Sweet Potato Pie

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By: Diana Posted: 11/4/21 Updated: 8/28/22

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This homemade Sweet Potato Pie is the perfect holiday dessert! A sweet, creamy filling inside of a flaky, buttery crust is topped with whipped cream. You won’t want to skip this traditional Southern recipe.

Sweet Potato Slice on a white plate with a fork, and the whole pie in the pie dish in the background

While you may think that Pumpkin pie is the most traditional dessert to serve on Thanksgiving, I urge you to consider trying Sweet Potato Pie instead. While the two are similar, Sweet Potato Pie has some specific advantages, and is just as delicious as any other pie you could make.

You should also try Oatmeal Pie, Pumpkin Pie, and Pecan Pie this holiday season. Your family will be so glad you found these traditional recipes!

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

Silky Smooth Filling: It’s amazing that a potato can turn into this smooth, silky, decadent dessert! Sweet potatoes mash up perfectly to create the smoothest pie filling, that’s also firm and sturdy.
Fall Flavors: Cinnamon and Nutmeg make this pie an obvious fall dessert. We’re adding just enough spice to make sweet potato pie delicious, but not so much that it overwhelms.
Traditional Southern Comfort Food: If you’re from the South, you know what I’m talking about, and if you aren’t, you are in for a treat! Southern food is just delicious.

Key Ingredients

Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

Sweet Potatoes: The main ingredient is, of course, fresh sweet potatoes. We’ll boil them to bring out the perfect texture and sweet flavor. You need 3 medium sized potatoes equaling 1 ¾ pounds total.
Pie Crust: A delicious pie must start with an amazing crust! My All Butter Pie Crust is flaky, buttery, and perfect for sweet potato pie. You can use your own pie crust recipe, or pre-made pie crust dough that you can buy from the store.
Spices: For the best warm fall flavor, this pie needs a bit of cinnamon and nutmeg. A pinch of salt will elevate these flavors.
Sugar: Sweet potatoes are sweet on their own, but not quite sweet enough for dessert. Sugar brings them to the perfect level for a perfect pie.
Egg: Sweet potato pie is a custard pie, and uses an egg to hold everything together and turn the liquid potato puree into a smooth, solid pie.
Baking Powder: Added to the filling mixed with a little bit of milk, baking soda makes the sweet potato pie filling airy and fluffy.
Vanilla Extract: A good quality vanilla extract will really bring out all of the amazing flavors in this pie.

How to Make Sweet Potato Pie

Collage of four images showing how to make potato pie filling

Boil Potatoes: To a large saucepan, add the peeled and cubed sweet potato chunks and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until fork tender.
Prep Crust: Meanwhile, roll out the pie crust into a 9 inch pie dish. Pinch and crimp the edges. Place in the fridge as you prepare the sweet potato filling. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
Mash Sweet Potatoes: Remove the sweet potatoes from the heat, drain them, and add butter. Using a potato masher or a potato ricer, mash the potatoes until there are no large chunks. You should bet about 2 and a half cups of mashed sweet potatoes.
Make Filling: Add sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to the sweet potatoes and mix to combine. Next add the egg and vanilla extract, and mix to combine. Then mix the baking powder with milk, and add this to the sweet potato mixture. The filling should be smooth and velvety.

Tip!

Let the sweet potato mash cool down a bit before making the filling, otherwise the heat of the potatoes will scramble the egg!

Bake: Pour the mixture into the pie crust, and bake in the oven for about 50 minutes. The pie should be just slightly jiggly in the center.
Cool: Once done baking, place the pie on a wire rack and allow it to rest for at least two hours prior to serving with whipped cream.

Sliced sweet potato pie in a pie dish, topped with whipped cream stars

Sweet Potato Pie Tips

Boil extra sweet potatoes. Use the extras as a side dish for a simple Chicken Dinner tonight.
Measure the potatoes. You want to have 2 ½ cups of mashed sweet potatoes. Adding too much or not enough to the filling could keep it from setting properly or it could overflow the crust! Use a measuring cup to measure the potatoes after you’ve mashed them.
Consider Ricing: Using a potato ricer creates sweet potato filling with a lighter texture since you aren’t compressing the potatoes as much. If you have a ricer, this is definitely the time to use it.
Make a Smooth Filling. Small lumps of potato in the filling aren’t a huge deal, but you can strain the filling mixture using a sieve to remove them so that your pie is silky and lump free.
Let it rest. Sweet potato pie needs to cool down completely before you cut into it. Give it at least two hours at room temperature to set.

Best Toppings for Sweet Potato Pie

Make a simple whipped cream, buy some canned whipped cream, or pull out the cool whip to top this pie with something creamy.

Roasted pecans are delicious on top of sweet potato pie, as is toasted coconut.

Taking a slice of sweet potato pie from the pie dish

What to Serve with Sweet Potato Pie

Other Pies: Sometimes a pie is great on its own, but one pie is never as good as multiple pies! Go here to see all of my pie recipes, or try making my Pumpkin Pie, Cherry Pie, or Peach Pie. Feeding a crowd? Make a pumpkin slab pie so everyone gets a slice!

Make it for Thanksgiving: Sweet Potato Pie is perfect for your Thanksgiving table. While you’re planning, check out all of my Thanksgiving recipes for turkey, sides, and desserts.

Have it After Dinner: Pie doesn’t need to be saved for special occasions. Make this pie ahead of time and enjoy it after a nice hearty family dinner, like Cream of Mushroom Chicken or my favorite Meatloaf recipe.

FAQs

How to Store Sweet Potato Pie?

Store this pie in the fridge once it’s cooled, it will keep for 3 days. You can freeze this pie, well wrapped, for up to two months. The texture of the pie will change a bit, but it will still be delicious.

Is sweet potato pie a southern thing?

Absolutely. The origins of sweet potato pie lie in the Southern United States. We can give credit for using sweet potatoes in dessert recipes to cooks all over the south in the early years of the US.
Sweet potatoes are easier to grow in the south, while pumpkins grow more easily in the Northern states. This may be why you’ll notice that Pumpkin pie is more popular in some regions and sweet potato pie is in others.

Do I blind bake the crust for sweet potato pie?

Blind baking the pie crust isn’t necessary for sweet potato pie, since the filling needs 50 minutes to cook, the crust will cook at the same time.

When is Sweet Potato Pie done?

When the pie is done, you should be able to wiggle the pan, and the center of the pie will only jiggle a little bit. If you’d prefer a method that’s a bit more scientific than my “jiggle meter”, then use a thermometer to ensure that the center of the pie is at least 175°F/80°C.

Can I make sweet potato pie with canned yams?

You can, but I really don’t recommend it. The texture of the pie will be much different, and the flavor will change as well. Be sure to taste your canned yams, as they are typically sweetened. Reduce the sugar in the recipe if needed.

Can you leave sweet potato pie out overnight?

Don’t leave your cooked pie on the counter overnight. Store sweet potato pie in the fridge after it has cooled down. It is a custard pie, and needs to stay refrigerated in order to be safe to eat. You can remove it from the fridge about an hour before serving if you’d like it to be at room temperature.