Staying away from sweet potatoes due to carbs? Try this fantastic low-carb keto sweet potato casserole substitute with sweet pecan topping. It’s perfect for the holidays!
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Are you stressing over what to serve at your holiday meal now that many traditional dishes are off limits? No need to worry because many recipes come in a low-carb version.
During one of our family Thanksgiving meals, I remember my oldest sister bringing a sweet potato casserole. I thought it was strange to add marshmallows to a side dish.
When I got my first taste of this classic Thanksgiving side dish, I thought it belonged on the dessert table. Apparently, a candy company created the original recipe to market marshmallows as an everyday ingredient and the recipe went viral.
For my healthy sweet potato casserole recipe, I left out the marshmallow taste as I never liked them on the dish. Instead, I’ve topped the casserole with a sweet crunchy pecan topping.
I also don’t use actual sweet potatoes because they have about 25 grams of carbs per cup. Instead, I’ve mashed together cauliflower and pumpkin puree as the main ingredients for the sweet potato filling.
📋 Ingredients
This casserole comes together easily with basic ingredients. The best part is that you should be able to find everything you need at your local grocery store!
Cauliflower and Pumpkin Puree
The sweet potato mixture starts with a combination of two popular vegetables on the keto diet. Cauliflower is used to get a potato-like texture. Pumpkin provides the color of a sweet potato casserole to the dish.
Sweetener
My preferred low-carb sweetener is BochaSweet because it comes from kabocha, a Japanese pumpkin. But you can use Swerve or a monk fruit sweetener instead.
For the best taste in the topping, you'll want to use a brown sugar substitute like Swerve Brown.
Eggs
The eggs holds everything together. It's an important ingredient to get the right consistency. It adds some protein too!
Butter
I like to use salted butter as it has the best buttery flavor. But you can use unsalted if you want less sodium and the sweet taste to come through more.
Keto flour
The topping uses a combination of almond and coconut flour but you should be able to use one or the other for this recipe. Since coconut flour is absorbent, always use about one-third less than almond flour.
Pecans
For a crispy keto-friendly topping, chopped pecans are stirred into the mix.
Spices
You'll find traditional fall spices are blended into the sweet potato mash alternative. Included are cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.
Note: Check out the recipe card at the bottom for a full list of ingredients used to make this low-carb recipe.
💭 QUICK TIPS
- Try an alternative brown sweetener. If you don’t have any low carb brown sugar substitute on hand, you can always add a touch of blackstrap molasses to a granular white sugar substitute.
- Don't omit the sweetener. Pumpkin is very close in taste to sweet potatoes but isn’t as sweet. That’s why you’ll need to add a sweetener to get the true flavor.
- Adjust the amount of sweetness to taste. I found ⅓ cup of sweetener to be just the right amount for me in the cauliflower casserole mixture. Others may prefer a little more or a little less.
- Cut back on the granular sweetener. You can use pure stevia or monk fruit in a concentrated powder or liquid. Just use my handy keto sweetener conversion calculator to determine the amount needed.
- Change up the spice blend. The traditional pumpkin spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves really enhances the flavor as well. However, feel free to modify the spice blend to suit your own tastes.
🔪 Instructions
You'll find all the specific steps needed to make this delicious sweet potato casserole alternative in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post. Here you'll find some process images and tips for preparing this family favorite for Thanksgiving day.
Cut and cook cauliflower
To get a smooth texture, you'll need to cook the cauliflower until it's tender. I've found the best way is to cut it into florets and then steam it in the Instant Pot pressure cooker on high pressure. I steam for 5 minutes and follow with a quick pressure release.
Make vegetable mash
Although you can use a large bowl with a hand mixer to mash the vegetables together, I prefer to use a food processor. The mash is a blend of cauliflower, pumpkin, sweetener, eggs, salt, butter, and spices.
You need to combine the ingredients together until smooth.
Add mash to pan
Once the mock sweet potato mash is prepared, just spread it into a 2-quart casserole dish. I like to use an 11x7 pan.
Make and add topping
The topping is a mixture of brown sweetener, coconut flour, almond flour, butter and pecans. Just mix everything but the butter together then cutter in chopped pieces of butter.
Once the topping mixture is prepared, just sprinkle it over the cauliflower and pumpkin mixture. Then bake until the topping is browned.
That's all there is to making this easy sweet potato casserole substitute for a low-carb diet!
🍽️ Serving suggestions
This low-carb sweet potato casserole tastes more like a dessert to me, but it does go well with turkey and ham. So, it’s a great dish to make for your holiday meal.
However, I've found that the leftovers taste great straight from the refrigerator with a little keto whipped cream on top. The sweet taste makes it an excellent snack or dessert during the fall season!
🙋 FAQs
Before sharing the recipe, I wanted to go over some common question that people often ask about the dish and ingredients.
There are a lot of carbs in sweet potatoes so they are not recommended for those following a low-carb eating plan. A typical sweet potato has 25 grams of carbs or more. It's better to use a substitute like pumpkin instead.
A traditional sweet potato casserole generally has over 35 grams of carbs for a half cup serving. That's more than most people consume daily on a keto diet.
Some may argue that sweet potatoes contain healthy carbs because the glycemic index is lower and the fiber is higher than white potatoes. However, the net carb count is still high so it's best to avoid if you are watching carbs.
📚 Related recipes
Need some more ideas for the perfect side dish for your holiday table? Take a look at some of my other low-carb sides.
- Keto stuffing is an easy way to replace your box mix with a low-carb alternative!
- Cauliflower au gratin is made with a rich cheese sauce and added bacon for a dish that's sure to be a hit at any holiday gathering.
- Keto creamed spinach comes with a creamy cheese sauce that even picky eaters will enjoy.
- Green beans almondine is one of the easiest side dishes to make for holiday dinners.
- Keto ham casserole with cauliflower is a fantastic dish for using up your holiday leftovers!
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📖 Recipe
Low-Carb Keto Sweet Potato Casserole
Video
Ingredients
- 1 head of cauliflower about 1.2 pounds florets
- 1 cup mashed pumpkin
- ⅓ cup BochaSweet or preferred keto sweetener
- 3 eggs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons butter softened
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
Pecan Topping
- 3 tablespoons Brown Sweetener packed or other brown sugar substitute
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- 3 tablespoons almond flour
- 4 tablespoons butter softened
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Cut cauliflower into florets and steam until soft. (I steamed them in the Instant Pot for 5 minutes)
- Combine steamed cauliflower, pumpkin, sweetener, eggs, salt, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves in food processor or blend. Puree until smooth.
- Spread mashed cauliflower mixture into a 2-quart or 11x17 casserole dish.
Topping
- In medium bowl, mix together Sukrin Gold, coconut flour, almond flour, and pecans. Cut in butter.
- Sprinkle pecan mixture over cauliflower mixture.
- Bake at 325°F for 30 minutes or until topping has browned.
Notes
Low Carb Sweeteners | Keto Sweetener Conversion Chart
Nutrition
Additional Info
Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
Unauthorized use of this material without written permission from Lisa MarcAurele is strictly prohibited unless for personal offline purposes.
Single photos may be used, provided that full credit is given to LowCarbYum.com along with a link back to the original content.
First published on November 21, 2016. Post updated on December 3, 2021, with new photos and additional recipe information.
Sue
Can I use frozen cauliflower?
Lisa MarcAurele
Yes. Frozen cauliflower can be used in place of fresh.
MJ
I know this is an old post, but I hope these comments about the recipe not containing sweet potatoes are coming from people that didn't realize this was a low carb site. Anyway, thank you for posting this recipe, it's exactly what I was looking for! I was brainstorming how I could replace sweet potatoes ??(My Fav) Thought, well I could use cauli and sukrin, but something would still be missing.... Boom pumpkin! Thanks.
Shanna
Has anyone's tried making this the day before and reheating? Trying to save time tomorrow. But i know cauliflower gets a stronger flavor when it is leftover. I don't want the cauliflower flavor to take over the dish.
TIA
Lisa MarcAurele
I've made it before and reheated in a low temp oven.
Angel
Have yyou tried freezing this after baking, or perhaps just the puree for future use?
Lisa
I haven't, but it should freeze well as the puree freezes well.
Tammy
Could I use just a regular granular sweetener like pyure instead of gold, I can't find any low carb brown sugar in my area.
Lisa
You can. Or, you can make your own brown sweetener with a touch of blackstrap molasses.
Diane
Just wondering it says to use almond and coconut flour . Can you use just one or the other? What is the difference between the 2 other than the obvious?
Lisa
I like to use a mixture of the two, but all almond flour is okay too.
Kathy
I subbed baked acorn squash for the cauli and it was delicious!! Perfect for Thanksgiving. Thank you so much!
Lisa
I've never had acorn squash. Maybe I need to pick some up next time I'm at the grocery store.
Sandy
Hello Lisa, I have not tried this recipe yet. I am wondering why you would call this a sweet potato casserole when you don't use sweet potatoes. It is misleading to me. I see that you have answered to someone else that it is a mock sweet potato pie. Maybe you should use the word Mock. I understand why you use pumpkin and cauliflower, but it seems like it should have another name. I would like to try it with Sweet potatoes as well as your original recipe. Maybe this is being picky, but I just needed to ask. Thanks, Sandy
Lisa
It's a mock sweet potato recipe
Anne Tisdale
When she says mock that means fake, usually when people use the word “mock”, it means there may not be any of the original ingredient in it! It’s like when people say mock macaroni and cheese, and there’s no macaroni in it, probably cauliflower instead of macaroni! Or mock meatballs, means there’s no meat, it’s a nut or legume or whatever plant based substitute someone wants to use! When the word “mock”, is used it’s generally to recreate a healthier recipe, somewhat like the original! Hope that clarification helps!
Jodi
I think the OP meant that the title of the post was misleading because it did not have the word mock in it when this is clearly a mock recipe. I was a bit thrown off as well, this is not what I was looking for.
By the way, why all the exclamation points, Anne? It makes it seem like you're shouting.
Natalie
This looks awesome! In my household, we always made a brown sugar/strusel type topping for the casserole, never marshmallows. I actually really like marshmallows, but I don't care for them in that one instance. A brown sugar topping is ideal in my book and this looks like a great substitute!
Lisa
Sukrin Gold is the best low carb brown sugar sub I've found.
Dana
I added vanilla and it tasted good by itself without the topping!! Not much of a clove fan so I left that out. I also added a little more cinnamon and sweetener. I can't believe how good this is! Thanks!!
Lisa
Ooh! I think I'll try it that way. Sounds yummy!
Tina Wilkins
Thanks for much needed recipes!
Lisa
You're very welcome!
Veronica
I will definitely try this at Christmas!
Lisa
It's perfect for Christmas dinner!
Becky
This sounds so good! And veggies!
Lisa
I really didn't taste like veggies to me.
Cheryl
Hello, I stumbled across your mock sweet potato receipt searching for a topping for the real McCoy...they are both cooking side by side in the oven...the mock is better then the real, so excited to take both dishes to my mom's today, see which one everyone eats the most of. Low Carb for Thanksgiving all the way!!
Lisa
Thanks for giving it a try Cheryl!
VHM
I decided I would make the filling, cover it with foil, and top it and bake it off on Thanksgiving Day, as a time saver.
Not to be overly critical but I sure hope it tastes better after adding the topping and baking it, because right now it has very little flavor and is really bland, borderline not good. Even adding some additional spices didn't help.
Does the taste improve once baked? I sure hope so! Thanks.
Lisa
Mine tasted like a dessert, but that was with the topping.
txgrandma
This looks great and I look forward to trying it. I used to make a knock off of the Boston Market Sweet Potato Casserole and it was a great hit. This looks like a pretty good imitation and I think the family will like it. Thanks!
Ann Stewart
Why does it say sweet potato in the title & then call for pumpkin in the recipe?
Lisa
It's a mock sweet potato pie.
M
Hi Lisa,
The instructions mention almond butter but the ingredients do not, just almond flour.
Is that a mistake, or is it actually almond butter in the recipe instead of almond flour?
Thanks!
Lisa
It should be only almond flour not butter. I'll get the instructions fixed.