Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows are a twist on the classic sweet potato casserole. It’s an elegant (yet still easy) twist on the classic holiday dish.
This post has been a year in the making. I made these little beauties around Thanksgiving last year and loved the look of a platter of these with the rest of the holiday spread. As much as I wanted to share these last year, I never got a picture of them that I really loved. It makes me extra thrilled to share this fun holiday side dish with you! To make these twice-baked sweet potatoes, the potatoes are sliced in half, roasted with some butter, filled with marshmallows, and topped with toasty pecans. It all gets a final minute under the broiler to give those marshmallows golden brown tops.
These potatoes are both elegant and fun. Here’s how to do it!
Choosing the “Right” Sweet Potatoes
The only part of this recipe that is at all quirky is the selection of sweet potatoes. Absolutely any type of sweet potatoes will work, but you want to choose potatoes that are an even shape and an appropriate size to work as a side dish for a hearty Thanksgiving or Christmas meal. Pick something that will fit nicely (and won’t outshine) the turkey, stuffing, rolls, and cranberry sauce. In most cases, that means the smaller the potatoes, the better. I prefer potatoes that are about 8 ounces each.
Ingredients
- Sweet Potatoes – Any type will work. Look for potatoes that are quite small and evenly shaped. I prefer to use sweet potatoes that are about 8 ounces each.
- Cooking Oil – For roasting vegetables, I like to use a neutral-flavored oil that can be used at high heat like avocado or grape seed oil. I buy a big container of avocado oil at Costco and use it in everything I cook.
- Unsalted Butter – I use unsalted butter for these so that I can add some salt back in and control the amount I use. Salted butter would work just fine, but you may want to skip the additional salt listed in the recipe.
- Light Brown Sugar, Ground Cinnamon, Salt – These add a little extra flavor to the filling of the twice-baked potatoes.
- Mini Marshmallows – Classic dish, classic topping. If you can’t find mini marshmallows, you can use large ones, but cut or slice them in half so they don’t overwhelm the potatoes.
- Chopped Pecans – Feel free to skip these, but I love the added flavor and crunch the pecans give this dish.
Make This Meal Ahead
You can fully assemble the potatoes (pre-bake them and fill them with the marshmallows and pecans) up to a day ahead. Before baking, let them come back to room temperature and then bake until heated all the way through (this will likely take about 10 minutes more than the original time listed).
More Make-Ahead Holiday Dishes
- Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes – Before I learned this method of making mashed potatoes ahead, they were my holiday nemesis. I hate making this messy dish right before dinner, so having these all tucked away into a casserole dish ahead of time makes me so happy. These can be made up to 2 days ahead.
- Slow Cooker Pumpkin Cheesecake – Cheesecake is so much fun to make in the slow cooker. The low, steady heat can be used to create a water bath around the cheesecake for a smooth, creamy filling. Make this up to 3 days before the big event.
- Apple Cider Punch with Bourbon – This is a large batch cocktail that’s great for setting out so guests can serve themselves. You can even leave the bourbon on the side so guests have the option to leave it out if they want.
Favorite Tools
- Half Sheet Pan – A sheet pan is all you need for this easy dish!
Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
Equipment
- sheet pan
Ingredients
- 4 small Sweet Potatoes (about 8 oz each; see note)
- 2 Tbsp Cooking Oil (I use avocado or grapeseed oil)
- 4 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 1 Tbsp Light Brown Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 3 cups Mini Marshmallows
- 1 cup Pecan Halves, chopped
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400°F.
- Scrub potatoes clean and dry with a dishtowel. Slice each potato in half lengthwise. Rub on all sides with oil and place, cut-side down on a sheet pan. Sprinkle the peels of the potatoes with some salt.
- Transfer the sheet pan to the oven and roast the potatoes until they can be easily pierced with a fork, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Remove the potatoes and use tongs to flip them over so the cut-side is facing up. Let them cool for a few minutes.
- While the potatoes cool, heat the butter in the microwave just until melted (use the defrost button which will keep the butter from overheating as it melts).
- Stir brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt into the melted butter.
- Working carefully (the potatoes will still be hot; I find it helpful to hold them steady with a dishtowel in one hand), take a fork and scrape / mash the flesh of the potato, leaving the skin intact.
- Spoon the butter mixture over the flesh of the potatoes and go back with your fork, gently combining the mixture with the sweet potatoes.
- Press mini marshmallows into the potatoes. Scatter chopped pecans over the tops so that some fall between the marshmallows.
- Return the potatoes to the oven and continue baking until marshmallows are very soft and golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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I always have room for desserts whenever I eat out.