This decadent Kentucky Sweet Potato Soufflé with Praline Streusel is a mainstay on my family’s Thanksgiving table and through the fall. It’s a sweeter upgrade to the classic Sweet Potato Casserole

This Sweet Potato Soufflé uses bourbon because I’m from Kentucky and all my favorite recipes include bourbon. However, if there’s an aversion to Bourbon, you can keep it classic and use vanilla extract in its place. 

Sweet Potato Soufflé, when made in the African-American tradition, is intuitive. That means the measurements are done by grace, love, and ancestral guidance. Or others may say…by eyeballing it. Amounts are adjusted based on the size of your baking dish. The measurements used in this recipe gets you as close to tradition as possible.

If you have batter left over, go in the tradition of my mom’s honorary auntie, Aunt (pronounced “Ain’t”) Hattie. Aunt Hattie always used mini pans to make individually sized treats for my mom as a child. I encourage you to do the same for the little ones in your family. 

Also, I made this Kentucky Sweet Potato Soufflé for Thanksgiving in Guatemala and it became the talk of the town. Or at least my social circle which includes 5 nationalities. So now I can call it, internationally acclaimed.  Seriously, Sweet Potato Soufflé, or Camote Soufflé, as they call it, was the first dish to disappear —Even before my Classic Baked Mac and Cheese.

Quick Tips for Kentucky Sweet Potato Soufflé

Yes, you can use canned sweet potatoes

I often prefer canned potatoes because it saves time and they’re already super moist. 

To determine how many cans to use just know, a large, baking potato or sweet potato usually weighs about .75 to 1 pound. This recipe calls for 4 potatoes or 4 pounds of potatoes. This means you’ll need about 4 15.5oz cans of canned yams. 

If you’re using fresh eggs, Baking or boiling is fine. I prefer boiling to soften because the water keeps the moisture in. If you’re baking, I suggest using a covered dish with water inside. When it’s time to start mixings ingredients, make sure you’re working with cool mashed sweet potatoes. Hot potatoes run the risk of scrambling your eggs. Eeek!

You’ll need just as many eggs as you have potatoes. 

BTW. For future reference eyeballing a pound of potatoes is to measure how many potatoes will fit in an adult’s cuffed hands. One large baking potato fits. Two medium Yukon Golds or white potatoes fit. A handful of baby reds or fingerling potatoes equal a pound. 

Sweet potatoes and yams are not the same things

I was an adult before I realized yams and sweet potatoes are not the same. Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) have an orange exterior that matches the interior (sometimes a purple variety). As the name implies, they’re sweet.

Yams (Dioscorea) have a rough brown flesh and are starchy and white on the inside. They usually go in soups or you can make fufu with them.  

Let’s talk about the streusel

Streusel toppings are pretty standard but this one adds the southern favorite, pecans. As the name might hint, streusel was made popular by Germany and means something along the lines of crumble. Prelines are a super sweet treat in the southern portion of the united states (namely Alabama and South Carolina). They use the same ingredients as this topping: pecans, brown sugar, butter, and vanilla (or bourbon if you’re in Kentucky or around the most lovely people.

The Difference between Sweet Potato Casserole and Sweet Potato Souffle

As the name would hint, soufflé originates from France. Soufflés get their light airiness from their egg base. They’re classically made in ramekins. I encourage the use of a ramekin-style, porcelain baking dish. 

Casserole doesn’t use eggs and is traditionally topped with marshmallows. 

Sweet Potato Soufflé Make Ahead Instructions

You have two options: prepare the batter and the streusel one day ahead of time. Cover both separately and chill in the fridge. Or cook the entire thing up to three days in advance. Cover while in the fridge. Let sit at room temp for about an hour before reheating & serving. Either way, the eggs will fall but come back to life in the oven.

Kentucky Sweet Potato Soufflé

Ingredients:

 Soufflé:

• 4 peeled, cooked, and mashed sweet potatoes, cooled
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar (that is, sugar with maple)
• 4 eggs, whites separated and beaten
• 1/2 cup half & half
• 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons bourbon (can substitute with vanilla)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons cinnamon (more or less depending on your preferences)
• 3 tablespoons nutmeg

 Cinnamon Pecan Streusel Topping:

• 1/3 cup self-rising cake flour
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, (1/3 stick) cubed, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped, lightly toasted pecans
• 1 tablespoon bourbon (optional, but makes it so much better)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. 
2. Lightly butter a 3-quart casserole dish or porcelain baking dish. Be sure to butter the sides well to help the soufflé rise. Chill the refrigerator. 
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix, sweet potatoes, brown sugar, egg yolks, half & half, bourbon, cinnamon, and salt into a liquified batter. 
4. In a large bowl, use a hand mixer (or stand mixer with a whisk attachment) to whisk egg whites into a fluffy, frothy white meringue. While mixing, drizzle in granulated sugar just a tablespoon at a time. If you dump all at once, you’ll deflate the fluffy eggs.  
5. Fold the egg and sugar mixture into the sweet potato batter. 
6. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. And bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the mashed sweet potatoes get bubbly and start to form. 
7. To prepare the streusel, combine the ingredients in a separate bowl until crumbly. Use your hands or a fork to mash butter into dry ingredients. 
8. Within the last 10 minutes of baking, crumble the streusel over the sweet potato mixture. Bake until golden brown for about 10 minutes. Serve hot.