Thanksgiving wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without Sweet Potato Pie. That was our staple. We’ve never had pumpkin pie for the holidays. So that’s what I was used to eating.
My Aunt Gladys always made our sweet potato pies. My Uncle Jesse, her brother, would make them during Christmas time, and they were good, but not as good as Aunt Gladys’s. I’m sure they learned how to make them from the same person, but Aunt Gladys had my uncle beat!
Besides watching the parade on TV, her sweet potato pie was what I looked forward to each and every year.
She never shared her recipe with anyone, so after she was gone, I had to find a good recipe that I could look forward to also.
After a lot of recipe testing, I finally found one that came close. It now the only recipe I use. I use the pie filling from “Dad’s Sweet Potato Pie” by Joy The Baker. It’s fabulous! The only change I’ve made to it was to bake the potatoes instead of boiling them. That’s just my preference to keep in the nutrients. And used my own pie crust.
I made my full pure crust recipe and divided it in half to use one half for the bottom crust, and the second half for the decorative accents. I rolled out the half of crust and cut 3 strips from it. I mashed the ends together, and braided the 3 strips into one braid. Then, I used leaf cutters to cut out all of the different leaf shapes. Refrigerate overnight. The next day, add braid and leaves to the top.
Bake the sweet potatoes, and mix with other ingredients to make the filling. Puree in a food processor to make the filling extra smooth. Pour into the pie crust and bake.
This recipe is so delicious. The perfect sweet potato pie!
Sweet Potato Pie
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 sticks butter, cubed and frozen
- 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
- 6-8 tbsp water
Pie Filling
- 2 cups mashed sweet potatoes, from 2 medium potatoes
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 1/4 cup evaporated milk
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla
Egg Wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp water
Instructions
Crust
- Combine flour, butter, shortening, salt in a food processor. Pour in water until dough comes together. Shape into two disks. Wrap each and place one in the refrigerator overnight. Place the other in the refrigerator for about an hour. Take out the second half and roll it out. Cut out 3 strips and make into a braid. Use a flat edge pizza or dough cutter and a crimped edge one to do so. Use leaf cutters or plungers to cut out leaf shapes with the rest. Refrigerate overnight.
Filling
- Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. With a fork, poke holes in the sweet potatoes, and bake on a foil lined baking sheet for about 1 hour or until soft when poked. Cool.
In a pot, place the packed brown sugar, all of the spices, salt, butter, and half of the evaporated milk. Heat until butter and sugars are melted. Pour into a food processor. Add the 2 cups of sweet potatoes. Puree. Add the rest of the milk, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Puree again.Roll out the refrigerated half of pie crust. Place in a 9 inch pie pan. Cut off extra dough around the sides. Beat egg and water for egg wash. Brush around the sides of crust. Add the braid to the top going around the dish. Add leaf cut outs all around the rest of the dish. Pre-heat oven to 375. Pour mixture inside the crust. Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 and bake until cooked through, about 45 to 50 minutes.
