Irresistible Sweet Potato Casserole Cupcakes with Toasted Homemade Marshmallow Frosting: Your New Favorite Holiday Dessert
Prepare to be enchanted by these truly delectable **Sweet Potato Casserole Cupcakes**, a dessert that perfectly captures the comforting essence of a classic holiday side dish in an adorable, portable form. Each bite features a beautifully spiced sweet potato cake, a delightful brown sugar pecan topping baked right into the center and on top, all crowned with a generous, ethereal swirl of homemade marshmallow frosting. This isn’t just a cupcake; it’s a nostalgic journey disguised as a sweet treat, promising a memorable experience for any occasion.
The culinary journey of transforming beloved dishes into innovative cupcake creations is endlessly rewarding. My passion for taking traditional flavors and presenting them in a fun, bite-sized format has led to delights like these Pumpkin Pecan Pie Cupcakes, the vibrant Caramel Apple Cupcakes, and the summery Peach Crisp Cupcakes. Now, with great excitement, I’ve taken the quintessential holiday favorite, maple sweet potato casserole, and reimagined it into this adorable and utterly irresistible cupcake form. It’s everything you adore about the classic, but in a delightful, individual serving.
A Symphony of Flavors and Textures in Every Bite
These sweet potato casserole cupcakes are a true textural masterpiece. At their heart is a moist, beautifully spiced sweet potato cake, infused with a blend of warming cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger that evokes all the comforting feelings of autumn and winter. But the real magic begins with the brown sugar pecan topping, a generous streusel baked directly inside and on top of each cupcake. This ensures that every forkful delivers that signature crunch and rich, buttery sweetness that makes classic sweet potato casserole so irresistible. The topping bakes down beautifully, creating a delightful crumbly texture within the cake, while some bits remain perfectly crispy on top, adding a lovely contrast.
And then, the grand finale: a cloud-like swirl of the easiest homemade marshmallow frosting you’ll ever make. This isn’t just any frosting; it’s a light, airy, and incredibly smooth marshmallow dream. What makes it truly spectacular is the optional, but highly recommended, step of torching it! With a quick kiss from a kitchen torch, the frosting transforms, developing a beautifully caramelized exterior that mirrors the toasted marshmallow topping of a traditional casserole. This interactive and visually stunning step is incredibly fun and elevates the entire dessert.
The hint of cinnamon in the marshmallow frosting is a subtle yet significant touch, perfectly complementing the robust flavors of the sweet potato cake and its aromatic spices. This frosting not only holds its beautiful piped shape with elegance but also remains wonderfully soft and creamy, ensuring that each bite is not just good, but better than the last. These cupcakes truly have it all: a rich tapestry of textures, a harmonious blend of sweet and subtly savory notes from the sweet potato, and an undeniable visual appeal that makes them a showstopper on any dessert table.
Why These Sweet Potato Casserole Cupcakes Will Become Your New Go-To
Forget the large, sometimes unwieldy casserole dish. These sweet potato cupcakes offer all the beloved flavors and textures of the traditional dish in convenient, individual portions. They are perfect for holiday gatherings like Thanksgiving and Christmas, providing a unique and memorable alternative to pie or a heavy dessert. Imagine the delight on your guests’ faces when they see these charming, toasted treats! They’re not only easy to serve but also encourage guests to mingle and enjoy their dessert without the fuss of cutting slices. Plus, for those who love to experiment with their holiday baking, these cupcakes present a creative and exciting twist on a classic.
The combination of impossibly smooth and creamy marshmallow frosting, the satisfying crunch from the brown sugar pecan filling, and the soft, moist spiced sweet potato cake is a symphony of sensations that no one will be able to resist. It’s a sophisticated yet fun dessert that bridges the gap between a classic comfort food and a modern, elegant treat.
One small, but important, note from personal experience: when making the delicious brown sugar pecan topping, try not to “taste test” too much of it. (Ahem, Chef Lindsey speaking here!) It’s incredibly tempting to sneak spoonfuls, but trust me, you’ll want every bit of that crumbly goodness to go into your cupcakes to achieve the perfect balance of flavors and textures.
Tips for Baking the Perfect Sweet Potato Cupcakes
Crafting the Ideal Sweet Potato Puree
The foundation of these delicious cupcakes is a smooth and flavorful sweet potato puree. Start by selecting fresh, vibrant sweet potatoes. Peeling and cutting them into roughly one-inch cubes ensures they cook evenly and quickly. Boiling them until they are very tender – easily pierced with a fork – is crucial for a smooth puree. While mashing with a spoon works, using an immersion blender or, my personal favorite, a ricer, will yield the creamiest, string-free puree. A ricer is particularly effective at breaking down the sweet potato fibers, resulting in a velvety texture that integrates seamlessly into the cupcake batter.
The Secret to the Irresistible Pecan Topping
The brown sugar pecan topping is what truly connects these cupcakes to their casserole inspiration. The combination of dark brown sugar, flour, melted butter, toasted chopped pecans, a dash of Saigon cinnamon, and a pinch of kosher salt creates a streusel that’s both rich and texturally diverse. Toasting the pecans beforehand (as detailed in the recipe notes) amplifies their nutty flavor, making the topping even more aromatic and delicious. This topping bakes into the cupcake, providing a delightful surprise in the center, and also forms a lovely, slightly crispy crust on top.
Mastering the Homemade Marshmallow Frosting
While store-bought marshmallow fluff can be used in a pinch, making your own homemade marshmallow frosting is incredibly rewarding and surprisingly easy. It results in a far superior texture – light, airy, and impossibly smooth – that simply cannot be replicated by pre-made alternatives. The subtle addition of cinnamon in the frosting pairs beautifully with the sweet potato and spices in the cake, adding another layer of complex flavor. The real fun comes with the torching! A kitchen torch caramelizes the top of the frosting, giving it that iconic toasted marshmallow appearance and a slightly crispy, sweet outer layer that melts in your mouth. If you don’t have a torch, a brief moment under the broiler works too, but keep a close eye on it to prevent burning.
Baking for Flawless Moistness
When preparing the cupcake batter, ensure your butter is at room temperature for optimal creaming with the sugars and lemon zest. This step is essential for incorporating air and achieving a light, tender crumb. Adding eggs one at a time and beating well after each ensures proper emulsification. When alternating between dry and wet ingredients (flour and milk), always begin and end with flour to maintain the structure of the batter. And remember, gently folding in the last of the flour by hand helps prevent overmixing, which can lead to tough cupcakes. Fill your muffin tins almost to the top to get beautifully domed cupcakes, and keep an eye on them during baking; they’re done when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with just a few clinging crumbs.
Serving and Storage Suggestions
These sweet potato casserole cupcakes are best enjoyed after they’ve cooled completely, allowing the flavors to meld and the frosting to set slightly. They make a fantastic addition to any dessert table, especially during the fall and winter holidays. Pair them with a warm cup of coffee or a glass of milk for a truly comforting treat. For make-ahead convenience, you can bake the cupcakes a day in advance and store them unfrosted in an airtight container at room temperature. The marshmallow frosting can also be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator, then brought back to room temperature and whipped briefly before piping. Once frosted, store the cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, though the frosting is best when freshly torched.
Sweet Potato Casserole Cupcakes {Homemade Marshmallow Frosting}
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Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon slightly rounded
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest about 1 small lemon, dark yellow parts only
- 4 eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
- 1 cup sweet potato puree about 2 small potatoes, directions below
- ⅔ cup whole milk
For the Topping:
- ½ cup dark brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup flour
- 6 tablespoons melted butter*
- 1 cup chopped pecans toasted
- Dash Saigon cinnamon
- Pinch kosher salt
Frosting:
- Marshmallow Frosting Recipe
Instructions
Cook Sweet Potatoes:
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Peel and cut your sweet potatoes into 1 inch cubes. It doesn’t have to be exact. You just want them to be roughly the same size, so they cook evenly. Place in a small saucepot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to medium and continue to cook until very tender and can easily be pierced with a fork. Drain and mash with a spoon, puree with an immersion blender, or press through a ricer (my favorite because it gets out some of the strings).
Make the Topping (Optional)
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Mix all the topping ingredients together in a medium bowl and set aside.
Make the Cupcakes:
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Preheat your oven to 350° and line 16 muffin tins with liners (I use 2 plain liners).
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In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, soda, salt and all spices; set aside.
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In a large bowl on in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream sugars, butter, and lemon zest together with a hand mixer until thickened, 3-4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Add the vanilla with the last egg.
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Add the sweet potato puree and mix on medium until smooth and creamy, about 30 seconds.
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Alternately add flour and milk, beginning and ending with flour. I add a third of the flour then half of the milk and repeat. Fold the last flour addition in by hand to avoid over mixing.
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Scoop into prepared tins, filling almost to the top of the cup. Add a generous amount of topping the top of each cupcake, pressing some down inside. Bake in preheated oven 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with a few clinging crumbs. Mine took 17 minutes.
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Remove immediately from muffin tins to cool completely on a wire rack.
Assemble the Cupcakes:
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Once cupcakes are cool, frost with your favorite piping tip! You can spread the frosting on but it will be messy and you will probably be covered in marshmallow fluff by the time you are done.
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Toast the frosting with a kitchen torch or under a broiler. The frosting is delicious untoasted, so that is always an option.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
