Black Folks Sweet Potato Pie Recipe™

This is the BEST sweet potato pie recipe! I’ve shared over 250 recipes across my food blog, five cookbooks, and two seasoning guides, including this first and original “Black Folks Sweet Potato Pie Recipe™,” my family recipe that went viral in 2021!

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 and its flaky pie crust reminds you of special occasions or childhood good times gone by. Either way—grab a slice before it’s all gone!

This old-fashioned Black folks’ classic Southern dessert may be single-handedly responsible for generations of nostalgic memories, especially in the Black community. 

What is Black folks’ sweet potato pie?

A Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe is a delightful holiday, Thanksgiving, or Christmas dessert packed with flavorful seasonings and spices in the tradition of Black Americans’ soul food cooking. Still, some people who have never had a soul food sweet potato pie may ask, “What makes it a Black folks’ sweet potato pie?“

Every Southern sweet potato pie is not a Black folks’ sweet potato pie unless it’s made with a flawless blend of soul food sweet and savory spices. This includes brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and clove. It’s a dessert cleverly spiced, elevating it beyond traditional pumpkin pie with the essence of West African seasonings.

Why is sweet potato pie a Black thing?

Sweet potato pie has a rich history and a significant place in Black culture. Created by Black people in Africa using the indigenous vegetable, yams, its core recipe has been passed down from generation to generation and remains a vital part of African American culture.

In the United States, sweet potato pie continues to be a popular dish on the holiday dinner table. Many view it as a more flavorful and soulful alternative to pumpkin pie, and it’s the preferred choice for African Americans over the denser and less flavorful pumpkin pie recipe.

Ingredients

Black folks’ sweet potato pie and its ingredients originated from the adaptive culinary skills of enslaved Africans using new-world crops. Its spices are what make it a favorite soul food recipe. There are many other great recipes for pies out there, but this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe stands out from the rest! 

Measurements for the recipe can be found in the printable recipe card below. 

• Sweet potatoes Garnet, Jewel (ideal for baking), or Beauregard sweet potatoes are best, as they produce a naturally sweet pie filling with a smooth, silky texture. Learn more about the best sweet potatoes for sweet potato pie HERE.
• Evaporated milk adds a luscious, velvety texture to the filling. 
• Light brown sugar imparts a delightful caramel-like flavor to the pie.
• Vanilla extract infuses a warm and comforting essence.
• Nutmeg contributes a warm, nutty, and earthy balance to the pie. 
• Cinnamon adds a comforting warmth and heat, along with a burst of color and flavor.
• Ginger imparts a subtle spiciness and a warm kick.
• Clove serves as the secret ingredient, contributing to the pie’s overall soulful spice with its beautiful aroma.
• Salt is a necessary contrast and balance to the sweet and spicy flavor profiles of the pie.
• Butter adds a rich, buttery flavor that beautifully complements the natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes.
• Eggs play a crucial role in binding the pie filling together, resulting in a creamy, custard-like consistency.
• The pie crust will elevate this dish from a simple sweet potato soufflé to a delectable sweet potato pie because of the flaky and delicious crust encasing.

Can you use canned sweet potatoes?

Nothing beats fresh potatoes for this incredible Black folks’ homemade sweet potato pie recipe, but you could use canned sweet potatoes. The pies’ texture will be precisely light and fluffy when using fresh sweet potatoes, while you risk a mushier pie when using a canned alternative.

Also, if using canned sweet potatoes, you can skip the steps for roasting and peeling them and go straight to mixing the canned potatoes with the seasonings and spices.

How to make a Black folks’ Southern sweet potato pie

The foundation of any stellar sweet potato pie starts with selecting fresh, high-quality sweet potatoes. Then, the potatoes are softened and combined with eggs, sugar, butter, and a harmonious blend of vanilla, cinnamon, and other sweet, soulful spices. Together, these foundational elements create a dish that has always had a special place at the soul food holiday table!

Step-by-step instructions with guided pictures can be found in the printable recipe card below.

1. Grease the pie pan so the pie crust does not get stuck on the pie pan while baking.
2. Roasting the sweet potatoes in the oven is the preferred way to cook them to maintain their sweetness over baking (oven temperatures below 400 degrees) or boiling. 
3. Once the sweet potatoes have cooled, the skin will easily peel away, revealing the soft, sweet, roasted flesh. 
4. Gather the potato flesh and discard the skin.
5. To make the pie filling, use an electric mixer to mix the potato flesh with the evaporated milk, brown sugar, egg, melted butter, vanilla extract, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, ground cloves, and salt at high speed.
6. Pour the filling into the unbaked pie crust (store-bought or homemade).
7. Bake the pie until the filling is firm and puffing in the center.
8. Let the pie cool for 4 hours before garnishing or slicing.
9. Serve warm and enjoy! Sweet potato pie is best served warm, at room temperature, or re-warmed by the slice.

Pro tips:

• 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 mini sweet potato pies.
• Use any leftover pie dough for the easiest Southern dessert ever – flaky homemade pie crust cookies!

For the best results, knowing what mistakes to avoid when making sweet potato pie is integral to the legacy of this classic Southern pie dish.

🎙 Listen to the recipe: Black Folks Sweet Potato Pie

Watch the video to see how to make sweet potato pie step-by-step with key moments.

What is the best way to cook sweet potatoes for sweet potato pie?

The preferred method for preparing sweet potatoes for mashing is to roast them in the oven. This helps break down the starches into sugar, resulting in a sweeter pie filling.

However, an easier method involves using an Instant Pot pressure cooker to quickly soften and peel the sweet potatoes. This method can save you nearly 30 minutes in the kitchen! Learn more about the best way to cook sweet potatoes for pie in my post HERE.

🥧 Get the collector’s edition cookbook: Black Folks Sweet Potato Pie

Do you eat sweet potato pie hot or cold?

Sweet potato pie is best served warm or at room temperature. Most pies are left unrefrigerated while family and friends enjoy the dessert. Afterwards, any leftovers are chilled in the fridge and warmed up before serving again.

What to serve with Black folks sweet potato pie

If you’re looking for classic soul food recipes to serve with your sweet potato pie, look no further than these delicious ideas in my post about what to serve with sweet potato pie. Favorites include Southern fried chicken, soul food collard greens, and Southern candied yams.

Black folks sweet potato pie success tips

How do you get the strings out of sweet potato pie? 

Sweet potatoes stored at the wrong temperature can become stringy when cooked. But, no worries, a hand-held mixer or stand electric mixer will round up and collect the strings with its mixers or blade. Read more about how to get strings out of sweet potatoes in my guide HERE.

Avoiding runny sweet potato pie

If your sweet potato pie comes out runny after baking, don’t worry! Simply return it to the oven in five-minute intervals until the filling is puffed and firm in the center.

How to thicken sweet potato pie filling

While many pie recipes call for adding flour to thicken the pie filling, you won’t want to do this for this soul food sweet potato. Doing so could compromise the unique soul food flavors.

However, this is an easy mistake to avoid. To ensure the pie filling won’t need to be thickened, it’s best to use fresh sweet potatoes so it has some texture before baking and is not just a thin, runny purée.

How to know when sweet potato pie is done

The pie is done when you can see the center of the pie filling puffing in the oven is firm, not runny, or jiggly. 

To prevent the pie crust edges from burning, you can use a pie crust shield or line the edges of the pie with aluminum foil while baking. And there’s no need to pre-bake (blind bake) the pie shell or crust, as this could cause the edges to overcook or burn later when you add the pie filling for baking.

How to cut a sweet potato pie

For the best results after baking, allow the pie to cool and set for 4 hours to a whole day. Refrigerating the pie before cutting will result in a perfect, uniform slice that cuts cleanly through to the bottom of the pie. Otherwise, the slices may fall apart!

How to store leftover sweet potato pie

Remember to refrigerate this sweet potato pie recipe because it contains milk and eggs. It can last in the fridge for five days.

When tightly wrapped or sealed in an airtight container, sweet potato pie can be frozen for up to three months. Then, you can reheat a whole sweet potato pie in the oven or microwave individual slices.

What do you think about this Black folks’ sweet potato pie recipe?

This is the best sweet potato pie recipe with the best flavor. No corn syrup or making brown butter. It’s simple, made the soul food way!

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