It's a testament to our love of sweet potatoes that despite having come through the great "weren't actually on the original Thanksgiving table" controversy (nor were regular potatoes, to be fair) and, half the time, are erroneously called "yams" (that's a whole other tuber, mainly grown in Africa, parts of Asia and the Caribbean), when it comes to the modern Thanksgiving dinner, you'd have to pry them from our sticky-with-marshmallow hands. That's because they fit in just right, riding the border between sweet and savory with aplomb, taking gravy like it was born to do so, and mingling with stuffing in the best possible way.

But there's more than one way to sweet potato. In fact, with so many options, you can play up your favorite qualities. Lean into the sweet with not only marshmallow options, but glazes and sweet crumbles, or play it down by going more savory (including one dish that studs it with bacon — yum). But don't leave them off your menu! They might not have been at the first Thanksgiving, but we sure don't want to experience one without them.

This casserole, from Tyler Florence, just sounds — we'll just say it — completely bonkers, at first glance. Honey? Bananas?? Yes, this dish definitely leans on the sweet. But the result is so irresistible in its sum of parts that it's surely to become a new classic for anyone who makes it.

Why should regular potatoes have all the twice-baked fun? Guy mashes the flesh with cayenne, nutmeg and cinnamon, along with some brown sugar and pecans, and tucks it back into the jackets for a Round 2 of baking. That top gets crispy and crunchy, sweet with some heat. Go ahead and dig out your favorite bites, or go at it with a knife and fork and just eat sliced cross-sections.

If you've got a lot of mashed stuff on the table already, this simple preparation can be a nice alternative. The chunks are roasted with olive oil and honey, then drizzled with more fresh oil once out of the oven. The flavor of the sweet potato really comes through, complemented rather than being outshined by the other ingredients.

"We're sneaking dessert in with the meal," says Trisha Yearwood, so you know which side this casserole comes down on. Though it is quite sweet, the fact that it's whipped and "souffled" makes every bite as light as air. But unlike a real souffle, this one is delicious hours or even days later.

This smoky, heat-laced dish from Bobby Flay has more in common with a gratin than a casserole. The thin slices of sweet potato are infused with a chipotle cream and baked until tender and totally absorbed together. It is so simple and so delicious, and will win over anyone who turns their noses up at the sweeter preparations.

These are surprising and a little hard to classify, and yet the result is sublime and about as sophisticated as a recipe with marshmallows could be. Thick slices of sweet potato are braised in a maple and chile flake-spiked broth until complete tender, also perfumed with some fresh thyme. They get marshmallow crowns and broiled, for a flavor and texture that's melt-in-the-mouth.

We love this super-chunky concoction from Guy, which gets an autumnal boost from apples and a textural party with whole pecans. He puts a not-small amount of whiskey in there to take the edge off the sweetness but layer in its own complex notes. This is fun to look at and fun to eat, and will still catch eyes on a loaded Thanksgiving table.

These twice-bakeds are just cute. But more than that, though they contain a lot of the elements of the classic sweet casserole, they are less sweet and more balanced, particularly if you eat all the goodies along with the skin. What's not to like?

Everyone needs just a really good mashed sweet potato recipe in their toolkit. This one, from Rachael Ray, uses the trick of including a banana to naturally underline the sweetness in the potatoes. A little nutmeg, along with some orange zest and plenty of freshly cracked pepper, keep things interesting.

Our test kitchen has eaten them all, and developed a version that they can say is the ultimate. The filling is silky and gets a little vanilla extract to play up the sweet; the topping is nutty and caramelly from the inclusion of brown sugar. We love a scoop for Thanksgiving dinner, and for some late-night snacking, and maybe even a little breakfast the next day...

There's no playing up the sweet at all in this casserole from Marcela Valladolid, and we're here for it. Just thick chunks of sweet potato mingling with garlic and oil, chipotle, oregano and cream. It's got depth and interest and still works perfectly with T-day dishes.

This salad from Trisha Yearwood calls to mind a traditional potato salad, dressed with mayo and chives and studded with crunchy bits of bell pepper and scallion. But since the chunks are sweet potato instead of regular, it tastes richer and more autumnal, and doubles as sweet potato side and salad. And you know the drill: A salad like this continues to improve over the next few days, so don't shed any tears if you have leftovers.

Sunny Anderson really brings the fun to this casserole, which feels like a larger-than-life version of the ones we grew up on. One unexpected, yet key, move, is to bake beneath a blanket of lemon slices, which contribute a bright acidity to the dish to keep it out of cloying territory. (They're removed before the next step.) The huge marshmallows make a real visual statement and get toasty brown in the oven.

We love this incredible idea from Kardea Brown that celebrates another Thanksgiving staple, corn. Polenta is infused with sweet potato for a side that has the best qualities of both. And just like ordinary polenta, this makes an ideal bed for both meat and gravy alike.

Zesty indeed, because the crumb topping on this gratin contains a surprising element: Gingersnaps. That heat, sweet and crunch really works here, with these delicate slices of sweet potato that become so tender from baking in the cream. A little maple syrup and cayenne punctuate the dish.

This just pairs sweet potato with bacon, and not much explanation is needed beyond that. But I'll continue. The roasted mash is also toasted again in the bacon drippings, so you get that infusion even in the bites that don't contain an actual chunk. This is a bacon-lover's dream come true. So, you know, all of us.

This hearty and generous casserole from Anne Burrell combines multiple layers with multiple sweet and savory notes. The sweet potatoes themselves mingle with dried apricots and orange zest. It's topped with an oaty crumble, which gets toasty and crunchy in the oven.

If you're up for something completely different, you might want to give this veggie salad from Geoffrey Zakarian a try. Though the sweet potato is diced and roasted, that's about where the usual ends. Here, it's paired with celery, onions and ras el hanout before being roasted, then tossed with scallions and raisins, grapes, pecans and pomegranate, along with some oil and sherry vinegar. You'll find that it's a very refreshing counterpoint to all the other dishes on the table.