Apart from the last two modern-day versions, most of the sweet potato pie recipes in the collection below come from way back — the early part of the 20th century, between 1915 and 1922. On those, the instructions are written very simply, which was common to recipes at the time. You might have to get a little creative with them, but, at the very least, they should give you some ideas for ways to spice up a real old-fashioned sweet potato pie of your own!
Recipe #1: Southern sweet potato pie (1915)
Sweet potato pie is very good and a fine way to use up some of the leftovers. Mash four good-sized sweet potatoes, adding a small piece of butter, one egg, and half a teacup sugar. Add small half teaspoon each of following spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and one tablespoon molasses with one-fourth teaspoon soda.
Mix ingredients together and use sweet milk to form a rather thick batter. Bake with one crust only. This amount will make two pies of good size. Salt to taste.
Recipe #2: Southern sliced sweet potato pie (1915)
Boil until tender sweet potatoes; peel. Make rich pie crust, roll out. Line deep pan, bottom and sides, with crust in one piece, then slice sweet potatoes to cover bottom of pan. Sprinkle well with sugar; slice bits of butter over sugar and potatoes; dust lightly with ground cinnamon, cloves and allspice.
Next, put another layer of potatoes sliced, sugar, butter and spice. Continue until pan is full, then a cup of hot water. Put on top crust same as any pie; finish around edge any way preferred.
Bake slowly until well done. To be eaten hot. Use enough sugar and butter to make a good syrup or juice for pie, as this pie should not be dry when cut. Use very little spice, just enough to season well.
Recipe #3: Sweet potato custard pie (1915)
Boil and mash fine sweet potatoes, pass through a sieve to remove lumps and strings, then use same as stewed pumpkin. Bake in one crust. Season with a little cinnamon or nutmeg.
Recipe #4: Southern mashed sweet potato pie (1915)
Boil sweet potatoes, mash while hot, put in milk, a little sugar, a big piece of butter; mash real soft, beat smooth, put in open pie crust; bake. Can put nutmeg or cinnamon on top, or without.
Recipe #5: No-crust sweet potato custard recipe (1921)
Bake three sweet potatoes, remove the pulp, and mash. Add a quarter of a teaspoonful each of salt and paprika, three tablespoonfuls of melted butter, a pinch of ground cinnamon and four tablespoonfuls of milk. Whip until very light and gradually blend with two generous cupfuls of hot milk, two well-beaten eggs and a teaspoonful of sugar.
Mix well, turn into a buttered baking dish and dust the top with grated nutmeg. Set the dish in a pan of hot water and bake slowly until set in the center.
Recipe #6: Sweet potato pie recipe (1921)
To half a pint of milk, add a cupful of seasoned, mashed sweet potatoes, one tablespoonful of butter and one-eighth of a cupful of top of the bottle [cream]. Beat until light and creamy and fold in the beaten yolk of three eggs, sugar to taste, the grated yellow rind of one orange, a pinch of grated nutmeg and small cupful of seeded raisins. Turn into a deep pie pastry and bake like a custard.
When nearly cooked, pile a meringue on top made from the stiffly-whipped egg whites and three tablespoonfuls of powdered sugar. Set in a very moderate oven to brown delicately.
Recipe #7: Sweet potato pie (1921)
Pare and grate one large potato. Add to it a cupful of sugar, a saltspoonful of salt, a tablespoonful of melted butter, a cupful of rich milk in which two eggs have been beaten, a teaspoonful of vanilla and a little grating of nutmeg. Pour into a good crust, and bake until the crust is done. A latticed crust is often added. or a meringue if the pie is for a special occasion.
Recipe #8: Sweet potato pie (1921)
Two cups grated cooked sweet potato, 1 tablespoon butter, 1/3 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1-1/2 cups milk, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ginger, 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Line a pie pan with pie crust. Cook potatoes, and when cold, grate them. Beat eggs, butter and sugar till very light. Add milk, seasoning and potato. Pour into pie crust and bake in a rather slow oven till the custard is firm to the touch.
Recipe #9: Sweet potato pie (1921)
Boil 3 large sweet potatoes, peel and mash through a sieve. Add 5 lightly beaten eggs, 2/3 cup of butter, 1/3 cup of sugar, grated rind of 2 lemons and the juice of 1 lemon, 1/2 cup of orange juice and 1-1/2 teaspoons of grated nutmeg. Mix well and bake in a pastry-lined tin.
Recipe #10: Sweet potato pie (1922)
Take one cupful each of sour cream and sugar, one pint of mashed sweet potato, the yolks of four eggs, one teaspoonful of cinnamon, one-half a nutmeg and salt to taste. Bake in one crust and spread while hot with strained honey. A meringue may be placed over it if preferred; the latter will not be so sweet.
Recipe #11: Southern sweet potato pie (1922)
1 good-sized sweet potato
3 eggs
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter
l tablespoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
Boil one good-sized or two small sweet potatoes, and when done, mash a tablespoon of butter with it. Beat the yolks of the eggs and the sugar together, and add the milk and gradually the mashed potato, cinnamon and nutmeg. Line a pie plate and fill with this mixture, and bake half an hour.
Have ready the whites of the eggs, beaten very stiff and sweetened with powdered sugar. Cover the pie with the meringue, and place in the oven until a light brown.
When the pies are baked, set them aside in an airy piece to cool. The sight and savor of a row of delicious pies has kept happiness in many a home.
Traditional sweet potato pie from 1979
Ingredients
- 2 slightly beaten eggs
- 1-1/2 cups cooked, mashed, sweet potatoes
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1-2/3 cups undiluted evaporated Milk
- One 9-inch single-crust unbaked pie shell
Instructions
Combine eggs, sweet potatoes, sugar, salt, and spices. Gradually add evaporated milk. Mix well. Pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake in hot oven (425 F) 15 minutes; reduce to moderate (350 F) and continue baking about 40 minutes, or until knife inserted near center of pie comes out clean. Cool before serving. Garnish as desired. Makes one 9-inch pie.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 519Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 112mgSodium: 428mgCarbohydrates: 67gFiber: 2gSugar: 55gProtein: 16g
Click Americana offers approximate nutrition information as a general reference only, and we make no warranties regarding its accuracy. Please make any necessary calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe, and consult with a qualified healthcare professional if you have dietary concerns.
Double layer sweet potato pie – Cheesecake-style (1996)
Ingredients
4 oz. Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 cup cold milk
1 can (16 oz.) pumpkin
2 pkg. (4 serving size) Jell-O vanilla instant pudding mix
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
8 oz. tub Cool Whip whipped topping, thawed
1 prepared graham cracker crust (6 oz.)
Directions
1. MIX cream cheese, 1 tablespoon milk and sugar in a large bowl with wire whisk until smooth. Gently stir in 1-1/2 cups of whipped topping. Spread into the bottom of crust.
2. POUR 1 cup milk into large bowl. Add pumpkin, pudding mixes and spices. Beat with wire whisk until well mixed (Mixture will be thick). Spread over cream cheese layer.
3. REFRIGERATE 4 hours or until set. Garnish with additional whipped topping, if desired. Store leftover pie in the refrigerator.
Hint: Soften cream cheese in microwave on HIGH for 15 to 20 seconds.
