American🍰 Sweets & drinks

Classic Southern Sweet Potato Pie

Name: Classic Southern Sweet Potato Pie
Total time: 2 h 16 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 lb sweet potatoes; pie crust (homemade or store-bought frozen); ¾ cups granulated sugar; 2 large eggs, room temperature; 1 cup evaporated or whole milk; 2 tsp vanilla extract; ¾ tsp ground cinnamon; 1 tsp ground ginger; ¼ tsp ground nutmeg; a pinch salt

⏱ 136 min

A traditional Southern-style sweet potato pie perfect for Thanksgiving or holiday dining. Made with simple ingredients and warm autumn spices, the filling is creamy, dense, and flavorful. If you love pumpkin pie, you'll adore this sweet potato version—it uses similar ingredients but sweet potatoes are sweeter than pumpkins, creating a sweeter, lighter pie filling.

Adapted from a video by Preppy Kitchen

The BEST Sweet Potato Pie Recipe

Watch on YouTube

Ingredients

sweet potatoes2 lb
pie crust (homemade or store-bought frozen)Homemade crust should be frozen in advance; store-bought crust is ready to use
granulated sugar¾ cups
large eggs, room temperature2
evaporated or whole milk1 cup
vanilla extract2 tsp
ground cinnamon¾ tsp
ground ginger1 tsp
ground nutmeg¼ tsp

Steps

▶ Tap a timecode to jump to roughly that moment in the video.

1
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2
Take 2 lbs of sweet potatoes, pierce them with a fork, and place them on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for about 1 hour until very tender. Do not boil them as this makes a soggy, diluted filling; roasting concentrates the flavor.
3
Allow the baked sweet potatoes to cool for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the pie crust. Choose between a store-bought frozen crust or homemade butter crust. Set the oven to 400°F for store-bought crust, or 425°F for homemade crust.
4
For homemade crust, line the bottom with parchment paper, especially if using a ceramic pie dish. Add baking weights or dried beans on top. Cover the edges with triple-layer foil to prevent darkening. Blind bake for 20 minutes.
5
Remove the crust from the oven and confirm the oven temperature is set to 400°F. Remove the parchment paper and baking weights. The crust should be crisp on the outside.
6
Once cooled, peel the sweet potatoes and place them in a food processor. Pulse until smooth and creamy to remove stringy fibers and achieve a silky texture.
7
Transfer the blended sweet potato mixture (about 2½ cups) to a large bowl and add ¾ cup of granulated sugar.
8
Add 2 room-temperature eggs and mix well.
9
Pour in 1 cup of evaporated or whole milk and mix well.
10
Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract for flavor depth.
11
Add spices: ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, and ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg. Optional: add dark rum or bourbon for holiday flavor; the alcohol will burn off during baking.
12
Whisk the mixture gently until smooth with no lumps. Whisk slowly to avoid incorporating too much air, which can cause cracking and a less creamy texture during baking. A pinch of salt is optional for flavor contrast.
13
Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust. Give it a gentle shimmy and smooth the top slightly with a spatula for even distribution.
14
Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350°F and bake for an additional 40 minutes or until puffed with just a slight wobble in the center.
15
Allow the pie to cool to room temperature, then serve with whipped cream.

Classic Southern Sweet Potato Pie

Ingredients

Steps

More like this