Sweet potatoes are one of my favorite vegetables. They’re so naturally sweet and delicious. However, I’ve never liked the marshmallow covered sweet potato casserole that appears around the holidays. It’s just too sweet and the sweet potato flavor is lost and replaced by sticky, overly sweet marshmallows.

However, I love the idea of an easy make-ahead sweet potato casserole. I just want it to be less sweet (no marshmallows!) and more flavorful. When I stumbled upon this old recipe in my Grandma’s recipe box I was very excited because it was exactly what I had been looking for.

Walnuts, shredded coconut and a little brown sugar and butter make an amazing crunchy topping. I love how their flavors and textures complement the sweet potatoes instead of overpowering them. If you happen to not like coconut, no worries, just double the amount of walnuts.

It’s so easy to make. It warms up great too so it can be made ahead for holidays or busy weeks.

I made this the first time with butter but then I happened to think how delicious coconut oil would be instead. Either one is yummy so pick whichever one sounds better to you. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 4 cups mashed sweet potatoes (cook about 4 large sweet potatoes)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup milk
• ½ cup coconut oil or butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup brown sugar, lightly packed
• ½ cup shredded coconut (I used finely shredded and unsweetened)
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted or olive oil
• ½ cup chopped walnuts

Instructions

Mix together the sweet potatoes, eggs, salt, milk, ½ cup butter or coconut oil and vanilla and transfer to a 2 quart casserole dish. Mix together the brown sugar, coconut and nuts and stir in the tablespoon of melted butter or oil. Top the potatoes with this mixture and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes covered and 30 minutes uncovered. Makes about 7 cups.