Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe with Canned Yams

Copycat Ruth Chris sweet potato casserole recipe with canned yams and pecan topping is here! Best mashed yams side dish for Thanksgiving. Easy and quick to bake with a can of Bruce’s in the oven to serve with your turkey or ham.

Easy Sweet Potato Casserole with Canned Yams

Let’s start with the question everyone has; are yams and sweet potatoes the same thing? Yes they taste very similar and when canned you almost can’t tell the difference. The terms are used to often times describe the same thing but…. To be more specific though…..

Yams and sweet potatoes are two distinct root vegetables with differences in taste, texture, appearance, and nutritional content. The confusion between the two arises because in some regions, especially in the United States, the terms are used interchangeably due to historical reasons. You can see here on the can that they say both. 😉

You may have had this popular dish at this restaurant during the holidays, or choose to have some even in February! That is what we love about this steak house, you can bring Fall to your mouth any time of year really. It’s nice to have copycat recipes on hand though because, well it is cheaper to make it on your own.

Bruce’s Sweet Potato Casserole Ingredients

• Canned yams 40 oz., if fresh sweet potatoes baked are used you’d need 2 large or so
• 1/3 c butter or plant based dairy free alternative
• Sugar will make more of a glaze flavor
• 1/4 c milk or almond milk works
• 2 eggs are best added at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract is a nice touch
• Candied pecan topping
• 1 c pecans or any crushed nuts really
• 3/4 c brown sugar packed for sweetness
• All purpose flour to make more of a crumble texture
• Butter unsalted, melted
• Mini marshmallows can be browned on the top in 2 minutes or so

Now if you did cook Sweet Potato Cubes Oven for the holidays you could use the leftovers to make this if you had enough. Just use a potato masher to get the right smooth consistency and go from there. Step by step is below. In that case you would just need to add a bit of liquid since you wouldn’t have the syrup in the can available to you.

This is baked in the oven inside a prepared baking dish until golden brown on top. You could use the pot in pot technique to make Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole with this recipe too. You’d have to cook it in a few batches that way or cut in half. The top would still need be be browned in the oven though in that case.

How to Make Sweet Potato Casserole with Canned Yams and Pecan Topping

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Prepare a 8×8″ baking dish by greasing with butter. In a medium saucepan, bring canned sweet potatoes and their liquid to a boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer until sweet potatoes are tender.
• Drain and mash sweet potatoes in a bowl. Then add the white sugar, butter, milk, eggs, and vanilla extract. Mix well.
• Spread sweet potato mixture in the prepared baking dish. In a separate bowl, combine chopped pecans, brown sugar, all-purpose flour, and melted butter. Mix well.
• Sprinkle pecan mixture over sweet potato mixture.
• Bake for 45 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving so it thickens up.

Variations

1. Add a small handful of crushed and roasted hazelnuts to the top too.
2. If you wanted to add a bit more sweetness and texture, some dried cranberries go a long way.
3. You could mix and match with half yams and half pumpkin puree!
4. Some like a sprinkle of raisins inside the filling or mixed in with the toppings.

With Marshmallows

If you wanted to sprinkle some mini marshmallows on to the top you could but I’d do that the last 5-10 minutes so they don’t burn. Quick and easy, and saves well as leftovers too! If you wanted to make this for more guests you could definitely double it. The timing wouldn’t change a ton, just use a 9×13″ dish until golden brown.

How to Save Leftover Sweet Potato Casserole

What do you do if you have leftovers?? All holiday means save well if stored properly in the beginning. You always want food to cool to room temperature before you do anything else. Then transfer what is left into airtight containers, or cover with plastic wrap pressing down to tightly cover every inch so it doesn’t dry out.

Store in the fridge for up to 3 days. When you are ready to reheat, take it out and let it warm up a bit on the counter if possible. Up to 25 minutes is fine. Then I like using the microwave personally. On a plate covered with a paper towel just warm for about 45 seconds and enjoy once again! You can jump to recipe but here are a few add ins you can try too;

Sweet potato casserole with 29 oz canned yams

If this is the only size you can find and/or want a smaller batch, use this one. Cut the recipe of other ingredients listed below in half and go with that! This will not only make a bit less but the overall texture will be thicker. Bake in a 8×8 dish until bubbly.