Soul Food Sweet Potato Pie
Southern Sweet Potato Pie made completely from scratch. Baked sweet potatoes give this holiday classic a rich flavor, paired perfectly with a buttery, flakey pie crust.
Servings 8 servings
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 lb sweet potatoes peeled & chopped
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 8 tbsp salted butter softened
Pie Crust
- 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup cold salted butter diced or shredded
- 1/4 cup butter flavored shortening
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp ice water
Instructions
Make the Pie Crust
- Sprinkle in 1 1/4 cup of all purpose flour into a large mixing bowl.
- Add in the cold butter, butter flavored shortening, 2 tbsp of sugar, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tsp of vanilla extract.
- Mix the ingredients until it forms into a dough, then wrap with plastic wrap and store the dough in the refrigerator.
Cook the Sweet Potatoes
- To boil: toss the peeled and chopped sweet potatoes into a medium-sized pot, and pour in about 4-6 cups of water. Place the pot over high heat, and boil the potatoes until they are fork-tender (about 15-20 minutes). Once the potatoes are done, drain the water, and let the potatoes cool completely.
- To bake: Pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork, then place on a baking sheet and cook—with the skin on—until fork-tender. The time really depends on how big they are, but it should take about 35 minutes. Scoop out the insides of the sweet potatoes into a large bowl, and allow them to cool completely.
Make the Sweet Potato Pie Filling
- Toss the cool sweet potatoes into a mixing bowl and whisk until the potatoes are nice and creamy.
- Sprinkle in 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, and 1 cup granulated sugar.
- Next, add two medium-sized eggs, 1/2 cup of evaporated milk, 1 tbsp vanilla extract, and 8 tbsp of softened butter.
- Whisk until the mixture is nice creamy and airy.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator, flatten it out, then place it into a 9 inch pie pan.
- Bake the pie shell for 7-10 minutes on 325 F.
- Remove the shell from the oven, then turn the heat up to 350 F.
- Start adding the sweet potato pie filling into the pie shell, and smooth it out.
- Bake the pie for 45-50 minutes.
- Let the pie cool until it is room temperature.
- Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Substitutions:
- If you are not a fan of ginger, you can leave it out. Or use equal parts lemon juice.
- You can use sweetened condensed milk or half-and-half in place of evaporated milk, but it may change the sweetness and consistency of the pie filling.
- You can use bourbon vanilla extract or plain vanilla extract.
- Light or dark brown sugar can be subbed for white sugar if desired.