Candied Sweet Potatoes
These old-fashioned candied sweet potatoes come straight from my grandma’s 1940s cookbook, and they’re baked in a buttery syrup of sugar, light corn syrup, and cinnamon until they’re tender and glossy. There are no marshmallows and no boiling required, just a few simple ingredients and a little basting while they bake. They’re the perfect sweet side dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas dinner, or any time you want a taste of the holidays!
Servings 10
Ingredients
- 6 Sweet Potatoes medium
- ½ Cup Sugar
- ¼ Cup Light Corn Syrup
- 2 Tablespoons Butter
- 1½ Cups Water
- Pinch Salt
- Cinnamon to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉.
- Grease a 9"x13" dish and set aside.
- Peel the sweet potatoes.
- Cut in half lengthwise.
- Place in 9"x13" greased baking dish.
- Add sugar, light corn syrup, butter, water, and salt.
- Sprinkle with cinnamon to taste.
- Bake at 400℉ for 40-60 minutes or until tender.
- Baste every 15 minutes so the sweet potatoes don't dry out.
- Serve hot.
Notes
Helpful Tips
- Pick sweet potatoes that are close in size. If some are huge and some are skinny, the small ones will be mushy before the big ones are tender. Matching sizes means everything is done at the same time.
- Go by fit, not just pan size. Grandma’s recipe calls for a 9x13 dish and 6 medium sweet potatoes. Mine were bigger, so only 5 fit in my 10x14! You want them in a single layer, snug but not stacked, so every piece sits in that syrup.
- Peel and cut them ahead of time. If you’re juggling a lot of dishes on Thanksgiving, peel and halve the sweet potatoes earlier in the day. Keep them in a bowl of cold water in the fridge so they don’t turn brown, then pat them dry before they go in the dish.
- Set your dish on a baking sheet or cover the top. That syrup can bubble up pretty good at 400°F. A sheet pan underneath saves you from scrubbing burnt sugar off the bottom of your oven.
- Don’t skip the basting! Grandma says to baste frequently, and she’s right. Every 15 minutes or so, spoon that syrup over the tops. That’s what gives them their shiny, candied finish instead of dry tops.
- Watch the syrup toward the end. If it’s cooking down too fast and starting to get dark, add a splash of water. If the potatoes are tender but the syrup is still thin, give it another 5 to 10 minutes so it can thicken up.
- Test with a fork. They’re done when a fork slides right in with no resistance. White sweet potatoes like the ones I used are a little firmer, so they may need closer to the full 60 minutes.
- Spoon the syrup over before serving. Right when they come out of the oven, give them one last basting so every piece is glossy when it hits the table. Serve them hot, just like Grandma’s recipe says!