Need a foolproof recipe for sweet potato pie and tips on how to bake it
Chowhounds, I am wanting to make a sweet potato pie and wondered the best technique for baking one. I have tasted some that are bland with no flavor or they are stringy. I want to make about four sweet potato pies that are flavorful and good. I am not sure how many potatoes, or how much sugar and eggs etc. etc. I have come across a couple of recipes that no one can vouch for. I would love to hear your suggestions. Also, how do you keep the crust from browning too fast and getting hard on the outer decorative edges.
Elle
Oct 28, 2003 12:03PM
I've used the following recipe several times, with no problems. The filling has a dense, creamy texture that I like, and the flavour is good. The key to not having a stringy filling is to dice the sweet potato small, either before cooking, or before mashing. That way you've broken up the stringy fibres. Use a nice, rich brown sugar, too. As for the edge, I've never worried about it much, but if it's browning too fast, cover it with a strip of aluminum foil (at least, that's what I've been told).
I've added to, and edited, the original directions.
Sweet Potato Pie
Makes One 9-inch Pie
From The New World Encyclopedia of Cooking by the Culinary Arts Institute (Delair Publishing Company Inc., 1979)
1-1/2 cups sieved or mashed Cooked Sweet Potatoes
1-1/2 cups Milk
2 tbsp. melted Butter
1/2 tsp. Vanilla
1/2 cup firmly packed Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg
1/4 tsp. Ground Cloves
1/2 tsp. Salt
2 large Eggs, beaten
1 unbaked 9"(23 cm) Pie Shell (Pastry for a 9"/23 cm 1-Crust Pie)
If using raw sweet potatoes, peel, rinse, dice small, and put in lightly salted water to boil. They will turn a little black during the peeling and chopping--don't worry about it. When very soft, drain, then shake over the still-hot stove element until excess water has evaporated. Mash. Alternatively, wrap unpeeled sweet potatoes in foil and bake at 400ºF until soft (1 to 2 hours). Allow to cool. Pull off skins, slice crosswise, and mash. The slicing or cutting crosswise is important, to cut any long fibres in the sweet potatoes.
Preheat oven to 450ºF and adjust oven rack to centre of oven. Scald milk and set aside.
Add melted butter and vanilla to the sweet potatoes. Mix together brown sugar, spices, and salt, and add to the sweet potatoes. Beat well.
Add beaten eggs in thirds, beating well after each addition. Blend in scalded milk. Pour mixture into pastry shell.
Bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350ºF and bake 30 to 35 minutes longer, or until metal knife comes out clean when inserted halfway between centre and edges of filling. Cool on cooling rack
When cool, sprinkle with chopped pecans. Serve with sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
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Yes, covering the pie crust edges with foil for the last 15 minutes or so does keep them from burning. Also, running the sweet potatoes through a food mill will ensure that it is very smooth.
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For a rich, luscious sweet potato pie, use Coleen's recipe above, but substitute half the milk with sweetened condensed milk, and add about a tsp of grated orange zest.
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The recipe looks great. Similar to one I use. For a different flavor (especailly so it doesn't taste too much like pumpkin pie I use finely ground cardamom, instead of the usual pumpkin pie spices. Adds a great flavor note.
I also like to top with mini marshmallows and brown them in the broiler (or with a torch). However, I don't like the cardamom taste with marshmallows. With the cardamom I just use whipped cream.
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Good idea for the next time I make this. I love the flavour of cardamom!
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I've never made a sweet potato pie.
But to keep your crust from drying out or burning, I use this pie crust shield with great success for all custard-type pies. This works much better than trying to cover it with foil or parchment -- that always falls off!
Link: http://www.cooking.com/products/shpro...
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I have made the sweet potato pie from Tanya Holland of Melting Pot on the Food network. The recipe is on the website - foodtv.com. It is very good. The second time I made it I increased the spices because that is how we like it.
Also Mrs. Smith is right - those pie shield things are great, especially if your pie pan is the appropriate size. Works much better than foil. I love the crust so hate to see it get too dark.
Hope this helps. D.
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I am curious about trying both sweet potato pie & cake recipes because this isn't something to be found here in Toronto, Canada. I love sweet potato but... they seem less distinct than pumpkin (the only thing I can imagine tasting similar to these recipes). What is the attraction?
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I live in Calgary, and had never eaten sweet potato pie before I made it.
I made it first, mainly out of curiosity, as I'd heard of it, but never eaten it.
The flavour (at least the way I make it) is very similar to a pumpkin pie. The thing I like better about it, though, is the filling comes out with a denser, creamier texture due to the density of the sweet potato pulp.
When I mention to relatives/friends that I've started making sweet potato pies now instead of pumpkin, they stare at me, and say "That's American!" I don't care if it's from Bora Bora--it tastes good.
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by the time you have picked the collective brains clean here on baking questions you might want to consider calling your business the chowhound baking collective... By the way, I am not begrudging you this - it's really wonderful that you have such a great resource available to you...
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Not another recipe, but a suggestion. Replace the milk with coconut milk (or cream). It adds a dimension that you can keep as your 'secret ingredient'.
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Cooks Magazine ( Nov-Dec 1999) had a fantastic recipe including Jack Daniels. It is rich, creamy and does not taste like pumpkin pie. It is very detailed as far as preparation and I have made it many times.
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