One of my favorite pies. This is popular among Southern black people. To me the best ones use nutmeg instead of cinnamon. Sometimes, a little homemade vanilla ice cream goes well on top.
1 1/2 c Sweet potato; boiled 2 Eggs; separated

3/4 c Brown sugar

1 c Milk

2 T Butter; melted

1 ts Nutmeg

1/2 ts Baking powder

1 pn Salt

Mash the boiled sweet potatoes. Beat the egg yolks with the sugar; add to the potatoes with the milk, melted butter and spice. Beat the egg whites, baking powder and salt. Fold the potato mixture in the well-beaten egg whites. Pour into a pastry-lined pie pan. Bake at 350F until a silver knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
Addendum 2/2/2006. I made a big boo-boo above and didn't even pay attention to it for years. That should be only 1c Milk rather than 2c. You will get some pretty soggy pie using that much milk. I did make a refinement to this recipe as well. My wife likes a bit sweeter pie than I do, and she wants the center very firm. The best thing to do to achieve both of these aims is to roaster, rather than boil, the sweet potatoes. That way, some of that moisture is evaporated off and the pie is firmer. I also think that your chances of overcooking the sweet potatoes is reduced by roasting them.
I offer my own alternativerecipe, sprung fully from my head while making turkey dinner with my friends before finals.

Ingredients

(The ingredients are fairly variable, but it is suggested that you leave in at least the potatos, the milk, the sugar, the salt, and the bourbon. All of these help to release the flavor of the potato.)

2 fair sized sweet potatos

1 can condensed milk

1/4 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg

1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

3-6 ground cloves

Varying small amounts of:
Molasses
Honey
Maple Syrup
Salt

And last but by no means least:

1 or 2 shots of bourbon (i use old granddad because it's got a sweet potato pie friendliness to it)


Peel your sweet potatoes and cut them into moderately sized pieces. Place these pieces in a good sized pot and fill the pot with water until the potatoes are covered. Leave the pot on the stove, at high heat, for an hour or two -- or until the potatoes are soft and squish between your fingers. If you're going to use a blender to make the filling, you may want to leave the potatoes in a little longer.

Strain the water out of the potatoes and add the now mushy potatoes to the can of condensed milk. You may do this either in a large bowl or in a blender. If you are using a large bowl, you will need to mash the ingredients together with a potato masher. If you're using a blender set aside a few pieces of potato from your blending. This will tax the blender less and will add texture when you mix these pieces in after the blending.

As the milk and potato mix together, add the other ingredients, one at a time tasting as you go to tailor it to your preferences. If you used a blender, pour the mixture into a mixing bowl and add the set aside pieces of potato as well. Mix together with a potato masher or large fork to break the potato up into the mixture.

Line a 9" pie plate with the piecrust of your choice. I still use storebought because i live in fear of a bad crust but you're welcome to branch out. After lining, you're ready to pour your filling into the piecrust. All that remains is to bake.

Put the pie in the oven at 375 F. Let cool for about half an hour. Enjoy your pie.

- I also call this heart attack on a plate, even though it isn't really that bad.

Makes one generous 9’’ pie or a normal 10'' pie.

I made this up by combining 3 recipes gleaned from people at work. Be warned, people really like this pie. Really, really.

Filling Ingredients


Additional needs
  • 1 – 9’’ pie crust. Additional crust for decoration is optional- your favorite pie crust recipe is fine, although I do not recommend sweet or crumb crusts. The one I use is at the end of this write-up.
  • A 9’’ pie tin. I usually use disposable aluminum tins. You will need to adjust the time for ceramic or glass pie pans. Clear glass or pyrex will bake more quickly, clay will bake more slowly. This pie will fit in a 10’’ pan as well, although you will need more crust.
  • a rolling pin
  • a large mixing bowl
  • a mixer
  • a rubber scraper
  • some waxed paper
  • a pastry cutter
  • scissors or a knife to trim the pastry
  • a cookie cutter (optional)
  • a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for baking the sweet potatoes
  • a pastry brush (if glazing)

Bake the sweet potatoes at 350°F until they are done, let them cool at least part of the way and then peel and mash. It is possible to microwave them, but I don’t recommend this unless you are in a hurry to finish cooking them. Baking them in the oven causes some of the moisture to evaporate, intensifying the flavor of the sweet potatoes and causing some of the sugars to carmelize.

Preheat the oven to 350°F and place the oven rack in the lower third of the oven.

Let the sweet potatoes come to room temperature. Beat the sugars and butter together until smooth, then blend together with the sweet potatoes. Beat in the remaining ingredients until thoroughly mixed and slightly fluffy. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pie crust. Smooth it out with the spatula and top, if desired, with decorative crust pieces. Glaze exposed crust surfaces with egg white if desired.

Bake for 50-60 min. or until the edges of the filling start to brown, the top begins to crack, and the filling has swelled. The crust should also be a rich golden brown. If you glazed the crust, it will be shiny as well. Serve at room temperature or lightly chilled.

Crust Ingredients

Cut butter and shortening into the flour until it looks like coarse cornmeal. Add the water and mix gently until the mixture just starts coming together. Shape into a 4 inch disk, wrap with waxed paper, and chill until you are ready to roll it out.

Roll it out and line the pie tin, trimming the excess and fluting the edge. You will need to flute the edge or else the 9’’ tin won’t be big enough. Do this by trimming the crust so that it hangs about 1/2’’ or 1 cm. over the lip of the tin. Fold the overhang under and press it gently. Then, pinch the dough up gently at regular intervals to form an upright zigzagging lip of crust

If desired, gather up any scraps, chill and re-roll them, and then use a leaf shaped cookie cutter and cut out several pieces to decorate the top of the pie. Re-cover the crust with the waxed paper and keep it chilled until ready for filling. If you want to do a lot of leaves, make extra pie crust for this. If you plan on layering the leaves, roll them twice as thin or they won't bake through.

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