Kevin Lee Jacobs

Gardening, Recipes & Home Décor Tips

My Best Sweet Potato Pie

066I wasn’t supposed to have a sweet potato-harvest this year. Not after the crop’s leaves were devoured by a woodchuck in early August. So imagine my surprise when Margarita, my garden helper, dug through the bed the other day, and turned up dozens and dozens of beta carotene-rich spuds! To celebrate, I made a pie.

041If you search the internet, you’ll find myriad recipes for sweet potato pie. I’ve tried a few, and found they were hideously heavy with pumpkin pie spices. A sweet potato has its own gorgeous flavor, so why try to mask it with allspice and cloves?

038My own version pays homage to the main ingredient: sweet potatoes. The pie is sweet but not too sweet, and the filling is dense, but not too dense. You’ll love it not only for dessert, but for breakfast, too.

Here’s the pornographic photographic step-by-step, followed by a printable recipe:

003First, grab some Pâte brisée sucrée dough (recipe below)…

004And roll it, on a lightly-floured surface,  into a 12-inch diameter circle.

008Line a 9-inch-diameter, 2-inch-deep pie plate with the dough, crimp the edges in some decorative way, and then pop the works into the freezer.

015Meanwhile, make the filling: Take 2 medium-size sweet potatoes (approximately 1 1/2 pounds)…

017And boil-steam them until perfectly tender — about 50 minutes. To boil-steam, put the potatoes in a heavy pot, add enough water to reach half-way up their sides, and then bring the water to a full boil. Then cover the pot, and reduce the heat to maintain a slow boil. Check the pot periodically to make sure the water hasn’t completely evaporated.

Note: You could, of course, cook the potatoes in the oven or microwave. But if you steam or boil-steam them, the skins will come off easily.

001When they are cool enough to handle, rub the tubers with a green and white tea towel (or, use a paper towel), and poof! — the skins will slip right off.

016Put the potatoes in a food processor, and process until smooth.

017Then add 4 tablespoons room-temperature butter, and process until incorporated — about 5 seconds.

018Add 3 large eggs, and process again.

019When necessary, scrape down the bowl.

020Also process into the works 1/2 cup granulated sugar…

0211/2 cup dark brown sugar…

0221/3 cup heavy cream…

026And 1 whole, honkin’ tablespoon of this stuff.

BUT KEVIN, WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN?! SINCERELY, KIM DAVIS.

Well, all-caps Kim, the tablespoon of bourbon probably won’t harm your children. You see, the alcohol will evaporate as the pie bakes, leaving behind a rich, warm essence of booze.

027Also blitz into the batter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract…

028And 1/4 teaspoon each of cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

031Tip this heavenly batter into the frozen pie shell, smoothing the top with a spatula.

038Bake on the center rack of a preheated 375°F oven for 10 minutes. Then immediately lower the temperature to 325°F, and bake until the pie is set — 50 minutes to 1 hour. The pie is done when a knife or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, or mostly-clean. If the crust hasn’t browned appreciably, just boost the heat to 375°F for the last 8-10 minutes of baking. Cool to room-temperature on a wire rack.

Ready to taste this beauty?

Let me cut a sensibly-sized (read: large) slice for you!

066A velvety texture, a savory-sweet taste, a buttery French pastry crust — there isn’t anything about about this pie that doesn’t make me want to eat it all day, every day. Enjoy it with a little whipped cream on top.

Think you’ll give this recipe a test-drive? You can let me know by leaving a comment. As always, I love hearing from you!

Here’s the printable:

Print
My Favorite Sweet Potato Pie

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Yield: 6-8 servings

My Favorite Sweet Potato Pie

This pie is perfect in every way. Sweet but not too sweet, and loaded with good sweet potato flavor. Enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or dessert!

Ingredients

  • For the crust:
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold, unsalted butter, diced
  • 1/3 cup ice water
  • For the filling:
  • 1 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes (about 2 medium)
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room-temperature
  • 3 large eggs
  • Granulated and dark-brown sugar, 1/2 cup of each
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon bourbon
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • Seasonings: cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt -- a 1/4 teaspoon of each

Instructions

  1. Making the crust -- Tip the flour, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Add the cold, diced butter, and pulse approximately 10 times just to break up the butter. Bits of butter should still be visible in the mix. Turn the machine on, quickly add the ice-water through the feed-tube, and then immediately stop the machine. Pour the crumbly mass onto your work-surface, gather it into a ball, and then flatten it into a disk. Wrap the disk in plastic, and chill for at least 30 minutes.
  2. Rolling out the dough and lining the pie plate -- On a lightly-floured surface, roll the dough into a 12-inch-diameter circle. Line a standard 9-inch pie plate with the dough, and crimp the edges. Pop the works into the freezer while you make the filling.
  3. Boil-Steaming the Sweet Potatoes -- Put the potatoes, unpeeled, in a heavy pot. Add just enough water to reach high-way up the sides of the tubers. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover the pot, and reduce the heat to maintain a slow boil. Steam until perfectly tender -- about 50 minutes. Remove the spuds from the pot, and let them cool slightly. Rub with a cloth or paper towel to remove skins.
  4. Making the filling -- Center the oven rack, and preheat the oven to 375°F. Drop the potatoes into the bowl of a food processor, and process until smooth. Then, one at a time, process in each of the following ingredients: the butter, eggs, sugars, cream, bourbon, vanilla, and seasonings.
  5. Assembling and baking the pie -- Scoop the sweet potato mixture into the frozen pie shell, and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake at 375°F for 10 minutes. Then lower the heat to 325°F, and continue baking until the filling is set and the crust colors -- 60-70 minutes. If the crust refuses to brown, increase oven temperature to 375°F for the last 8-10 minutes of baking. The pie is done when a knife or skewer inserted into the center comes out clean (or nearly clean). Cool to room-temperature on a wire rack.
  6. Serve as is, or decorate each slice with a dollop of softly-whipped cream. For further decoration, garnish the cream with a light dusting of nutmeg.
https://www.agardenforthehouse.com/2015/09/my-best-sweet-potato-pie/

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BY | 50 Comments

Comments

  1. 1

    My favorite way to eat a sweet pototoe is in the winter with a good bowl of gumbo. Puerto Rican sweet potatoes are naturally sweet and make the perfect side dish for gumbo.

  2. 2

    Something similar happened to my cousin: deer had eaten the leaves of their sweet potato vines, and they thought they didn’t get a crop of sweet potatoes. But they didn’t know that the tubers would be under the ground (which astounds me), and when they dug up the patch, yup, they had sweet potatoes!

  4. 4

    I am glad to see your sweet potatos made it. You are so right about most recipes tasting like pumpkin pie. I hadn’t actually considered any other way but now must try it with a different twist. This looks heavenly.

    On another note , one of my kids often looks over my shoulder when I am perusing your posts because he loves to spot Lily. I have been asked to point out to you that she hasn’t made an appearance in a few posts : )

  5. 5

    Also glad your sweet potato harvest thrived despite marauders. My leaves are still quite green so am holding off digging though this pie is tempting me! Looks fab! Kevin, how many slips did you plant to yield dozens and dozens?

  6. 6

    Kevin- agree with all the above reasons why sweet potato pie is not my favorite, but your version sounds wonderful! Will try. My favorite way to eat them is oven roasted with butter! Needs no added sugar. So you can see I’m not a fan of the marshmallow version 🙂

  7. 7

    Can’t wait to try this sweet potato pie recipe. My mom made the best one and it tasted just like sweet potatoes…not pumpkin, which most seem to these days. Will let you know my results. Thanks for the recipe.

  8. 8

    Hi badger gardener – Lily the Beagle will make an appearance in my next recipe. I promise!

    Hi Cary – I planted just 8 sweet potato slips. Still amazed at the harvest. Good luck with yours!

    HI Katie Zack – If you try the pie, let me know how it turns out for you. I was hooked after just one bite.

  9. 9

    Can’t wait to try this, but first, I need to know when you say “(1/4 teaspoon) of cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt”….do you mean 1/4 each? or a mix of all 3, and then a 1/4t of that?
    Thanks in advance:)

  11. 11

    Hi Kevin,

    Well I also dug my sweet potatoes this week and they are awesome. Can’t wait to give this pie a try. You know it will be much better because of the homegrown sweet potatoes. They just melt in your mouth because they are so fresh and almost no skin on them. Mmmmmmmmm. I can taste t now. Will let you know how good it is!

    Also dug my peanuts, an experiment for the grandkids so they could see how they grow and am still picking quite a few tomatoes. Have some roasting in the oven with balsamic vinegar, onions, garlic and seasonings to make more pasta sauce so I can have spaghetti squash with fresh homemade pasta sauce and then have room for my sweet potato pie. It just doesn’t get better than that!

  12. 12

    Hi Kevin, I really enjoy your blog. My question is are these considered yams or sweet potatoes ? Sweet potatoes are used are white Thank you

  13. 13

    My all-time favorite pie is sweet potato-pecan. Am going to use your sweet potato custard recipe next time for sure!

  14. 14

    Hi Dana – I used beta carotene-rich sweet potatoes (Ipomoea battatas) for this recipe. True yams (Dioscoreaceae) are usually only available at international markets. Yams are dry, starchy tubers that contain very little beta carotene. Hope this clears up the confusion!

  15. 15

    I am smiling happily that your sweet potato experiment has given you a thrill only devoted gardeners can understand–or will ever experience. I’m in a restructuring year, and as a result, didn’t grow sweets for the first time in many years. I will be picking some up from the grocery to make this Breakfast of Champions, with dairy whipped cream, of course, to assure it will be a healthy, well balanced meal. 🙂 Thanks for another great recipe, Kevin.

  17. 17

    You had me at bourbon! And no cloves or all spice sounds divine. I can not wait to try this recipe!

  18. 18

    Sounds delish – and I have another use for sweet potatoes that you will have to try next month!

    My granddaughter is a Halloween baby and Momma wanted to make an orange frosted cake. Since we stay away from food coloring, I thought I’d try a frosting with sweet potato. Was it yummy! It also was nicely orange. I just added well cooked whipped sweet potato to a vanilla frosting recipe.

    It goes great with a chocolate cake too.

  19. 19

    My father used to make the most heavenly sweet potato pies. The only spice he used was nutmeg. I have always thought using all the spices made sweet potatoe pies taste like pumpkin pies. If I were to follow your recipe and wished to omit all spices except the nutmeg, How much nutmeg should I use?

  20. 20

    TOUCHE’ on the capital letters remark to Kim Davis. %$^%$&^%[email protected]#$%

    I have to confess I have not grown Sweet Potatoes. My favorite way to use them is a Moosewood Cookbook recipe for Sweet Potato Oven Fries with flesh cut into matchstick shapes, drizzled and tossed repeatedly with EVOO, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper and baked in a single layer at 450 degrees for about 35 minutes, depending on the pan. Yummy and naturally sweet without any sugar. But they are meant to be a side dish, not a dessert.

    I like the looks of this pie and can easily be tempted to whip one up. You make it so easy. Thanks again.

  24. 24

    I purchased ornamental sweet potato vines merely for the contrasting pop of color, and they performed beautifully. BUT, . .I’ve become greedy— hoping they did more underground than above ground. It is much to expect from a $0.99 specimen.

  27. 27

    Printed a copy of the Sweet Potato Recipe, can’t wait to make it.

    For those who have small garden sweet potatoes can be grown in a large tub which I have done
    and it works out great.

    Thanks for Kevin for this wonderful new recipe.

  28. 28

    I will try this recipe….but I really wanted to comment on your “three ingredient peanut butter

    cookies”. These were PERFECT. So easy, so fast. Texture just right. Kevin, they were great.

    I’ll never use my old recipe again that had CRISCO, milk, brown sugar…..not needed. Thank

    you so much. Love you!

  29. 29

    Just waiting to dig up my sweet potatoes, when it stops raining here in Georgia I think this recipe is the winner for sure. Have made many sweet potato pies but never any with Bourbon can’t wait to make thanks for the recipe. Ellen from Georgia.

  30. 30

    This Sweet Potato Pie looks irresistible, even Mr Potato Head thinks so = ) Yesterday I made your Carrot-Ginger-Orange Soup, and it is so good. I used the regular sized carrots instead of the baby carrots, because I just prefer them. But that was a good suggestion to use the baby size carrots for saving time. I’m going to make this Sweet Potato Pie soon.

  31. 31

    This recipe sounds and looks delicious.
    I must tell you, the 3 Ingred PB Cookies are so easy. I thought I did something wrong when I saw I was to ‘roll little of dough balls’. I was shocked to see they didn’t stick to my hands, but did roll into balls. My 6 yr old granddaughter is coming this wk end from China and I think I’ll have her make some as they are so good.
    Also, I made the Basil & Parsley biscuits this morning. I rolled the dough into an oblong shape and cut them into strips then again sideways v.s. using a biscuit cutter. This makes nice square biscuits but there is less handling of the dough and it’s a short cut for lazy people like me.

  33. 33

    Great recipe! I have a huge sweet potato crop this year and was excited when you posted this, so I had to try it right away. I made it last night for some friends who came to dinner. It was delicious! And everyone wanted seconds. 🙂

  34. 34

    In a world overwhelmed by pumpkin everything this time of year, this was a wonderful bridge into those fall flavors without being the “same old same old”. Delicious sweet potato- which while similar to it’s orange fleshed squash cousin- makes a smoother, creamier filling (in my opinion) Then delicately sweetened and perfectly spiced, with a splash of good bourbon for good measure!! (And by now- you all know how I feel about Kevin’s pastry he makes for the crust!! Great even if it wasn’t filled!!) Thanks for sharing Kevin!!!

  36. 36

    Kevin you’ve done it again – another timely brilliant and beautiful recipe idea – the photos made me get out the mixer and sweet potatoes only making a wee few adjustments to the recipe by using orange flavored liquor, Grand Mariner instead of Kentucky Bourbon. maple syrup instead of vanilla, and ginger, mace and cinnamon for the spice mix.Towards the end of the baking time, I covered the crust so I could lightly brown the top of the filling using the broiler. Holy Sweet Potatoes- it tasted so much better than pumpkin pie and was so yummy we forgot all about the whipped cream!! Yes, wish also we could eat this heavenly pie every day – but, this one will be on our holiday dinner table for Thanksgiving and Christmas, also, on our breakfast table, likely, on our sneaking around for the last slice table, and in our dreams. THANK YOU KEVIN – YOU ARE THE BEST!!

  37. 37

    I love your simple recipes and read anything that arrives in my RSS from you. Any chance you would consider trying to bake the pie on the lower rack? I ask because I find pie crust for this type of pie never cooks properly on the bottom. I like my crust well done on the bottom, even golden if viewed through the bottom of a glass dish. Cooking on the lowest rack gives me a fully cooked crust. Keeping writing great posts on the fruits of your garden.

  38. 38

    Kevin, I love sweet potato pie! But I’ve always used my no-sugar flaky pie crust for it, never thought to use my pate sucree — must remedy that. And I agree, don’t turn it into pumpkin pie. I envy you your homegrown sweet potatoes!

  39. 39

    This pie was so delicious, I made a second one to take to dinner with friends. Rave reviews from everyone. And one friend claimed he didn’t even like sweet potatoes. SO DELICIOUS!

  40. 40

    I’ve preferred my old sweet potato pie recipe to anyone’s pumpkin pie for years and will probably try yours just in case it’s better! I let my pie filling be a bit on the “lumpy” side the way I like my mashed potatoes though!

  41. 41

    Kevin, any chance I could make this with a sweet yeast dough, like i used for an apple crumble cake. I only made one pie in my life and it was a giant hockey puck!
    Thanks

  42. 42

    I love sweet potato pie, sometimes with the marshmallows & most times w/o. This recipe sounds absolutely amazingly tasty. I can’t wait to try it, thank you so much for the recipe. I LOVE your blogs!

  43. 43

    Kevin,

    Where do you get your sweet potato cuttings? Do you sprout them from the ones that you purchase at the grocery store or farmers’ market or do you order them from a seed catalog?

  44. 44

    We LOVE sweet potato pie and I can’t wait to try this recipe! I agree that so many of the recipes hide the flavor of the sweet potatoes with spices. I’m making this for Thanksgiving.
    Love your blog!

  45. 45

    I have always made pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving but once again you have given us something different and WONDERFUL to try! I will absolutely make this for our feast! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your GREAT recipes and humor! By the way… WHERE is that Cookbook?

  46. 46

    Wow! Does that ever puff up. Looks and tastes wonderful.

    On a side note, I usually make my own crust ( using gingerale – good stuff ), but I tried yours, Kevin. It worked like a charm. Thanks for the two recipes in one.

    Have a Happy Thanksgiving Day. Don’t spend too much on Black Friday. 😉

    JR

  47. 47

    Would this recipe work if I replaced the Sweet Potato with an equivalent amount of Pumpkin? I hate using Evaporated Milk.

  48. 48

    Hi Selma H – Cookbook is being “shopped” by my agent. Hopefully good news at some point…

    Hi John – So glad the recipe worked out for you!

    Hi Edward Z – I’ve never tried this recipe with pumpkin, but if you do, please let me know how it works out for you. My guess? Could be delicious!

  50. 50

    Kevin, I keep coming back to this awesome recipe. Its a huge hit at my house. A perfect diversion for a (finally!) cool October morning.

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