Sweet Pecan Yams
A traditional holiday recipe at our house, these sweet pecan yams are one of the best things that have ever happened to our Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.
Ingredients
For the yams:
- 2 ½ to 3 pounds yams or sweet potatoes about 3 large
- ½ cup butter melted
- ⅓ cup milk
- 1 cup (7.5 ounces) granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 eggs beaten
For the Topping:
- 1 cup (7.5 ounces) light brown sugar
- ½ cup (2.5 ounces) flour see note
- ⅓ cup butter softened
- 1 cup (4.25 ounces) chopped pecans
Instructions
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Wash, peel and cook the yams until fork tender. I usually peel them then place them whole in an electric pressure cooker (i.e. Instant Pot) with 1 cup of water and cook them for 8 minutes on high pressure, using a natural pressure release. If you don’t have an electric pressure cooker, you can cut them up and steam or boil them until they are fork tender.
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish with butter or cooking spray and set aside.
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Mash the cooked yams until smooth (I usually do this in a food processor, a blender, or the bowl of a stand mixer with the beater attachment). Then in a large bowl combined mashed yams, melted butter, milk, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, and beaten eggs. Spread yam mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish.
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In a small bowl mix together the light brown sugar and flour. Cut in the softened butter until mixture is crumbly and then stir in the chopped pecans. Sprinkle pecan mixture over the yams.
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Bake in the preheated 350 degrees F oven for 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Recipe Notes
1. I've made this recipe with all-purpose flour, whole-grain flour and even gluten-free flour. They all worked great.
2. This recipe can easily be made ahead of time, and then refrigerated until ready to serve up to a day in advance. I usually put it all together, cover it in aluminum foil, and refrigerate before the baking step. Then when I’m ready to bake it, I remove the aluminum foil, stick it in the preheated oven until it is golden brown and bubbly, about 35 minutes.
3. I've also baked this dish a couple of hours before the meal, covered it with foil, and kept it warm in an oven set at 170 degrees F until ready to serve.