My father-in-law introduced us to growing sweet potatoes a couple of years ago. He has had a prolific crop each year, and ours has been decent too. We’ve tried lots of sweet potato recipes in the past few years, and this one is, hands down, my favorite.
While it’s not the healthiest version of sweet potatoes, it is absolutely the tastiest. It makes a great Thanksgiving side dish, though it could easily qualify as a dessert. Since it’s always a big hit, I usually double it and put it in a bigger pan. If it’s not gone the first day, it makes great leftovers.
Sweet Potato Soufflé
Ingredients
- 3 cups mashed cooked sweet potatoes (or 1 large can of yams)
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup milk
Topping
- 1 cup flaked coconut
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup chopped nuts
- 1/3 cup melted butter
Mash cooked sweet potatoes (or large can of yams) with a potato masher. Add white sugar, softened butter, eggs, vanilla, and milk. Beat eggs and mix.
Spread evenly into a greased square baking dish (8 or 9 inch).
For the topping, combine coconut, flour, brown sugar, chopped nuts and melted butter.
Sprinkle evenly over the top of the sweet potato mixture.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes or until knife comes out clean.
Serve warm or cold– it’s delicious either way!
- 3 cups mashed sweet potatoes (or large can of yams)
- ¾ cup white sugar
- ⅓ cup butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup milk
- [TOPPING]
- 1 cup flaked coconut
- ⅓ cup flour
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup chopped nuts
- ⅓ cup melted butter
- Mash cooked sweet potatoes (or large can of yams) with a potato masher.
- Add white sugar, softened butter, eggs, vanilla, and milk. Beat eggs and mix.
- Spread evenly into a greased square baking dish (8 or 9 inch).
- For the topping, combine coconut, flour, brown sugar, chopped nuts and melted butter.
- Sprinkle evenly over the top of the sweet potato mixture.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

Hello!
I couldn’t find yams that weren’t sweetened, so I ended up buying them sweetened with Splenda. Have you run into this? Hi would you cut back on the sugar in the recipe in order for it it to be too sweet
Thank you!
I haven’t bought canned yams in over a decade, so I’m not going to be much help! If they’re presweetened in the can, then try cutting down the sugar in the recipe. It’s a dish that’s definitely not lacking in the sweets department! 😊
Sweet Potato Souflee is a must on Thanksgiving! Thanks for sharing with us at Merry Monday.
I made a similar recipe for the first time last Thanksgiving. It was so delicious! My sister dubbed them “Dessert Potatoes.” 😀
I’m not a fan of “sweet” sweet potatoes, but I make this dish regularly. We don’t use sumac, just paprika. http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2011/04/recipe-for-twice-baked-sweet-potatoes.html
Thanks for sharing Jen!
Are they easy to grow? We buy organic ones from the supermarket but they are always imported from the USA.
They are pretty easy, but you kind of have to baby them when they are new. My father-in-law orders the plants (bareroot) in bulk. We plant them in the evening (dig hole deep enough to accommodate the root and give lots of water) and cover them with boxes during the sunny part of the day for the first week or more. Once they get going, they do really well. And they are really pretty too.
Thanks for that. Do they grow on a vine or in the earth like normal potatoes? We just had some potatoes from the garden for dinner.
Yum- homegrown potatoes are the best. Sweet potatoes grow like normal potatoes- underground. 🙂
Yea, no Thanksgiving or Christmas table is complete without sweet potato souffle. My sweet southern grandma never put coconut in her crust, however, and down south the only nut to use would be PECANS! Makes the crust taste like crunchy pralines. Yum!
Yum! Praline crust sounds divine! 🙂
Wow, I do this every year from a similar recipe that doesn’t call for coconut. What a great addition, can’t wait to try that. I have also mixed a few finely chopped less expensive mixed nuts with less pecans to stretch it out a bit because pecans are always so pricey and it’s equally delicious. Thanks Stephanie!
What do you use without coconut? This sounds really good but I HATE coconut.
That’s a good idea to stretch the nuts! I always use walnuts because I get them free (my uncle has a walnut orchard).
Thanks for posting a Thanksgiving side dish on Canadian Thanksgiving weekend 🙂 This looks delicious!
Awesome! I didn’t even do that on purpose! Happy Canadian Thanksgiving! 🙂
We do this, too! Sweet Potato Souflee is hands down my favorite leftover to have after Thanksgiving or Christmas. Yum.
Yes! I will even eat it cold for breakfast! 🙂