this dish. If you are doing this step ahead of time, then be sure to take the sweet potatoes out of the fridge before you start the rest of the steps. This gives them time to come back to room temperature.
- If you are making them on the same day, then start by baking the sweet potatoes whole for about 45 - 50 minutes at 425 F. Poke them with a fork all over so they can breathe in the oven.
- Next let’s make the cashew meal. I prefer this to an almond meal since almonds contain L-arginine which is unhelpful for chronic illness. Put the whole cashews in a Vitamix dry blender. Blend thoroughly and you should get a crumbly cashew meal. If you do not have a Vitamix dry cup, then use a coffee grinder.
- While they are baking, you can start on the crumble by adding the oats, walnuts, pecans, coconut sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon and ¼ tsp nutmeg into a mixing bowl.
- Then warm the 4 tbsp of vegan butter in a pan. Once it's melted, add 1 tbsp of this to the mixing bowl and give it a thorough mix.
- Wait until the sweet potatoes have baked and then leave them out to cool. If you prepped them the day before like I do, then once cooled, peel them.
- Put the oven temperature at 375 F
- Take the peeled sweet potatoes -they should be soft- and use a potato masher to mash them. You can also use a standing mixer. You don’t want them to be totally smooth. A little lumpy is OK.
- Mix in the rest of the cinnamon and nutmeg, and add in the ginger, vanilla extract, and the melted vegan butter to the potatoes and fold in until well and evenly mixed.
- Add this sweet potato mash to your final baking or casserole dish and top with the crumble ingredients.
- Bake at 375 F for 30 - 40 minutes until golden brown on top
Notes
