Gluten Free Healthy Vegan Sweet Potato Casserole: A lightened up, naturally sweetened version of maple sweet potato casserole. A Healthier Spin on My Family’s Favorite Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe.
We are very traditional at Thanksgiving at my house. Thanksgiving is all about celebrating family and traditions, right?!
So it is the same dishes every year, and frankly they are SO good, I don’t think I will ever get sick of them!
One of our favorites is Sweet Potato Casserole.
Of course, it is a sweet potato recipe because I LOVE Easy Sweet Potato Recipes.
But my famiy’s sweet potato casserole is really not a side dish, it is a dessert.
The traditional way we have always made it is with canned sweet potatoes in heavy syrup which we combined with more sugar, eggs, and milk. AND then topped with butter, more sugar, nuts, and flour.
INCREDIBLE!!
But oh so bad for you!
And as our family grew, many food issues arose. My son and I were gluten, egg, and dairy free for years. My nephew has a life-threatening allergy to eggs and is allergic to corn.
So while we could still make our traditional sweet potato casserole, only half the family would be able to partake. And this girl would NOT be happy to watch her family eat one of her favorite dishes without her!
I took it upon myself to my family’s Sweet Potato Casserole healthy and allergy-free while still keeping the family happy.
And if you have ever messed with a classic recipe passed down for generations, that can be quite the task.
After multiple tries, SUCCESS!
Gluten Free Healthy Vegan Sweet Potato Casserole
Step by Step Directions for Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe:
- Start with roasting fresh sweet potatoes at 400 degrees for about 1 hour, or until fork tender. Tip: Roast the potatoes while you are baking something else!
Puree the potatoes in your food processor or in batches in your blender. Add in apple juice concentrate, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla extract while pureeing to finish off the base of your casserole. The apple juice concentrate and maple syrup give this dish all the sweetness that my family craves, while not being full of corn or overly processed sweeteners.
- The Sweet Potato Casserole Topping: GF Oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, coconut oil, chopped walnuts (or pecans) and maple syrup. These simple ingredients provide the crunch we desire and a sweet richness. And I have found it is best to give all the topping ingredients a quick buzz in the food processor as well–it makes the topping so much more crumbly–you really don’t want to miss this step!
- Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until heated through and the topping is golden brown.
Notes on Vegan Sweet Potato Casserole
- Does the word vegan scare you? Well don’t let it that is just a fancy way of saying this sweet potato casserole is meat free, egg free, and dairy free which is important for those of you who have dealt with food allergies.
- I love to use oats as the topping for this gluten free casserole in place of flour, you can even blend up the oats before making the topping so that the texture is very similar to that of traditional flour. Be sure to take a look at all my Oats Recipes as oats in all shapes and forms happen to be one of my favorite ingredients to cook with.
- The apple juice concentrate is not a misprint–it is the SECRET to success in this recipe. The apple juice concentrate is extra sweet but is a natural sugar and the apple flavor enhances the sweet potato perfectly.
- If you are looking for a more looking for a more decadent sweet potato casserole topping, and you don’t have dairy or gluten sensitivities in your house, I suggest you make the base as I direct, then mix together the following for the more traditional dish
- Decadent REAL topping: 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup unbleached flour, 1/2 stick butter (softened), 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans. Combine until crumbly and layer on base of casserole and bake as directed.
To Prepare Sweet Potato Casserole ahead of time:
- Make the base of the sweet potato casserole and cool completely.
- Freeze in gallon size freezer bag or freezer safe container.
- Thaw the night before you intend to serve in the refrigerator and then bake as directed with your desired topping.
Now let’s make Gluten Free Sweet Potato Casserole
Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole (Gluten-Free and Vegan)
An easy, naturally sweetened, lightened up version of sweet potato casserole.
Ingredients
- For the Base:
- 3 pounds sweet potatoes scrubbed
- 1/3 cup apple juice concentrate
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon fresh nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- dash of salt
- Topping:
- 1/2 cup gluten free oats
- 1 cup chopped nuts walnuts or pecans
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
-
Roast sweet potatoes at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes, or until fork tender. Cool slightly. And lower temperature to 350 degrees.
-
Remove skin of sweet potatoes (simply by peeling off skin with fingers) and place the pulp into a large blender or food processor (or use a hand/stand mixer).
-
Add the remaining ingredients for the base and puree/mix until smooth.
-
Transfer to a 2 quart casserole dish.
-
For the topping: combine all the ingredients and sprinkle over the casserole.
-
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until topping is golden brown.
More Thanksgiving Worthy Side Dishes:
Naturally Sweetened Cranberry Sauce
Mulled Cider
Brussel Sprouts Caesar Salad
my mom puts marshmallows on top of her sweet potatoes!
I just found kosher and all natural marshmallows at publix–my kids were so excited to have them in hot cocoa. I need to pop a few on their sweet potatoes next time too!
We are having a “friendsgiving” carry-in at work on Wednesday this will be perfect for that!
I love Friendsgivings!! More reasons to celebrate and eat!! Let me know how everyone likes it!!
I love this! I think sweet potatoes are sweet and delicious enough that they don’t need all the sweetening up. This will be perfect.
Totally agree Lindsay. Sometimes I just mash a banana with them to make this casserole (even less sweet) But this version is a close to my family’s as you can get.
Something like this is totally happening on Thursday except with butternut squash! 🙂
OOH–Sounds AMAZING!!!!
Nice spin on a Thanksgiving classic. Thanks for the share!
Thanks Melissa
This looks so yummy!
Thank you for sharing your delectable sweet potato casserole with us at the Special Holiday Edition: Healthy, Happy, Green and Natural Party Blog Hop 2014! I’m pinning and sharing your wonderful post! All the best to you! Happy Holidays!
You bet! I love your parties!
Ooh I love this idea! Nice spin on a classic!
Thanks so much! It is still just as good too!
LOVE that this is naturally sweetened!
All the more reason to have 2 or 6 servings 🙂
Sweet potato casserole is one of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving! This looks delicious!
Mine too Marye–and this one is AMAZING!!!
How great you were able to remake this favorite! It looks and sounds absolutely fab, and yes!! So much healthier!
Thanks Patricia! This is so good!
Boy this looks fabulous! Got my eye on this recipe for T-Day! Wanted to pop by and do some sharing and also let you know I’m featuring your recipe this week on Foodie FriDIY! See you again soon!
Thank you so much for the feature Debra! Happy Thanksgiving!
Quick question – when you say “coconut juice, melted”, do you mean coconut oil? I would assume so, but wanted to be sure. 🙂 And I’m so excited to try this!
Oh goodness yes!! I need to change that ASAP! And you can watch me prep this here if you are interested: https://www.facebook.com/amindfullmom/videos/1795576154048856/
Sweet Potato Casserole is one of my favorites! Can’t wait to try your healthier version!
I am willing to be you will LOVE it 😉
This looks delicious! I love that it is gluten-free!
Thanks Carolyn, it is a great option to serve to gluten-free guests at the Holidays.