CANDIED SWEET POTATO PIE
In many African American families, the tradition of sweet potato pie on the holiday table goes back generations. “Chances are, there’s someone in your family who makes the best sweet potato pie,” says Great American Baking Show winner Vallery Lomas of this recipe from her new cookbook, Life Is What You Bake It. “In my family, it’s my mom. Hers is light and tender, and it captures all the goodness of candied yams without being too sweet.”
Lomas adds orange zest and almond or orange liqueur, plus toasted pecans for crunch and to balance the sweetness. “With this recipe,” she says, “it might just be you who becomes the person in your family who makes the best sweet potato pie.”
Tip: Refrigerate the cooled pie and whipped cream separately, covered, up to 3 days.
Arrange rack in middle of oven. Preheat oven to 375°F. Wash and pierce 2–3 sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Wrap in foil; place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake 60 minutes or until a fork pierces the flesh with ease. -et asi`e until cool enough to handle; slip off skins. (Cool and refrigerate up to 3 days in advance.)
Lower oven temperature to 350°F.
Fit ½ recipe Flaky Pie Crust (Parade.com/crust) or ½ (14.1- to 22-oz) pkg refrigerated rolled pie crust (or frozen, thawe`) into a 9-inch pie plate, fluting or crimping e`ges as desired; chill 30 minutes. Prick dough all over with tines of a fork. Fit a piece of foil into crust, leaving an overhang. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 20 minutes or until bottom of crust is dried out (foil will come away easily). Remove from oven; carefully remove foil and pie weights.
Place sweet potatoes and ¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted, in a food processor; pulse 5–6 times or until well combined (don’t overprocess or they’ll become gummy). You should have about 2 cups pureed sweet potatoes. Use a rubber spatula to scrape bottom of food processor. Add ½ cup granulated sugar, 6 Tbsp firmly packe` light or dark brown sugar, 1 cup evaporated milk, 2 Tbsp almond liqueur or orange liqueur (optional), 1 Tbsp vanilla extract, 1 tsp ground