Another favourite Thanksgiving recipe is the sweet potato casserole. Probably one of the easiest dishes at the Thanksgiving dinner, it can be prepared even by teenagers. The potatoes can be boiled or baked at home. To make hassle free cooking the canned variety of sweet potato, available in the market is also a great source for this dish. There are a number of variations to the traditional sweet potato casserole; like it can be made with apple and butternut squash or with cheese or as a shepherd pie or as a risotto.

The basic and most essential ingredients required to prepare sweet potato casserole are mashed sweet potatoes, butter, brown sugar, eggs and chopped pecans. All the ingredients are together mixed along with milk and vanilla essence and spread in a pre-heated oven the pecans are then sprinkled from the top. It is then baked for around 40 minutes till the top turns golden brown. With the compulsory turkey preparation this dish acts as a wonderful side dish.

The traditional recipe though time tested, is heavy and sometimes is almost had like a desert because of its sweetness. Many alternative forms of this recipe have been tied to make it low on the calorie count. One of the lighter versions includes coconut, ginger and maple. The coconut and ginger adds a tropical excitement to the taste buds while the sweet potato and maple try to retain the authenticity of the dish. These recipes will continue to appeal to the gastronome people of all age, place and time.