More pie!

My house is being overrun with sweet potatoes. I get them every week in my CSA and I never know what to do with them. Finally, after weeks of pile up, I had enough. We had company coming! I decided to make a pie.

I found a sweet potato pie recipe in an old recipe of Gourmet that looked easy enough. I made some adaptations due to food allergies of my guests and the constrictions of my refrigerator. I think it made it even better.

Sweet Potato Pie with a Gingersnap crust (click here for the original recipe)

Crust:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus additional for buttering pie plate
Flour for dusting
1 cup finely crushed gingersnap cookies (5 ounces; 20 2-inch cookies)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt

Filling:
2 lb sweet potatoes (I used 5)
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
3 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cream
1/4 cup non fat milk
1 tablespoon whiskey (I used Maker's Mark)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour pie plate, so that nothing sticks later.

Toss together all crust ingredients in a bowl with a fork until crumbs are moistened, then press evenly over bottom and up side of pie plate. Bake crust 6 minutes, then cool on a rack.


Increase oven temperature to 400°F.

Prick each sweet potato once with a fork. Roast for one hour, or until tender. Halve potatoes lengthwise and cool. Don't they look pretty?


I could have just eaten them plain at this point. They were really good.

This next part is tricky, so I'm copying it straight from the magazine:
While potatoes cool, cook sugar in a dry 8-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, undisturbed, until it begins to melt. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a fork, until sugar melts into a deep golden caramel. Remove from heat. Carefully pour water down side of skillet (mixture will bubble and steam vigorously), then return to heat and simmer, stirring, until hardened caramel is completely dissolved. Remove from heat.

It sounds harder than it is. I'm usually freaked out by caramel making, but it was pretty easy.


Honestly, you could probably skip this step and just add some sugar to the filling mixture....

When potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel and add the flesh to the bowl of a food processor or a regular bowl and mash them with a potato masher/fork. Blend in the food processor until smooth (or just mash), then add eggs, cinnamon, and salt and mix until smooth. Add milk/cream, caramel, whiskey, and vanilla, and blend until combined well.

Pour filling into crust!


Bake at 375 for 40-50 minutes and then cool on a rack for an hour. It will continue to set while it cools, so don't be too put off if the center is still jiggly (but it can't be soupy. That wouldn't work).

Serve warm.


It's good pie! Everyone liked it. Zack said he likes it more than pumpkin pie, which I thought it was nice. Cadence liked it too.


Cutest baby ever. Plus she likes my cooking (as do her parents).