Southern Sweet Potato Pie

This irresistible Southern sweet potato pie is a beloved family recipe made with roasted and mashed sweet potatoes, sugar, evaporated milk, and warm spices baked in a buttery homemade crust. No Thanksgiving in the South is complete without sweet potato pie and this recipe will be your family's new favorite!

Black families in the South have enjoyed sweet potato pie during the holidays and throughout the year for decades. Made with simple ingredients, sweet potato pie is a delicious, comforting dessert that has a special place in my heart.

This is a classic soul food sweet potato pie recipe handed down from my Grandma that I've made some minor tweaks to over the years to make it even more perfect! For more Southern Thanksgiving recipes, check out our Old Fashioned Buttermilk Pie and Soul Food Candied Yams recipes next!

Jump to:

• Important Ingredient Notes
• How To Make Southern Sweet Potato Pie
• Variations and Substitutions
• The Origins of Sweet Potato Pie
• Why Do Black Folks Love Sweet Potato Pie?
• Is This Recipe Similar to Patti Labelle's Sweet Potato Pie?
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
• More Thanksgiving Recipes You Will Love!
• 📖 Recipe

Important Ingredient Notes

A complete list of ingredients along with measurements and detailed recipe instructions can be found in the recipe card located at the bottom of this post.

Crust

• Flour. Be sure to use all-purpose flour for the pie crust. Weigh your flour using a kitchen scale for the most accurate measurement or spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife.
• Butter. Make sure your butter is very cold before adding it to the flour. I recommend cutting the butter into cubes and placing it in the freezer while you prepare the other crust ingredients. If using salted butter, do not add any additional salt to the crust.
• Ice water. Do not use cold tap water or room-temperature water. Measure out ⅔ cup of ice water, including the ice cubes.

Sweet Potato Pie Filling

• Sweet potatoes. Southern sweet potato pie requires sweet potatoes with orange flesh. Sometimes labeled "yams" in groceries stores, look for sweet potatoes with brown or purple skin and dark orange flesh, such as Jewel or Garnet sweet potatoes. If you are unsure what color the flesh of a sweet potato is, lightly scrape the skin with your fingernail to reveal the flesh underneath.
• Butter. Soften one stick of unsalted butter to room temperature for the pie filling. If using salted butter, do add any additional salt to the pie.
• Sugar. This sweet potato pie calls for a combination of granulated and light brown sugar to sweeten the filling. You may use all granulated sugar if you prefer a lighter, more vanilla-like flavor. You may also use a combination of granulated and dark brown sugar.
• Evaporated milk. Evaporated milk is used in classic, southern sweet potato pie and gives it an extra rich flavor and texture. You may also use milk or a combination of milk and cream.
• Vanilla extract. Use good-quality, pure vanilla extract for the best flavor in your sweet potato pie. Trust me, it makes a huge difference! Cheap vanilla can give your pie an "off" taste or even add an alcohol flavor.
• Spices. This recipe calls for cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves to add warmth and depth, but you may use different spices such as ginger, allspice, or cardamom according to what you like.

How To Make Southern Sweet Potato Pie

1. Make the pie crust. I recommend making the crust the night before or first thing in the morning to give it time to chill. Pulse the butter along with the flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor to break it up into small chunks. Drizzle in the ice water until the dough comes together then shape the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour up to overnight.
2. Bake the sweet potatoes. Scrub the sweet potatoes, pierce them all over with a fork, and bake the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet at 450°F for 50 to 60 minutes until very tender. Allow them to cool enough to handle, then remove the skins.
3. Prepare the crust. Lower your oven temperature to 350°F. Roll out the chilled pie crust and place it in a pie dish sprayed with baking spray. Trim the excess and crimp the pie edges. Refrigerate the pie crust while you prepare the filling.
4. Make the filling. Place the peeled sweet potatoes in a large mixing bowl and use the beaters of a handheld electric mixer (without the mixer turned on) to break them apart. Beat in the butter until light and fluffy then beat in the remaining ingredients until the filling is smooth. Pour the filling into the crust and smooth it out.
5. Bake the pie. Bake the sweet potato pie in the preheated oven for 55 to 65 minutes until the center is set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the pie to cool on a wire rack.

Variations and Substitutions

Southern sweet potato pie is made with evaporated milk to give it a signature richness that is so dang good! However, you can also use regular whole milk, buttermilk, or a combination of milk and cream if you like.

This pie can be made with just granulated sugar instead of a combination of granulated and dark brown sugar. Your sweet potato pie will have a lighter color and a more vanilla-like flavor.

Try making this pie with different combinations of spices such as cardamom, allspice, star anise, or five spice! Some other fun additions to sweet potato pie are:

• Pecans
• Maple syrup
• Coconut
• Meringue
• Fresh orange juice
• Brown butter

The Origins of Sweet Potato Pie

Sweet potatoes were introduced to America through trades made with the Spanish and gained great popularity in the Southern US among the wealthy during the antebellum years. Since sweet potatoes grow particularly well in warmer climates, they became a favorite in the south while pumpkins, which grow well in cooler climates, gained popularity in the northern US.

Wealthy plantation owners began having their cooks, who were mainly enslaved African Americans, prepare sweet potato pie with a custard filling cooked in a flour crust for large dinners and holiday gatherings. Once Black people gained access to processed grains such as flour and proper cooking equipment after emancipation, the beloved sweet potato pie became a staple in our homes.

Why Do Black Folks Love Sweet Potato Pie?

Sweet potato pie has an extensive history in Black culture, dating back to the years of enslavement when Black cooks prepared the pie for plantation owners and their families. When Black people gained their freedom and left the kitchens of white plantation owners, they took the sweet potato pie with them and it has been a staple in our culture ever since.

For me, sweet potato pie is home. It takes me back to my earliest childhood memories of Thanksgiving dinner with ham, cornbread dressing, a big ol' pot of greens with pork, buttermilk cornbread, pecan pie, yellow cake with chocolate frosting, and sweet potato pie all laid out on the kitchen table.

Southern sweet potato pie is a huge part of Southern Black culture and I cannot envision the holidays without it!

Is This Recipe Similar to Patti Labelle's Sweet Potato Pie?

This recipe is very similar to Patti LaBelle's sweet potato pie and features some of the same, delicious ingredients. The main difference is Patti LaBelle's recipe uses all granulated sugar and this sweet potato pie recipe calls for half granulated sugar and half light brown sugar, giving it a deeper, more caramel-like flavor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions

Southern sweet potato pie is the perfect make-ahead dessert. It can be prepared up to two days in advance, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, and stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Sweet potato pie can be served chilled, at room temperature, or warm. Reheat sweet potato pie in the oven, covered with foil, if you prefer to serve it warm

Leftover sweet potato pie can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days.

More Thanksgiving Recipes You Will Love!

• New Orleans BBQ Shrimp
• Southern Homemade Chicken and Dumplings
• Louisiana Red Beans and Rice
• Cajun Shrimp and Grits
• Chocolate Gravy
• Old Fashioned Southern Cornbread Dressing
• Southern Buttermilk Cornbread
• Sweet Potato Cornbread
• Sweet Potato Biscuits
• Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes
• Southern Sweet Potato Casserole
• Southern Baked Mac and Cheese
• Twice Baked Loaded Potato Casserole
• Southern Deviled Eggs
• Southern Pecan Pie
• Skillet Peach Cobbler
• Sock It To Me Cake
• Pumpkin Bread Pudding
• Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars
• Apple Cider Donut Cake
• The Best Bread Pudding
• Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew
• Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate

📖 Recipe