Southern Sweet Potato Pie is the classic holiday pie from the South: baked sweet potatoes mashed smooth with butter, sugar and vanilla, loosened with milk and eggs, and baked in a flaky crust until the center is just set. This old-fashioned pie keeps the filling simple, with no spices, so the sweet potato comes through. It serves 8.
How to make it: Bake the sweet potatoes at 400°F until tender, then peel them. Mash them with soft butter, mix in the sugar, vanilla, milk and eggs, pour the filling into an unbaked crust and bake at 350°F for about 60 minutes, until the center no longer jiggles.
Why You’ll Love It
- Seven ingredients: sweet potatoes, butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs, milk and a crust.
- Silky filling: baked, mashed sweet potatoes give a smooth, creamy texture.
- No pre-baking: the filling goes straight into an unbaked crust.
- Make-ahead friendly: it can be baked a day early and chilled, which frees your oven on the holiday.
Ingredient Notes
Sweet potatoes: Three medium ones, baked in their skins and peeled. Pick firm potatoes with smooth skin, no bruises and deep orange flesh.
Butter: Half a cup, softened, so it mashes easily into the warm potatoes. Take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you start.
Sugar: One cup of granulated sugar. For a brown sugar pie, see the variations.
Milk: Half a cup of whole or evaporated milk. Heavy cream works too; skip lower-fat milk.
Eggs and vanilla: Two large eggs, beaten, and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract.
Pie crust: One 9-inch unbaked crust, homemade or store-bought.
Ingredients
- 3 medium sweet potatoes
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup milk, whole or evaporated
- 1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust
How to Make Southern Sweet Potato Pie
1. Bake the sweet potatoes. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Scrub the sweet potatoes, prick each one 4 to 5 times with a fork and bake them on a baking sheet for 45 to 50 minutes, until tender when pierced with a toothpick. Let them cool until easy to handle, then peel off the skins.
2. Make the filling. Lower the oven to 350°F. Mash the sweet potatoes with the butter until smooth. Mix in the sugar, then the vanilla, milk and eggs until well combined.
3. Bake the pie. Pour the filling into the unbaked pie crust. Bake about 60 minutes, until the center is just set and doesn’t jiggle when moved, and reaches 160°F.
4. Cool. Cool the pie on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature, or refrigerate it to serve later.
Common Sweet Potato Pie Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
Boiling the sweet potatoes. Boiled sweet potatoes take on too much water, and that water ends up in the filling and makes it soggy. Bake them in their skins instead; baked sweet potatoes give a creamier filling with a deeper flavor. If the oven is busy, the air fryer at 400°F for 35 to 40 minutes or the microwave for 8 to 10 minutes, pricked and flipped halfway, also works.
A stringy filling. Some sweet potatoes are stringier than others. Short, plump potatoes are the better buy, and if the baked flesh is stringy, pulse it in a food processor before you add the butter.
Using low-fat milk. Whole milk, evaporated milk or heavy cream keeps the filling rich. A lower-fat milk doesn’t give the same result.
Pulling it too early, or too late. The pie is done when the center is just set and doesn’t jiggle when you move the pan, or when a toothpick in the middle comes out clean. The filling may start to brown slightly around the edges. If the crust edge darkens before the center sets, cover it with a strip of foil for the rest of the bake.
Cutting it hot. Let the pie sit at least an hour before slicing. It is even better made a day ahead and chilled; take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before serving.
Tips for Success
Do I need to pre-bake the crust?
No. Pour the filling straight into the unbaked crust and bake it all together.
Should I use a masher or a mixer?
Either. A simple potato masher is enough to get the filling smooth, and an electric mixer works if you prefer.
How do I serve it?
Plain, or with whipped cream, a spoonful of toasted marshmallow fluff, ice cream or a drizzle of salted caramel sauce.
Variations
- Brown sugar pie: use 3/4 cup of light or dark brown sugar in place of the 1 cup of granulated sugar.
- Spiced brown sugar pie: mash 1 1/2 pounds of sweet potatoes (about 2 medium) with 1/4 cup of softened butter, then whisk in 3/4 cup of packed light brown sugar, 2 large eggs, 1/2 cup of evaporated milk, 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon of ginger and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Bake at 375°F for 40 to 45 minutes, until set in the middle, and cool at least 1 hour.
- Lighter, airy filling: cream the butter with brown sugar, add the sweet potato, egg yolks, cinnamon, ginger, vanilla and a little buttermilk, then fold in the egg whites beaten to soft peaks. This one bakes at 350°F for about 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 25 minutes.
Storage & Reheating
Once the pie has cooled, cover it and refrigerate it within 2 hours of baking. USDA FSIS says to eat leftovers within 3 to 4 days. To freeze, cover the cooled pie well with foil and freeze it for up to 3 months, then thaw it in the refrigerator overnight before slicing. Serve it chilled, or let slices sit out about 30 minutes first.
What to Serve With It
Sweet potato pie belongs on the holiday dessert table. If you love sweet potatoes, try Ruth’s Chris sweet potato casserole or sweet potatoes with marshmallows as a side. For more Southern desserts, there’s pecan pie dump cake, old fashioned Southern tea cakes, 3 ingredient apple pie cake and Southern peach crumb cake.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some common mistakes in sweet potato pie?
Boiling the potatoes, which waters down the filling; skipping the step for stringy potatoes; using low-fat milk; and slicing before it has set and cooled. The section above covers each one.
What are some tips for making a perfect Southern sweet potato pie?
Bake the sweet potatoes, use soft butter and whole or evaporated milk, bake until the center just stops jiggling, and give the pie time to cool, ideally overnight in the fridge.
Does sweet potato pie have to be refrigerated?
Yes. It has eggs and milk in the filling, so refrigerate it within 2 hours once it has cooled, and keep leftovers in the fridge.
Can I make sweet potato pie ahead of time?
Yes. Bake it a day ahead, let it cool, cover it and chill it. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Final Notes
Bake the sweet potatoes, mash them smooth and let the finished pie rest before you slice it. If you have a question or make this, tell me how it turned out in the comments.
Southern Sweet Potato Pie
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Ingredients
- 3 medium sweet potatoes
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1/2 cup milk whole or evaporated
- 1 9-inch unbaked pie crust
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Scrub the sweet potatoes, prick each one 4 to 5 times with a fork and bake them on a baking sheet for 45 to 50 minutes, until tender when pierced with a toothpick. Let them cool until easy to handle, then peel off the skins.
- Lower the oven to 350°F. Mash the sweet potatoes with the butter until smooth. Mix in the sugar, then the vanilla, milk and eggs until well combined.
- Pour the filling into the unbaked pie crust. Bake about 60 minutes, until the center is just set and doesn't jiggle when moved, and reaches 160°F.
- Cool the pie on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature, or refrigerate it to serve later.
