This homemade purple sweet potato pie with gingerbread crust and pecan streusel is absolutely delicious! It’s a festive twist to an old-fashioned pie.
I don’t think Thanksgiving would be complete, at least for me, without some sort of sweet potato dish. Usually, we do a sweet potato casserole or candied yams. This year, since it’s only the four of us, I wanted to consolidate some dishes so we don’t have an overabundance of food to eat…I don’t know about you, but there are only so many days I can eat Thanksgiving leftovers!
When I saw these purple sweet potatoes at the grocery store, I knew I had to figure out some use them for. They have the most beautiful color and such a delicious flavor. Because they’re on the sweeter side, I thought they’d be perfect to use in a dessert. Instead of pumpkin pie this year, I’m making this homemade sweet potato pie with gingerbread crust and then topped it with a pecan streusel, that way I still get my sweet potato casserole fix!
These purple sweet potatoes are very similar to regular orange colored sweet potatoes and obtain their color naturally, the way cherries or raspberries do. They’re not sold everywhere and their reddish color skin is not always a clear indication of the purple hue inside. If you’re having trouble finding purple potatoes, you can use regular sweet potatoes in this recipe.
The best way to cook these potatoes is in the oven. Wash and dry your potatoes and wrap them in aluminum foil. Place in a 325F oven for 90 minutes or until thoroughly softened.
After they have cooled, remove the skins and mash the potatoes with the remaining pie ingredients.
The gingerbread crust adds a bit more spice and flavor than a regular crust and I think it complements the sweet potato nicely. After you have made and chilled the dough, roll it out between two pieces of wax or parchment paper. It makes it much easier to transfer to the pie plate too. Just flip the rolled crust into the pie plate and remove the parchment paper. Carefully line the pie dish with the dough and then tuck the edges under so that you have enough dough to form the edge of the crust. You can use a fork to pleat the edges or use your fingers (like in the photo above) to scallop the edges.
When you’re finished shaping the crust in the pie plate, pour your sweet potato pie filling into the crust and bake at 350F for 55-60 minutes. Meanwhile, make your crumble topping. After the pie has baked for 20-25 minutes, remove the pie from the oven and sprinkle the pecan streusel on top. You can also cover the crust edges with aluminum foil to prevent it from getting too brown. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 30-35 minutes, until filling is firm and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
This homemade purple sweet potato pie with gingerbread crust is not only delicious, the beautiful color will surely amaze your family and friends! Hope you enjoy this yummy dessert! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, friends!
Sweet Potato Pie With A Gingerbread Crust and Pecan Streusel
- Total Time: 2 hours 55 mins
- Yield: 9-inch pie 1x
Description
Old-fashioned sweet potato pie made with beautiful purple sweet potatoes! Complete with a homemade gingerbread crust and a pecan streusel topping.
Ingredients
Gingerbread Pie Crust:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or gf all-purpose flour (I used Bobs Red Mill 1 To 1 Baking Flour
one !important; margin:0px !important;” />)
- 3 tablespoons sugar (I used coconut sugar
one !important; margin:0px !important;” />)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch of cloves
- 1/4 cup butter (I used grass-fed)
- 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
(can use all shortening if dairy-free)
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 2–4 tablespoons ice cold milk (I used almond milk)
- 9” pie plate
one !important; margin:0px !important;” />)
one !important; margin:0px !important;” />)
(can use all shortening if dairy-free)
Sweet Potato Pie Filling:
- 2 cups cooked purple ore regular sweet potato (About 1 large or 2 smaller sweet potatoes)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup butter or coconut oil
, softened
- 1/3 – 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
or coconut nectar
(other sweetener will work, may have to increase liquid)
- 1/2 cup milk (a little more may be needed if filling is too thick)
- 2 eggs
, softened
or 
(other sweetener will work, may have to increase liquid)Streusel Topping:
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
(certified gluten-free, if needed)
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
or other nut
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons melted butter or coconut oil
(certified gluten-free, if needed)
or other nutInstructions
Baking The Potatoes:
- Wash and dry sweet potatoes and cover in aluminum foil. Place into a 325F oven for 90 minutes or so, until thoroughly soft when pierced with a fork. Depending on the size of your potatoes it may take less time. Let cool thoroughly, remove the skins and reserve the pulp for your filling.
Gingerbread Pie Crust:
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Using a fork or pastry blender, cut in butter, shortening, and molasses until mixture is coarse and crumbly. Mix in milk, a tablespoon at a time, just until dough comes together. It only took 2 tablespoons for my dough, but it will depend on your flour and the humidity in your kitchen. You don’t want it to be sticky. Add a little more flour, if needed, to make a soft dough. Shape the dough into a round disc and cover with plastic wrap. Place into the fridge for at least 15-20 minutes to chill.
Sweet Potato Pie Filling:
- Combine your cooked sweet potatoes along with the remaining pie filling ingredients. Use a hand mixer or potato masher to blend together all of the ingredients. These purple potatoes were already sweet, which required less sweetener. Before adding the eggs, you can taste your filling and add more sweetener, if desired. Also, if you use granulated sugar or if your potatoes are more dry on the inside, a little more of milk may be needed.
To Make The Streusel Topping:
- In a small bowl, combine pecans, sugar, and cinnamon. Add melted butter and mix together until well incorporated. Set aside for later.
Putting The Pie Together:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Remove the pie dough from the refrigerator and place between two pieces of wax/parchment paper or plastic wrap. This makes it much easier to roll out. Roll the dough between the paper into a 1/4-inch thick circle. It should be a few inches larger than your pie pan. Remove the top piece of paper and use the bottom piece to lift up and flip the dough into your pie pan. Carefully peal the paper off and gently fit the dough into the edges of the pan. It’s okay if the dough tears, just pinch it back together. Fold the edges under to form a crust and remove any excess. Use a fork to crimp the edges or you can use your fingers to make an easy scallop edge, like in the photo above.
- Pour your sweet potato filling into the formed crust. Place pie plate onto a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes. You’ll need to add the streusel topping at this point and then bake for an additional 30-35 minutes. It will bake for a total of 55-60 minutes or when the filling is no longer jiggly and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. The crust gets very brown easily, so it’s recommended to cover the edges with aluminum foil when you add the streusel topping. Let cool throughly before serving.
- Prep Time: 25 mins
- Cook Time: 150 mins
- Category: Dessert, Gluten Free
I plan on using this GF ginger pie crust to hold a maple walnut filling. I’ve made plenty of AP flour crusts before..I adapted the recipe to use my cuisenart processor. I will roll and bake the refrigerated dough in 4 days. This recipe came together beautifully and it smells heavenly.
★★★
Hi Margaret, that sounds like an amazing combo. Glad it came together well and I hope it ends up pairing nicely with your maple walnut filling! Have a happy thanksgiving!
Could you please tell me if these are Stokes purple sweet potatoes and what store carried them?
Hi Deb! I’m sorry for the late reply, I’m just seeing this question! I’m not sure if they’re Stokes, as they weren’t labeled as such in the store, but I have used Stokes potatoes before and they are basically the same thing. I always get my purple potatoes at either Sprout’s or Whole Foods though. Regular sweet potatoes can also be used in a pinch. Hope that helps!
Wegmans and Wholefoods are the only two stores I have seen that carries them. If your local store is out, try a local organic fruit and veggie place.
Hi there…..the pie crust definitely caught my attention – it sounded delicious however I’m curious as to why there is such emphasis placed on making sure that the butter is grass fed and substitution suggestions are made for vegan and/or vegetarian people but I don’t understand why palm shortening is listed when the degeneration and the destruction of the rain forest (to produce this oil/shortening) is nearly at the top of conservation efforts along with trying to keep the orangutan, and other animals that live in the rain forest, from distinction?
I do try to buy grass fed and cage free however we have all got to branch out and and take palm oil/shortening out of our shopping carts, as well, when we can. Albeit big companies use it in our everyday products as well.
Not trying to be on a soapbox and the pie does look delicious but we have to band together against the destruction of the rain forest also.
Hi!!! This looks absolutely delicious! I was wondering if I can use the filling from your vegan sweet potato pie with this crust/topping? As long as I do all shortening instead of butter! I love the idea of a gingerbread crust for Christmas, but need to make a vegan filling! Let me know if I would need to modify anything and if you think it would work 🙂
Thanks and happy holidays!
Hi Danielle, that sounds like a delicious idea! I haven’t tried it myself, but I think it would work fine. Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a try. Have a Merry Christmas! 🙂
This looks amazing! Just please don’t cook with aluminum foil. Aluminum can seep into food at high temps and is not good for you. Aluminum has been linked to Breast cancer and Alzheimer’s.
Hey Barb! Just wanted to let you know that while aluminum is indeed very dangerous for you, it is a very very small amount of Aluminum–if any at all–that would seep in. There are also very small amounts of aluminum in pretty much everything you eat, so the amount of Aluminum that could seep in is likely a very inconsequential amount and absolutely something that the human body is designed to dispose of. We are able to handle an estimated 1-2mg of Aluminum per 2.2 pounds of body weight per week without suffering from any adverse health effects, and the amount of Aluminum that *might* seep into the pie combined with the Aluminum that you naturally get from fruits and veggies (and much more!) everyday is significantly less than this seemingly tiny limit. Thank you for bringing people’s attention to this!
I can not wait to try this!!!!!
For the sweet potatoes! Do i need to press them down in the measuring cup or place them inside as chunks?!? If i press them down it greatly effects the measurement, adding much more sweet potato. The latter might be too less. Hhahaha Help!
You pack the cup, so press them down or your filling will be very liquidy! Let me know if you have any other questions! Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!
HI there! I was wondering how you’d recommend baking the crust for a no bake filling? I think this would be delicious with my cranberry filling but only the crust needs baking. Thanks!
Hi Shannon! That sounds delicious! I’ve never made this filling alone before, but I’m assuming it would be like blind-baking a regular crust. Line the crust in the pan with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans and bake at 375F for 20 minutes. Remove paper & weights and continue to bake for 10-15 minutes. Then remove, let cool completely, and fill with your filling of choice! Let me know how it goes! Enjoy!
The pie tastes good but I needed to remember that molasses changes the color of other items. Let’s just leave it at “it tastes good”!
This recipe is just what I was looking for. Easy to make and delicious. I would recommend a little less maple syrup, and a little more salt though (for the pie filling).
Thank you for your feedback, Emu! Glad you enjoyed it and were able to make the proper substitutions to suit your taste 🙂
Beautiful pie! I recently discovered these gems of tubers while searching for purple potatoes, the grocery didn’t have that but they had purple sweet potatoes. Imagine my excitement, finding a new food! So naturally I looked online for a good pie recipe and I can’t wait to try yours, it looks lovely. Thank You for sharing!
Thank you so much! Please let me know how you like it! Purple sweet potatoes are just so beautiful and produce the prettiest color pie! I hope you enjoy the recipe as much as we did!! 🙂
Oh my this looks like SUCH a fun cake! I just smiled when I saw this on Instagram.
Plus it looks super moist and utterly delicious too. I love the idea of adding spice to the crust.
Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much, Kimberly! I love using colorful fruits and veggies, don’t you?! Thank you for stopping by! Hope you’re enjoying the holidays with your family:)