Alexis's Sweet Potato Pie

4.3

(19)

6 Reviews

With its rich, spiced custardy filling, this is a great alternative to the usual pumpkin pie.

Martha Stewart

Updated on October 29, 2024

Servings:

Yield:

1 9-inch pie

Looking for a dessert that’s easy, delicious, and a little different this Thanksgiving? Try sweet potato pie. Our recipe comes from Martha’s daughter, Alexis. The filling is made with roasted sweet potatoes. Some recipes call for boiling the sweet potatoes, others for microwaving them, and some use canned sweet potatoes. None of those approaches are as good as baking the sweet potatoes in the oven. This method produces tender, caramelized sweet potato flesh, enhancing its natural sweetness. The cooked sweet potatoes are pureed in the food processor and mixed with eggs, half-and-half, lemon zest, sugar, and warm spices. The filling goes into a prebaked pie crust and bakes up dense and custardy but not heavy, sweet and rich but not saccharine. It's a scrumptious pie everyone will love.

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Ingredients

4 medium sweet potatoes
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
⅓ cup sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground allspice
⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups half-and-half
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 Prebaked Pie Crust
Whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven; roast sweet potatoes:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Pierce potatoes several times with the tines of a fork and place on a baking sheet. Roast until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, about 1 hour. Set aside to cool slightly.
Peel and process flesh in food processor:

When cool enough to handle, peel, discarding skins, place flesh (2 1/2 cups) in the bowl of a food processor, and process until smooth (or place flesh in a medium bowl and mash well). Set aside to cool completely.
Combine eggs, sugar, zest, and spices; add half and half:

In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, sugar, lemon zest, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and salt until well combined. Whisk in half-and-half.
Mix egg mixture into cooled sweet potatoes; add melted butter and pour into crust:

Add egg mixture to cooled sweet potatoes, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Whisk in melted butter. Pour into baked crust.
Bake and cool:

Bake until filling is set and the tip of a knife comes out clean when inserted into the center, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool completely before slicing. Serve topped with whipped cream, if desired.