Grandma Old Fashioned Sweet Potato Pie Recipe (2024)

Grandma old fashioned sweet potato pie recipe is true to its name. It's just like grandma used to make! A golden pie crust is filled with rich, sweet potato filling.

Sweet potato pie is such a classic dessert, and my grandma made the best. Of course, we all say that, don't we? Well, give this southern sweet potato pie a try, and I think you just might agree with me.

Old Fashioned Sweet Potato Pie Recipe

This was inspired by my pumpkin pie recipe that was based on another of my favorite pie dessert from my grandma. It's the perfect dessert to finish off a meal of this delicious air fryer roast beef and potatoes.

Why You Will Love This Recipe

• Sweet potato pie is a budget-friendly classic, crowd-pleasing comfort dessert, ideal for holiday gatherings like Thanksgiving and Christmas, or any other special occasion.
• With simple ingredients and straightforward instructions, you'll find this recipe easy to make, even if you're not an experienced baker.
• Served warm or cold, with a dollop of whipped cream, a scoop of ice cream, or simply on its own, this pie totally homemade, just like grandma used to make.

Ingredients

It only takes a few simple ingredients to make this delicious pie. There's nothing fancy here, just a ton of flavor. I just wish I knew where I got this recipe from!

For the Homemade Pie Crust

Homemade or store-bought pie crust: You can use a premade pie shell; however, a homemade pie crust adds an extra touch of deliciousness and a buttery, flaky texture to your sweet potato pie.

• All Purpose Flour, Salt, Granulated Sugar - The foundation of most pie crusts.
• Unsalted Butter and Vegetable Shortening - If you want to really go old school, use lard instead of shortening or a combination of lard and butter.
• Ice Water - Necessary for this homemade pie crust.

For the Sweet Potato Filling

• Fresh Sweet Potatoes - Use firm and evenly-shaped sweet potatoes with smooth skin and without any soft spots or blemishes for taste and texture.
• Unsalted Butter - Add flavor and contributes to wonderful texture.
• Large Eggs and Egg Yolks - Binds ingredients and creates the wonderful custard filling that sweet potato pies are known for.
• Granulated Sugar - Adds a sweetness to the filling.
• Ground Nutmeg - Either fresh or packaged ground nutmeg will work.
• Salt and Vanilla Extract - Necessary flavor enhancers.
• Bourbon - Adds wonderful flavor.
• Molasses - Optional but definitely worth adding.
• Whole Milk - For best results use whole milk.
• Dark Brown Sugar - If you don't have dark brown sugar, light brown sugar will work.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for quantities.

Substitutions and Variations

Don't have the correct ingredients on hand or want to change something up? Here are some helpful tips for you to change this old fashioned sweet potato pie recipe.

• More Flavor - Add a pinch of ground cinnamon, ginger, allspice or cloves to pair with the nutmeg for more flavor.
• Toasted Nuts - Add toasted pecans, walnuts, or almonds to the top of your pie before serving.

Instructions

Everything about this recipe is completely from scratch. You'll even be making the sweet potatoes. That means there are several steps to this recipe, but they're all extremely easy when you break them down.

Step 1: Combine the Dry Crust Ingredients, Add Water and Form Dough

Pulse the flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor to combine. Next, add the cut-up cold butter and cut it into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse cornmeal using 1-second pulses. DO NOT over mix.

Turn the flour and butter mixture out into a medium bowl. Then, add about 4 tablespoons of ice water and fold it into the flour with a rubber spatula until a bit of the dough holds together when squeezed in your hand.

Turn the dough out onto a clean, dry surface and gently gather and press it into a ball. Next, flatten it into a disk roughly 4 inches in diameter. Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

You can do this up to 2 days before you're ready to make the pie.

Step 2: Roll Out the Dough and Form the Crust

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. If you chilled it for longer than 30 minutes, give it a few minutes at room temperature before working it.

Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface until you have a disk about 12-inches across and about ⅛-inches thick. Then, fold the dough into quarters and place the point in the center of a 9-inch pie plate.

Unfold the dough to cover the pie plate. working around the plate, ease the dough carefully into the edges and bottom of the pie plate.

Next, trim the edge to about ½-inch beyond the plate lip and tuck the rim of the dough underneath itself so that the edges are about ¼-inch beyond the plate lip. Flute the dough around the edges.

Step 3: Chill the Dough Again and Blind Bake the Crust

Chill the crust for 40 minutes in the refrigerator and then in the freezer for about 20 minutes to reduce shrinkage while the crust bakes.

Move your oven rack to the center position and preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Then, press a doubled, 18-inch square of heavy-duty aluminum foil over the bottom, sides, and edges of the pie crust. Fold back the edges of the foil to protect the fluted edge of the crust.

Finally, evenly distribute metal or ceramic pie weights over the foil.

Bake at 375 degrees with the foil and weights in place for 17 to 20 minutes or until the dough dries and lightens in color. Next, carefully remove the foil and weight and bake about 9 more minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Remove the crust from the oven and reduce the heat to 350 degrees.

Step 4: Cook, Scoop and Mash the Sweet Potatoes

Prick your sweet potatoes several times with a fork and place them on a double layer of paper towels in the microwave. Cook them at full power for 5 minutes, turn them over and cook for another 5 minutes. They should be tender but not mushy. Cool the potatoes for 10 minutes. Feel free to ;use baked sweet potatoes but I never do because the microwave is so much quicker.

Cut each potato in half lengthwise and use a spoon to scoop out the flesh. While they're still hot, add the butter and mashed them with a fork or wooden spoon until they're mostly mashed with small lumps of sweet potato remaining.

Step 5: Combine the Wet Filling Ingredients

Whisk eggs, yolks, sugar, nutmeg, and salt together in a medium bowl. Then, stir in the bourbon, molasses (optional), and vanilla. Finally, whisk in the milk.

Step 6: Add the Wet Ingredients to the Sweet Potatoes and Bake

Gradually add the egg mixture to the sweet potatoes, whisking gently to combine.

Heat the pie shell in the oven for about 5 minutes until warm. Then, sprinkle the bottom of the shell with brown sugar. Pour the sweet potato filling into the pie shell.

Bake the pie for about 45 minutes. The filling should be set around the edges and jiggle slightly in the middle when shaken.

Cool the pie on a wire rack for about 2 hours and serve.

Hint: Be sure to blind bake the crust to prevent it from being soggy.

If you love recipes like this, you may also enjoy grandma's bacon cheeseburger pie.

Storage

Refrigerate:

This pie will keep for up to 3 days in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Freeze:

For longer storage, you can freeze it for up to 3 months. Be aware that the texture may change a bit.

Allow pie to cool completely on a wire rack before wrapping tightly in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and/or an airtight container.

When ready to eat, allow pie to defrost overnight inside your fridge.

Reheat:

If you prefer a room-temperature pie, simply remove it from the fridge and let it sit on your counter out for about 30 minutes before serving.

For a warm pie, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and place the pie on a baking sheet. Cover it loosely with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning, and heat for approximately 15-20 minutes or until warmed through.

Tips

I have a few tips here that will help ensure your sweet potato pie is the best it can possibly be. These are easy tips that make a big difference, so don't skip this part.

• Don't overcook or overmash your sweet potatoes or the filling won't have the right texture.
• Use cold butter when making your crust.
• Use firm sweet potatoes with smooth skin and no soft spots or blemishes for better flavor and consistency.
• After cooking the sweet potatoes, allow them to totally cool down before mixing them with other ingredients to prevent the butter from melting which could cause lumpy filling.
• Room temperature eggs blend better with the sweet potato mixture so make sure to remove your eggs from the refrigerator ten minutes before starting.
• It's essential to pre-bake this homemade piecrust to prevent a soggy bottom crust and promote even cooking.

FAQ

Do you have questions about grandma sweet potato pie recipe? Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about this old fashioned sweet potato pie recipe.

Video

More Sweet Potato Recipes

Do you like sweet potatoes? Here are some recipes you may also like to try.

Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.