My authentic southern sweet potato pie has been a Preppy Kitchen favorite since I first published it in 2019! The filling comes together easily with creamy sweet potatoes, eggs, and a few key fall spices. Roasting the sweet potatoes is a must to bring out their natural sweetness with incredible caramelization that you just can’t achieve with boiling! I’ve retested this recipe using both mashed and pureed sweet potatoes to show you why the processing method matters: Mashing will yield a chunkier filling, while pureeing results in a totally smooth, uniform pie filling.
One reader says: “I decided to try this recipe, and my family loved it. It is not too sweet and delicious. I made the first pie and it looked so good that I made a second one. This pie was so easy to make. I used brown sugar and 2% milk and it was delicious.” ★★★★★
Table of Contents
- Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Roasting vs Boiling Sweet Potatoes— Which Is Best?
- Puree The Sweet Potatoes For the Smoothest Filling
- Should I Blind Bake The Pie Crust?
- Variations
- Pro Tips For The Best Sweet Potato Pie
- How To Make Sweet Potato Pie
- Make-Ahead and Storage
- FAQs & Troubleshooting
- More Holiday Dessert Recipes To Try
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
These are the main ingredients you need to make sweet potato pie. You can find the full list of simple ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.
Sweet potatoes — use sweet potato varieties with orange flesh, such as red garnet, Beauregard, or jewel sweet potatoes. These varieties are a bit sweeter and moister in comparison to white or purple sweet potatoes, which are more starchy. Their deep orange flesh also makes for an eye-catching pie and a great substitute for those who don’t love pumpkin pie. You may also see sweet potatoes called yams at your local grocery store if you’re in the US. While true yams are actually a completely different root vegetable, in the US, sweet potatoes are often labeled yams, and you’ll find them in the fresh produce section at the store.
Sugar — I use granulated sugar (also called white sugar), but you can swap it for light brown sugar for subtle molasses notes in the pie filling.
Milk — both evaporated milk and whole milk work to make the custardy filling, but for a richer filling, you can swap it for half and half or cream.
Eggs — eggs are essential to help the filling set, as the protein in the eggs gives the sweet potato mixture structure as it bakes. This ensures the pie slices beautifully and has a custardy texture.
Spices — a cozy trio of ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg pairs well with vanilla extract to infuse this pie with autumnal flavor. You can swap this for 1½ to 2 teaspoons of pre-made pumpkin pie spice if you like.
Pie crust — if following my favorite pie crust recipe, you’ll end up making two 9-inch pie crusts’ worth of dough. You can tightly wrap and freeze one disc of dough for up to 3 months — just thaw it in the fridge for 24 hours before using. Roll out the pie dough, fill the pie pan, and crimp the edge as desired.
Roasting vs Boiling Sweet Potatoes— Which Is Best?
After extensive testing, I found that roasting is best because it caramelizes the natural sugars in the yams and deepens their flavor. Roasting also allows some moisture to evaporate from the potatoes, resulting in very tender flesh with a concentrated flavor. Once roasted, they become very creamy when mashed or pureed. See my recipe for baked sweet potatoes for more information on how to roast them.
Boiling is a quicker method that will yield tender sweet potatoes, but it will also add moisture to the potatoes, causing them to become a bit waterlogged. This can cause a runny sweet potato pie filling that doesn’t set properly. I also find that boiled sweet potatoes just don’t taste as good. Their flavor becomes diluted instead of deep and rich — the sugar in the yams never has a chance to caramelize, and some of it actually leaches out into the water!
Puree The Sweet Potatoes For the Smoothest Filling
Use an electric hand mixer or a food processor to puree or blend the sweet potatoes to a smooth consistency. Using a fork or potato masher doesn’t quite do the trick here, and you’ll likely end up with a chunky filling instead of a smooth, uniform custardy filling. Either option will taste phenomenal— it just depends on what look and texture you are going for. You can see the difference between a mashed and pureed filling in the image below.
Should I Blind Bake The Pie Crust?
If using a homemade pie dough, I recommend you blind-bake the crust for a crisp and flaky crust. To blind bake, once the dough is crimped, freeze it for 20 minutes. Then line it with parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Bake for 20 minutes at 425°F. Remove the parchment and weights and let cool while proceeding with the filling in Step 5. See my post on how to blind bake a pie crust for more details.
If you use a store-bought pie crust, there’s no need to par-bake it. Store-bought shells have less moisture than homemade, as well as other types of fat, so they can still bake up crisp without blind baking. You’ll bake the pie for almost an hour in the bottom third of the oven, which is more than enough time to cook the bottom so it stays crisp (no dreaded soggy bottoms here!).
Variations
Here are a few simple ways to change your sweet potato pie for dietary restrictions and different flavor options.
- Gluten-free crust: You can make your favorite gluten-free pie crust, or simply grab a store-bought gluten-free shell.
- Add a liquor to the filling: Add up to two tablespoons of bourbon or rum to the sweet potato filling. The alcohol will mostly evaporate in the oven and leave behind its flavorings, such as notes of vanilla and caramel.
- Use other flavorings: Add a pinch of salt to the filling to enhance the spices and sweetness of the sweet potatoes. You can also add ¼ teaspoon allspice or ⅛ teaspoon cloves for added depth. For a citrusy twist, add the zest of one orange to the other filling ingredients.
Pro Tips For The Best Sweet Potato Pie
This recipe makes enough filling to fill a standard pie pan (1½-2″ deep). If using a shallow pan or pre-made frozen crust (about 1″ deep), you will have a bit extra, or you can fill two shallow pie crusts.
Don’t forget to move your oven rack into the bottom third of the oven. Baking the pie in the bottom third of the oven helps prevent a soggy bottom because it’s closer to an area of concentrated heat. The crust will brown nicely on the bottom, and the top won’t get too dark since it’s closer to the center of the oven.
How To Make Sweet Potato Pie
Below, I’ve highlighted portions of the recipe in step-by-step process images along with instructions for making homemade sweet potato pie. You can find the full set of instructions in the recipe card below.
1. Clean the sweet potatoes and pierce them all over with the tip of a knife. Arrange them on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake them at 375°F for 1 hour or until very tender, then allow the baked sweet potatoes to cool for at least 30 minutes before peeling them. Don’t try to peel them immediately — they will be very hot!
2. Puree the sweet potatoes in the bowl of a food processor.
3. Meanwhile, increase the oven temperature to 400°F and arrange the oven rack in the bottom third of the oven. Add the pureed sweet potato to a large bowl along with the sugar and milk.
4. Then add the eggs and all the spices (including vanilla extract).
5. Whisk well to combine.
6. Pour the sweet potato pie filling into the prepared pie shell. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes before reducing the temperature to 350°F. Bake for another 40 or so minutes, until the filling puffs up and just barely wobbles. Let the pie cool completely on a wire rack before serving to allow the custardy filling to set properly.
Sweet Potato Pie Recipe
Video
Equipment
- Baking Sheet
- Foil
- 9-inch pie pan
- mixing bowl
- Wire cooling rack
Ingredients
- 2 pounds whole sweet potatoes (900g)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (150g)
- 1 cup 1 cup evaporated milk or whole milk (240mL)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust*
- whipped cream to serve
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
- Pierce the sweet potatoes in several places with the tip of a knife and place them on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 1 hour or until very soft and the skin wrinkles when pressed. Remove from the oven and let cool for at least 30 minutes. Peel, discard the skins, and mash the sweet potatoes in a large bowl or puree in a food processor for a smoother filling. (Should yield about 2½ cups.)
- Increase the oven temperature to 400°F. Position the oven rack in the bottom third. (If using a homemade crust, see notes about blind baking.)
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the roasted sweet potato, sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk until well combined. Pour into the pie crust.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and continue baking for 40 minutes or until the filling is puffed and the center barely wobbles when gently shaken. Let cool completely on a wire rack. The pie can be served at room temperature or refrigerated for up to 24 hours before serving. Serve with whipped cream, if desired. Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Using a homemade crust? I recommend blind baking it first to ensure a crisp bottom crust. You can follow the instructions listed previously in this post under the section “Should I Blind Bake the Crust?”
- If the edges of the crust brown too quickly while baking, use a pie shield. You can wrap strips of foil around the edge of the pie or lay a pie crust shield on top. Just be sure the filling stays uncovered so it bakes properly.
- Serving: I like to top my slice of pie with homemade whipped cream. However, vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, Cool Whip, and marshmallow fluff are popular alternatives.
- Updated Version: I updated this recipe a few years ago to make a more classic sweet potato pie. An older version of this recipe included orange zest in the filling. If you would like to add that, zest 1 large orange and whisk it into the filling with all of the other ingredients. This adds a delicious citrus flavor that complements the sweet potatoes very well.
Nutrition
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make ahead: You can bake and puree the sweet potatoes up to 3 days ahead of time, and refrigerate them in an airtight container. You can also fully bake sweet potato pie and keep it for 1 day at room temperature, or refrigerate it for up to 2 days before serving chilled.
Storage: Any leftover sweet potato pie should be tightly covered and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Don’t leave it uncovered, as the sweet potato filling can absorb scents from the fridge.
Freezing: This pie (and the sweet potato filling by itself) is freezer-friendly! Once baked and cooled to room temperature, you can freeze the pie for up to 3 months. Wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and foil before freezing. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature before serving. To freeze the pie filling, store it in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before use.
FAQs & Troubleshooting
There are 4 main reasons. First, boiling the potatoes can sometimes cause them to turn out watery. Underbaking the pie is another culprit. You should bake it until the top of the filling is puffed and wobbles ever so slightly when gently jiggled. It should not be very liquidy or slosh around. Lastly, allow your sweet potato pie to cool fully. This time is crucial for the filling to set up properly and become creamy yet sturdy.
I prefer using fresh sweet potatoes, but you can use canned ones in this recipe; just be sure to drain them well. Avoid yams packed in syrup, as that will cause the filling to be too sweet. Follow the recipe as directed, simply skipping the steps to bake the sweet potatoes.
Yes, you can use pumpkin puree to make this a twist on my classic pumpkin pie recipe! Follow the recipe as written, using 2½ cups of pureed pumpkin (you’ll need two 15-ounce cans). Use 100% pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling.
More Holiday Dessert Recipes To Try
Try one of these quintessential holiday desserts next!
My gooey, classic pecan pie is as decadent as it is straightforward! The syrupy filling is ready in a flash, and you’ll love the crunchy pecan topping.
There’s plenty of rich pumpkin flavor and warm fall spices in my pumpkin cheesecake. The light, dreamy filling sits atop a crisp graham cracker crust.
Chocolate pie is a hit on my Thanksgiving table every time! The filling is thick and creamy, and just incredibly decadent.
A classic apple pie is a welcome addition at any holiday party. I use a mixture of sweet and tart fresh apples for the best flavor.
Moist pumpkin bars spread generously with cream cheese frosting are a wonderful fall treat. The batter stirs together quickly, and the frosting is a breeze to whip up.
If you’ve tried this sweet potato pie recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Paulette Adams says
I just made this recipe along with the pie crust recipe. I used 3 Tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon in my crust. Your technique of keeping that dough cold, created the best crust I’ve made. This was my first sweet potato pie and I’ll never go back to pumpkin now. You were right about the flavor, but the texture was an absolute dream as well. The canned pumpkin’s texture is gritty in comparison to the smooth creamy texture of this pie.
Gia says
Can I sub brown sugar for 1/2 or all of the white sugar?
Sarah Ward (Executive Editor, Preppy Kitchen) says
Absolutely! Brown sugar would be delicious in the filling.