Sweet Potato Pie with GINGERSNAP crust

SWEET POTATO PIE

From my cousin, Kim Crawford—she brought this pie to share on pizza pie night at the Gordon House. I don’t know if I’ll ever bake a pumpkin pie again after having this!

FILLING:

1 (1 pound) sweet potato, with skin

½ cup butter, softened

½ cup white sugar

½ brown sugar

½ cup milk

2 large eggs

½ tsp ground nutmeg

½ tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ginger

1 tbsp flour 

1 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD:

Place whole sweet potato in pot and cover with water; bring to a boil. Boil until tender when pierced with a fork, 40 to 50 minutes.

Run sweet potatoes under cold water. Remove and discard skin.

Break sweet potato flesh apart in a bowl. Add butter and mix with an electric mixer until well combined. Add sugar, milk, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, flour and vanilla; beat on medium speed until mixture is smooth. Pour filling into unbaked pie crust.

Bake at 350 oven until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Pie will puff up like a soufflé and then sink down as it cools. 

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GINGERSNAP PIE CRUST

CRUST:

1 (16 ounce) package gingersnap cookies

⅓ cup brown sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 

Set aside 12 to 18 whole gingersnap cookies. Crush remaining cookies until you have 1 1/2 cups fine crumbs.

Mix gingersnap crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter together in a bowl until well combined. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan.

Arrange whole gingersnap cookies upright around the border of the springform pan, pressing into the base and overlapping slightly if necessary, so that they stand firmly.

Bake in the preheated oven until set, about 7 minutes. Cool crust completely before filling.