These sweet potato puddings, made with spices and custard and mashed sweet potatoes, are a sweet tooth-satisfying side dish or dessert. So long, sweet potato casserole.
A holiday staple. For Thanksgiving dinner, here’s the only sweet potato dish you’ll need!–Kris Jenner
What’s the difference between this and sweet potato casserole?
This recipe was originally—and loftily—dubbed a “soufflé,” although we didn’t find that to be altogether accurate. It’s more of a pudding than a casserole, with a slightly denser, custardy consistency than the classic sweet potato side dish. And, of course, it lacks marshmallows, which makes it more appealing to some at the table, less to others. What you end up with, however, does make a damn fine stand-in that’s sufficiently sweet and rich to satisfy sweet tooths at dessert—or, for those who insist, at dinner.
☞ Contents
Sweet Potato Puddings
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter melted, plus softened butter for the dishes
- 6 medium (about 5 pounds) sweet potatoes (not yams) quartered
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- One (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk preferably Eagle brand
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 6 large eggs beaten
- Whipped cream for serving
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly butter two 1 1/2-quart (1.4 l) high-sided soufflé dishes.
- Place the sweet potatoes in a large saucepan and add enough water to cover them by 1 inch (25 mm). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Cook the sweet potatoes until tender, about 23 minutes.
- Drain the sweet potatoes. Place them in a large bowl and let cool.
- When the sweet potatoes are cool enough to handle, slip off the skins and toss them in the compost. Use a potato masher to mash the sweet potatoes until smooth.
- Stir in the melted butter, brown and white sugars, condensed milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg until thoroughly combined.
- In another bowl with a stand mixer or an electric handheld mixer, beat the eggs until pale yellow. Using a spatula, gently fold 1/3 of the eggs into the potato mixture, mixing just until combined. Add 1/2 of the remaining eggs in the same fashion, then repeat with the remaining eggs.
- Divvy the mixture between the dishes and bake until the mixture puffs a little and doesn’t wobble when gently shaken, 45 to 60 minutes.
- Let cool slightly. If desired, serve with fresh unsweetened whipped cream on the side.
Notes
How To Make Individual Sweet Potato Souffles
If you’d prefer to make these in individual ramekins, follow the recipe directions, divvying the soufflé mixture among buttered individual-size ramekins of any size. Cook until slightly puffed and done throughout, about 17 minutes for ramekins 3 1/2-inches in diameter, depending on the size of your dishes. You’ll simply want to monitor the puddings and pull them when they seem done. The smaller the vessel, the less time in the oven.Show Nutrition
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We’d love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This is really good. It’s so good that it tastes good cold. It’s a little more involved than a regular sweet potato casserole for a big meal like Thanksgiving but it’s worth the effort. I would definitely make this again. I would cut the recipe in half, though.
You need to choose a ramekin with high sides. I used 2 ½-quart white Corning with high sides. With 2 of these, you can serve a huge crowd.
They were very good, not too sweet, and with the addition of more sugar I would have dessert soufflés. I used 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1 cup of granulated sugar. The nutmeg I used was 1/2 teaspoon. I used eight 3 1/2-inch diameter ramekins for individual soufflés and baked them for 17 minutes.
Originally published November 16, 2020
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If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Elsa M. Jacobson
For starters, and whether or not it really matters, to me this is more of a pudding and not so much what I think of with the word “soufflé.” That being said, I think this is far far better than the holiday dish with sweet potatoes and brown sugar and marshmallows for those seeking a sweet potato dish that differs from that standard.
I ended up using ½ teaspoon nutmeg, but afterwards felt there could have been a bit more, so maybe that teaspoon that’s called for isn’t so terribly much after all.
I would prefer to bake the sweet potatoes and a friend suggested using a pressure cooker.
As for the ramekins, since I did not have two“large” ramekins available, I used a total of 6 dishes: one 8 1/2-by-4 inch, one 5-by-3 inch, two 4-by-2 1/2 inch, and two 2-by-2 inch. The baking times, were, in the same order as the ramekin listing, 1 hour and 40 minutes, one hour, 45 minutes, and 40 minutes. None were covered and none overbrowned.
There was definitely a little bit of puffing up and a loss of wobbling when I decided to remove them from the oven. These were rich. They did look just like the picture, though, based on the size of the spoons and tray, I think mine made more, a lot more, than what is depicted there. And, because it is so very rich, I think the serving count of 10 to 12 is low. I think this could serve a lot more, as a little of this richness goes a long long way. In fact, it could easily be served (and I would recommend this) as a dessert, ie, in lieu of a pie.