Mmm mmm! A Black folks’ sweet potato pie tastes like warm family memories, good times, and a legacy of the best holiday traditions handed down from one African American generation to another.
Whether it’s the scent of cinnamon-sugar that sings sweet notes of “Home” like Stephanie Mills or Diana Ross in The Wiz.
Or how the deliciousness of sweet potato pie reminds you of childhood good times gone by. Either way – grab a slice before it’s all gone!
This old-fashioned Black folks’ Southern dessert may be single-handedly responsible for generations of nostalgic memories – especially in the Black community.
Is sweet potato pie a Black thing?
I’ve always had sweet potato pie for Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday dinners. And sometimes even on New Year’s.
That’s because sweet potato pie was made by Black folks back in Africa when they used the native grown vegetable, yams.
African-Americans today have continued the tradition of sweet potato pie with holiday dinners.
What is Black folks’ sweet potato pie?
A Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe is a delightful Thanksgiving or Christmas dessert packed with flavorful seasonings and spices in the tradition of Black folks’ soul food cooking.
How do you make a Black folks’ Southern sweet potato pie?
This pie is traditionally made with softened or mashed sweet potatoes, eggs, sugar, butter, and the best blend of vanilla, cinnamon, and other sweet spices.
What makes a Black folks’ sweet potato pie?
Every Southern sweet potato pie is not a Black folks’ sweet potato pie. Unless made with a flawless blend of soul food sweet and savory spices and fresh sweet potatoes!
Black folks are known for their unique sweet potato pie recipe. Creamy and decadent comfort food at its finest!
Sweet potato pie is the only thing better than pumpkin pie after Thanksgiving dinner. (Read on for more about sweet potato pie vs. pumpkin pie later in this post!)
With traditional brown sugar and butter flavors complemented by hints of vanilla extract to create the perfect balance of sweetness and rich, warm spice, it’s hard to enjoy only one little piece of Black folks’ sweet potato pie!
Kitchen equipment
- Instant Pot electric pressure cooker
- Instant Pot Omni Plus oven (optional)
- Instant Pot Ace Plus blender or an electric mixer
- 9-inch deep-dish pie plate
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Instant Pot Duo Nova | Instant Pot Omni Plus oven | Instant Pot Ace Plus blender | Amazon electric mixer set | Courtly Check colander | The Pioneer Woman measuring bowls | Kate Aspen measuring spoons | Amazon mixing bowls | Amazon small rubber spatula | MacKenzie-Childs pie plate | Pottery Barn similar plate | Anthropologie dish towel | Courtly Check glass cutting board |
Ingredients for Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe
- 1 ½ pound of sweet potatoes, washed and scrubbed (equals about 3 cups when softened and peeled)
- 12 oz. evaporated milk, 1 can
- 1 cup of light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted (or vegan butter)
- 2 tablespoons of vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon of ginger, minced
- 1 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon of ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon of salt
Instructions for Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe
- Grease a 9-inch pie pan and set it aside.
- See my recipe HERE for homemade almond flour pie crust, or you can use a store-bought pie crust, dough, or pie shell that may or may not come with its own pie pan.
- Pro tip: Use an Instant Pot pressure cooker to soften and peel the sweet potatoes quickly and almost effortlessly!
- Open the Instant Pot lid and fill the stainless-steel inner pot with water to the ½ mark.
- Add the scrubbed sweet potatoes to the pot of water.
- Close the Instant Pot lid (make sure the valve is up – in the position for sealing) and pressure cook on high for 12 minutes to loosen the potato skin.
- When the cooking time is finished, allow a natural pressure release for at least 12 minutes.
- To open the Instant Pot lid, move the valve to ‘venting’ and manually release any remaining pressure, if applicable.
- Pour the water and sweet potatoes into a colander in the sink to drain the hot water from the potatoes.
- Once the sweet potatoes are cool to the touch, peel and discard the skin.
- Gather 3 cups of sweet potato flesh.
- Add to either the Instant Pot Ace blender or an electric mixer the sweet potato flesh, evaporated milk, brown sugar, egg, melted butter, vanilla extract, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, ground cloves, and salt.
- Pulse or mix until the ingredients are combined and smooth.
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into the pie crust.
- Bake the sweet potato pie at 350 degrees F: in a conventional oven for 28-30 minutes, in the Instant Pot Omni Plus oven for 24-26 minutes, or until the pie is puffed and firm in the center. (Remember that cooking appliance times and oven temperatures will vary.)
- Allow the sweet potato pie to cool for at least 2-4 hours before garnishing or slicing.
- Garnish with whipped cream and cinnamon sprinkled on top.
- Serve this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe warm and enjoy!
Check out this Southern sweet potato pie recipe HERE!
Pro tips:
- You’ll probably have leftover sweet potato mix, depending on how deep-dish your pie pan is. You can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. Or you can pour it into a Ziplock bag and freeze it for up to 3 months.
- You could also make mini-Black folks sweet potato pies with any leftover pie filling.
- And don’t forget to use any leftover pie dough for the easiest Southern dessert ever – pie crust cookies!
What do you serve with Black folks sweet potato pie?
A simple answer would be whipped cream or ice cream, but that’s not the question.
You want something that compliments it! So if you’re looking for classic soul food recipes to serve with your sweet potato pie this Thanksgiving or Christmas, then look no further than these delicious ideas:
- Soul food collard greens
- Black folks smoked turkey legs
- Black folks chicken and dressing
- Black folks homemade cornbread
- Black folks Southern turkey recipe
- Soul food baked macaroni and cheese
Black folks sweet potato pie recipe FAQs
What spices belong in a Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe?
Here are three spices that belong in a delicious soul food sweet potato pie.
- Ground cinnamon is a versatile spice for savory and sweet dishes for an extra burst of flavor while adding more color.
Cinnamon is an excellent addition to everything from an apple pie, pumpkin bread, and even sweet potato pies! Cinnamon helps brighten up even the darkest desserts because it adds lightness to them while giving off its unique taste.
- Ground nutmeg is often found in pumpkin pies, but it goes exceptionally well with sweet potato pie. This spice gives the dish a wonderful flavor and provides some warmth to your palate.
Think about how good your grandmother’s Thanksgiving meal tastes every year! Ground nutmeg has that same type of taste without being overwhelming or spicy at all. You need this for sure if you are planning on making this Thanksgiving specialty!
- Ground cloves are that secret ingredient that gives your finished sweet potato recipes a beautiful aroma, a spicy kick, and the perfect sweetness without going overboard with sugar.
Ground cloves have an aromatic sweet aroma and taste. You’ll love how much more flavorful your ciders, toddies, brines, and sweet treats become once cloves are added!
When combined, these spices create an excellent balance. Cloves should definitely be included in any soul food Thanksgiving menu or Christmas dinner.
What makes Black folks’ sweet potato pie a favorite pie recipe?
The spices. It’s gotta be the spices!
Sweet potato pie is also easy to make ahead. Easy to serve. It has simple pantry ingredients that yield a sweet and mildly spicy flavor.
There are many other great recipes for pies out there, but Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe stands out from the rest!
How do you prepare the sweet potatoes to be mashed?
Should you roast or boil sweet potatoes for pie?
The easiest method is to use an Instant Pot pressure cooker to soften and peel the sweet potatoes quickly and almost effortlessly to prepare them for mashing.
If you do not prepare the pie crust from scratch, can you use a frozen one?
Yes, you can absolutely use a frozen pie crust or store-bought pie dough.
How do you keep your pie crust edges from burning?
Unlike some pie recipes, there is no need to pre-heat your empty pie crust for this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe. Doing this can cause your pie crust edges to burn.
How do you know when the filling is cooked?
How do you know when your sweet potato pie is done?
A good indicator of when this pie recipe is done is when you can see the center of the pie filling puffing in the oven.
Also, the center of a sweet potato pie should be firm and not runny or jiggly when you remove the pie from the oven.
Why is your sweet potato pie runny?
If your sweet potato pie turns out runny after baking – don’t fret! Instead, put it back in the oven for five-minute intervals until the filling is puffed and firm in the center.
How can you thicken your sweet potato pie filling?
While many recipes call for adding flour for thickening, you don’t want to do this for a soul food sweet potato pie filling. It could compromise the unique Southern soul food flavors.
To avoid needing to thicken the pie filling, make sure your sweet potato mixture still has some texture and it’s not just a thin, runny purée.
How do you cut sweet potato pie?
One primary consideration when cutting your sweet potato pie is to let it set before cutting. Otherwise, the slice will fall apart like feta cheese!
It’s best to let the pie cool and set for a few hours up to a whole day.
But if you can’t wait the entire day, wait at least four hours before cutting it into pieces.
Pro tips for slicing sweet potato pie:
- This process can be even simpler if you run your sharp knife on a chilled sweet potato pie.
- A perfect uniform slice will be in your hands if you refrigerate your sweet pie before cutting it.
- Be sure the knife is clean and sharp before cutting.
- Wipe it off with a damp cloth after each slice and cut cleanly through the bottom of your pie.
Do you refrigerate Black folks’ sweet potato pie?
Yes. After all, this recipe calls for eggs.
Can you reheat sweet potato pie?
Yes, this sweet potato pie recipe can be quickly rewarmed in the oven. Or by the slice in the microwave.
Can you freeze a sweet potato pie?
You can absolutely freeze whole sweet potato pies or leftover pie for up to three months. First, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and then foil, sealed tight with an airtight container.
What’s the difference between sweet potato pie and pumpkin pie?
It may seem like sweet potato pie is just a fancier, more flavorful version of pumpkin pie (and it is). Still, there are some significant differences between the two.
Pumpkin pies are traditionally made with sugar, spices, and eggs. Sweet potato pies have been elevated with soulful flavor combinations like cinnamon-sugar and sweet vanilla, cloves, and nutmeg. Mixed beautifully with softened sweet potatoes or yams.
Most pumpkin pies tend to be bland, dense, and creamier. Even with the addition of pumpkin pie spice, pumpkin pie is no comparison.
In contrast, sweet potato pie has more texture, and the filling is airier and fluffier.
Which is better, pumpkin or sweet potato pie?
If you ask Black folks, there is no debating which one is better. The answer is always sweet potato pie – as long as it’s made the Black folks’ soul food way!
Can you make this pie ahead?
If you’re making sweet potato pie for Christmas or Thanksgiving, it’s a good idea to make your sweet potato pie masterpiece ahead of time. (Assuming, of course, that you have the refrigerator space.)
Just remember: wrap tightly and keep in the fridge – after all, this recipe calls for eggs.
Does this recipe make two pies or one?
Depending on how deep of a dish your pie pan is, you’ll probably have leftover sweet potato mix to make another.
You could also make mini-Black folks sweet potato pies with any leftover pie filling.
How many eggs are needed?
2 large eggs will be enough if you’re following this recipe.
Are there any acceptable ingredients substitutes in a Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe?
You can use the following swaps for this soul food baked sweet potato pie recipe:
While I’ve found evaporated milk to be the smoothest and the perfect flavor additive for this recipe, sweetened condensed milk can substitute. Likewise, heavy cream.
Also, for this pie recipe, light brown sugar or dark brown sugar is best. But granulated sugar can also work in a pinch.
Can you use canned sweet potatoes?
Nothing beats fresh potatoes for this incredible Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe, but you could use canned sweet potato.
What do you think about this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe?
The ingredients are simple, but the flavor is unique!
If you like this recipe, then you’ll love these Southern desserts recipes roundup HERE.
What are people saying about The Soul Food Pot Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe?
Like this post? Pin the below image to your Pinterest “Soul Food Recipes” board!
Equipment
- Instant Pot electric pressure cooker
- Instant Pot Omni Plus oven (optional)
- Instant Pot Ace Plus blender or an electric mixer
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pound sweet potatoes washed and scrubbed (equals about 3 cups when softened and peeled)
- 12 oz evaporated milk 1 can
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 5 tablespoons butter unsalted butter, melted (or vegan butter)
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ginger minced
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Grease a 9-inch pie pan and set it aside.
- See my recipe HERE for homemade almond flour pie crust, or you can use a store-bought pie crust, dough, or pie shell that may or may not come with its own pie pan.
- Pro tip: Use an Instant Pot pressure cooker to soften and peel the sweet potatoes quickly and almost effortlessly!
- Open the Instant Pot lid and fill the stainless-steel inner pot with water to the ½ mark.
- Add the scrubbed sweet potatoes to the pot of water.
- Close the Instant Pot lid (make sure the valve is up – in the position for sealing) and pressure cook on high for 12 minutes to loosen the potato skin.
- When the cooking time is finished, allow a natural pressure release for at least 12 minutes.
- To open the Instant Pot lid, move the valve to ‘venting’ and manually release any remaining pressure, if applicable.
- Pour the water and sweet potatoes into a colander in the sink to drain the hot water from the potatoes.
- Once the sweet potatoes are cool to the touch, peel and discard the skin.
- Gather 3 cups of sweet potato flesh.
- Add to either the Instant Pot Ace blender or an electric mixer the sweet potato flesh, evaporated milk, brown sugar, egg, melted butter, vanilla extract, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, ground cloves, and salt.
- Pulse or mix until the ingredients are combined and smooth.
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into the pie crust.
- Bake the sweet potato pie at 350 degrees F: in a conventional oven for 28-30 minutes, in the Instant Pot Omni Plus oven for 24-26 minutes, or until the pie is puffed and firm in the center. (Remember that cooking appliance times and oven temperatures will vary.)
- Allow the sweet potato pie to cool for at least 2-4 hours before garnishing or slicing.
- Garnish with whipped cream and cinnamon sprinkled on top.
- Serve this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe warm and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Unlike some pie recipes, there is no need to pre-heat your empty pie crust for this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe. Doing this can cause your pie crust edges to burn.
- A good indicator of when this pie recipe is done is when you can see the center of the pie filling puffing in the oven.
- You'll probably have leftover sweet potato mix, depending on how deep-dish your pie pan is. You can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. Or you can pour it into a Ziplock bag and freeze it for up to 3 months.
- You could also make mini-Black folks sweet potato pies with any leftover pie filling.
- And don’t forget to use any leftover pie dough for the easiest Southern dessert ever – pie crust cookies!
- It’s best to let the pie cool and set for a few hours up to a whole day before slicing.
Nutrition
Thanks so much I can’t wait to make this recipe!
Author
Please share pics in the Facebook group when you’ve made it – we love to celebrate your wins in the kitchen!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/clubinstantpot
Love love the Instant pot tip for the sweet potatoes.
Author
You’re very welcome – Instant Pot adds so much ease and efficiency in the kitchen!
I love using my instant pot. I love sweet potatoes. This sounds incredible.
Author
Yes, you’ve gotta make this pie with your Instant Pot. Or even candied yams or my recipe for purple sweet potato pie!
How can you go wrong with sweet potato pie
Author
My thoughts exactly!
My husband loves sweet potato pie, I’ll have to try this for him.
Author
He’ll thank you!
YUMMY! Love a good sweet potato pie!
Author
You and I both!
I am not a sweet potato person…but I am the only person in my family who feels that way! They all love sweet potato pie or casserole. They would love this!
Author
Then they’d love my purple sweet potato pie recipe!
It looks delicious.
I love sweet potato anything!!
Author
Yes, Sherry!
I want this on my Thanksgiving Day table. Yum!
Author
Definitely! It’s an easy recipe.
This is a fantastic sweet potatoe pie.
Author
I’m so happy you think so!
I don’t care for sweet potato, but this sure does look and sound good.
Author
You might like sweet potatoes in a pie! 😉
Who wouldn’t love to try this recipe! Level-up sweet potato r.
Author
Right!!
This is just what I’ve been looking for – with nutmeg and ginger. Thank you!!
Author
So happy you found my soul food sweet potato pie recipe!
this brings back such wonderful memories! thanks
Author
I’m happy to hear that.
i made 2 for thanksgiving and they were awesome.
Author
Two! So yummy!!
Don`t think my husband would eat this or my son. BUT I thinks it sounds delicious
Author
It’s so interesting that they would like the purple sweet potato pie better!
I love sweet potato pie!
Author
I’m so glad you love sweet potato pie too! You should also try my purple sweet potato pie recipe. 😉
I’ve never tried it but I think it sounds good ☺️
Author
I hope you give this soul food sweet potato pie recipe a whirl!
My mom will surely love this recipe! Will gonna share this recipe to her.
This design is incredible! You certainly know how to keep a reader amused. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Great job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!
Author
I’m happy you enjoyed this soul food sweet potato pie article and recipe!
Good combination of flavors. But I made some modifications. Firstly the cook time It took 55 minutes to bake at 350 degrees on convection not 30.
I substituted 12 ounces of sweetened condensed milk for the evaporated milk and decreased the brown sugar to 1/2 cup. Delicious results. Overall though this is the closest truly Southern sweet potato pie recipe I have found.
Author
I’m so glad you approve and I love it when you make my recipe your own!
Made this today. This pie was HITTIN’!! It’ll be my go to from now on! We are some talented folks!! Great job girl!✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽
Author
I absolutely LOVE your sentiments – “We are some talented folks!” Thanks so much for sharing your success with this Black folks’ Southern sweet potato pie recipe!!
🥰🥰🥰
What if I don’t have an instant pot?
Author
No Instant Pot? No problem! Simply boil the sweet potatoes on the stovetop.
I could not find my grandmas recipe but I new about what was in it so I chose this recipe. The pies turned out perfect and are as good if not better than grandmas. Will definitely make again. Too bad I can’t add pictures
Author
What an honor to compare our recipe to your grandma’s! We’d love to see your pictures, which can be shared on our Pinterest page here: https://www.pinterest.com/ShaundaNecoleBlog/ or tag us in your photos on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/shaundanecole/
Is it ok to make the pie filling a day before then cook it while it’s cold?
Author
Yes, you can make the pie filling a day ahead.
I’m so glad I found your recipe ad I prefer sweet potato pie over pumpkin. I made it today and it’s delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Author
You’re very welcome! So glad you found your way here, too.
Doubled the recipe for 2 pie pans, but it ended up making too much pie filling? >> Solution: made mini pies!
Also it was very runny at 30 mins in 350F, so I baked for 45-50..
Overall, VERY good! I enjoyed it more than pumpkin pie
Author
Love that you made mini sweet potato pies, too!
I am amazed I been making this pie the “white folk way” for years! I am so so so glad i found your black people recipes! Now i can make dinner for my family that my momma would be proud to eat! And i can finally throw my dang white sugar away! Hallelujah! I really have been preying to Gesis to show me a sign of my own culture and not nobody else’s and BAM! Here it is right on time! Thank you soso much again i don’t know what id be a doin right about now without it.
Author
You’re very welcome – I’m proud to share a legacy of African American food!
I think that was a very very nice review, thank you for those lovely words Ms. Jezemal.
Made this recipe for Thanksgiving and everyone loved this sweet potato pie. It was everyone’s favorite, with many compliments.
Author
Thank so much for coming back to share your results! Happy holidays!
This recipe looks delicious, cant wait to try it now. Thank you for bring the recipe into our lives.
My husband came home with 2 HUGE potatoes (which he thought were regular sweet potatoes) they were actually white sweet potatoes. I researched and found out that they are very mild (closer to bland). I followed your recipe but added 1 tbsp of molasses to it. Wow! The molasses added such depth and warmth to the overall flavor. It is one of the best sweet potato pies I’ve ever made. Fantastic recipe!
Author
Love the potato modification & glad you enjoyed!