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Delight your family with a comfort food classic: my Southern Sweet Potato Pie Recipe! This sweet, creamy, and comforting potato pie comes together in a few simple steps and is the perfect addition to any holiday meal. It's a delicious Thanksgiving pie recipe you're sure to love!
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Easy Sweet Potato Pie Recipe
Living in Florida, I'm a huge fan of classic Southern cooking! From cabbage casserole to hush puppies, I love it all. And when it comes to comfort food, nothing beats a good old-fashioned Southern Sweet Potato Pie!
That's why I knew I had to share this recipe with you. I've made more sweet potato pies than I can count, using everything from evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and even heavy cream. I think I've finally made the best sweet potato pie recipe! It's rich, creamy, sweet, and comforting, with the perfect balance of flavors and spices.
Better yet, it's so easy to make! My easy sweet potato pie recipe is fuss-free with simple steps. You can use premade or homemade pie dough to best fit your busy schedule, and anything from a whisk, electric mixer, stand mixer, or even food processor. It's the perfect treat for any season, but especially the holidays!
Sweet Potato Pie vs Pumpkin Pie
When you look at the ingredients for sweet potato pie, they might look a little familiar. This is because sweet potato pie and pumpkin pie are very similar recipes and have a lot in common! The main difference is the flavor. Sweet potato pie recipes have a more caramelized, rich flavor and use less spices. It's a delicious southern comfort food recipe you have got to try!
Sweet Potato Pie Ingredients
- Pie crust: Try my homemade pie crust included with my deep dish apple pie, or use store-bought pie crust!
- Sweet potatoes: Fresh sweet potatoes will roast the best. Try to find medium-sized ones for the best texture!
- Salted butter: Salted butter skips the need to add your own salt, but you can also use unsalted butter and salt.
- Brown sugar: Brown sugar is essential for the best flavor in this pie. I'm using light brown sugar.
- Vanilla extract: You can also use vanilla paste.
- Eggs: Farm eggs will have the richest flavor, if you can find them!
- Milk: Any % milk will work, but whole milk is the richest and has the best overall texture due to the fat content.
- Spices: Ground nutmeg and ground cinnamon are both used in the pie filling. Optionally, you can also use ground ginger!
For an even more fragrantly spiced pie, use my homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice!
How to Make Sweet Potato Pie
- Preheat the oven to 400°F, and prepare a pie crust. Scrub the sweet potatoes, pierce them a few times with a fork, and set them on a lined baking sheet.
- Bake the sweet potatoes 1 hour, or until fork tender and soft. Don't boil them; they'll get too wet and lose their flavor!
- Remove the sweet potatoes to let them cool, then peel them and place the flesh in a large bowl.
- Reduce the oven to 400°F. In the bowl with the sweet potatoes, add the butter, then mash or blend with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add in the sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and mix until well combined.
- Finally, add in the vanilla, milk, and eggs, and mix until as smooth as possible. (This can be done in a food processor for easy mixing!)
- Pour the mixture into a prepared pie crust, making sure to spread it out evenly. Place in the oven, uncovered, and bake for 1 hour or until set.
- Let cool to room temperature, slice, and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a drizzle of caramel sauce, and whipped cream!
Homemade Sweet Potato Pie Tips
- You can use graham cracker crusts, but be warned they're much sweeter than regular pie crust, so you may need to cut back on the sugar in the filling.
- Medium or small sweet potatoes will cook the most evenly and turn out the softest. Large sweet potatoes can sometimes turn out stringy or woody.
- To speed up the process even more, try cooking the sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot! My recipe for Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes cooks perfectly fluffy, soft sweet potatoes in under half an hour.
Recipe for Sweet Potato Pie Substitutions
- Brown Sugar: Brown sugar can be substituted for an equal amount of white sugar plus 1 teaspoon molasses.
- Sweet Potatoes: If you don't have fresh or don't have time to roast your own, you can also use canned, cooked sweet potato flesh. Just make sure they're plain and haven't been sweetened already.
- Milk: I prefer this pie with regular milk as it allows you to control the level of sweetness. However, you can also use evaporated milk for an even thicker consistency.
- Dairy-Free/Vegan: To make vegan sweet potato pie, replace the milk and butter with 1 cup of full fat coconut milk and add 3 Tablespoons of cornstarch.
- Gluten Free: To make gluten free sweet potato pie, just replace the crust with your favorite gluten free pie crust. Make sure to check the instructions to see if it needs to be par-baked.
Potato Pie FAQ
Yes! Sweet potato pie can easily be made with canned sweet potatoes. Just make sure they're plain, without any added sugar, or else the pie can turn out over-sweetened.
Pies are perfect make-ahead desserts! Most pies hold up well in the fridge, and sweet potato pie is no exception. You can also prepare the filling ahead of time and freeze or chill it until ready to use, then place it in a crust and bake it fresh. See below for freezing tips.
A classic pie crust will be best for this pie, as it's sturdy enough to hold the sweet potato pie filling. You can make your own homemade pie crust, or use a store-bought pie crust. You'll only need one crust for this recipe as it does not have a lid of crust.
How to Store Sweet Potato Pie
- Refrigerator: Leftover pie can be covered in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and placed in the fridge for 4-5 days. It's delicious chilled!
- Freezer: You can absolutely freeze sweet potato pie, but be warned the texture may be slightly changed due to the milk and egg content. Wrap the pie tightly in plastic wrap after it cools, then place it in the freezer for up to three months.
- Thawing and Reheating: This pie tastes delicious served chilled, much like pumpkin pie. To thaw a frozen pie, place it in the fridge overnight.
Dessert Pie Recipes
Love sweet potatoes? Try my Southern Sweet Potato Casserole next!
If you enjoyed the recipe, leave a comment and a rating below!
Southern Sweet Potato Pie Recipe
Equipment
- Pie pan
- Blender, food processor, whisk, or hand mixer
Ingredients
- 1 Pie crust - pre-made or home-made
- 3 medium Sweet potatoes
- 1 stick Salted butter - softened
- 1 cup Brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
- 2 large Eggs
- ½ cup Milk
- ½ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F, and prepare a pie crust. Scrub the sweet potatoes, pierce them a few times with a fork, and set them on a lined baking sheet.3 medium Sweet potatoes
- Bake the sweet potatoes 1 hour, or until pierced easily with a fork and soft.
- Remove the sweet potatoes to let them cool, then peel them and place the flesh in a large bowl.
- Reduce the oven to 400°F. In the bowl with the sweet potatoes, add the butter, then mash or blend with a hand mixer until smooth.1 stick Salted butter
- Add in the sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and mix until well combined.1 cup Brown sugar,½ teaspoon Nutmeg,½ teaspoon Cinnamon
- Finally, add in the vanilla, milk, and eggs, and mix until as smooth as possible. (This can be done in a food processor for easy mixing!)2 teaspoons Vanilla extract,2 large Eggs,½ cup Milk
- Pour the mixture into a pie crust, making sure to spread it out evenly. Place in the oven, uncovered, and bake for 1 hour or until set.1 Pie crust
- Let cool completely, slice, and serve with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream!
Notes
-
- You can use graham cracker crusts, but be warned they're much sweeter than regular pie crust, so you may need to cut back on the sugar in the filling.
-
- Medium or small sweet potatoes will cook the most evenly and turn out the softest. Large sweet potatoes can sometimes turn out stringy or woody.
-
- To speed up the process even more, try cooking the sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot! My recipe for Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes cooks perfectly fluffy, soft sweet potatoes in under half an hour.
-
- Brown Sugar: Brown sugar can be substituted for an equal amount of white sugar plus 1 teaspoon molasses.
-
- Sweet Potatoes: If you don't have fresh or don't have time to roast your own, you can also use canned, cooked sweet potato flesh. Just make sure they're plain and haven't been sweetened already.
-
- Milk: I prefer this pie with regular milk as it allows you to control the level of sweetness. However, you can also use evaporated milk for an even thicker consistency.
-
- Dairy-Free: To make vegan sweet potato pie, replace the milk and butter with 1 cup of full fat coconut milk and add 3 Tablespoons of cornstarch.
-
- Gluten Free: To make gluten free sweet potato pie, just replace the crust with your favorite gluten free pie crust. Make sure to check the instructions to see if it needs to be par-baked.
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