Bourbon Sweet Potato Pie with Molasses Meringue
This Bourbon Sweet Potato Pie features a pecan-studded crust, a silky bourbon-spiked sweet potato filling, and a crown of toasted molasses meringue.
Equipment
- 9" Pie Plate
- Stand or hand mixer
- Small Baking Sheet
- Candy Thermometer
- small saucepan
- Kitchen Torch
Ingredients
Pecan Pastry
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- ¼-½ tsp kosher salt **
- ½ cup roasted unsalted pecans coarsely chopped
- ½ cup unsalted butter cut into cubes
- ¼ cup cold water
Bourbon Sweet Potato Filling
- 3 medium0sized sweet potatoes scrubbed
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp fresh ginger grated
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 1½ cups half and half
- ¼ cup bourbon
Molasses Meringue
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 tbsp fancy molasses
- 4 large egg whites room temperature
- ½ tsp cream of tartar
Instructions
For the Pecan Pastry
- Pour the all-purpose flour into a large bowl. Add the sugar, salt, and pecans and whisk to combine.1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp granulated sugar, ¼-½ tsp kosher salt **, ½ cup roasted unsalted pecans
- To this mixture add the butter. Toss the cubes lightly with your hands to ensure they are coated in flour. Roll the cubes through your thumbs and index fingers to create thin sheets of butter. Keep working the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. ***½ cup unsalted butter
- Once the butter is rubbed into the flour, add the water. Only add as much water as you need to get the dough to come together. You might not need it all. The dough shouldn’t be uniform, it should be a bit of a shaggy mess.¼ cup cold water
- Transfer the dough to the counter and lightly knead it into a ball. Just knead it enough to get it to hold together. Form the dough into a ball and press it into a disc. Chill the dough for an hour.
- Roll the pastry out to about a 1/8 of an inch thickness. Line a 9-inch pie plate with the pastry, and using your thumb and index fingers, crimp the edges. Place the pie plate in the freezer and chill for 30 minutes. Now is a good time to preheat the oven to 400°F
- Once the 30 minutes have passed, dock the pastry and cover it with parchment paper. Fill the center with dried beans and place the crust in the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes on the lower rack to encourage browning on the bottom and discourage too much browning up top. Take the crust out of the oven and let cool slightly before removing the beans.
For the Filling
- Place the potatoes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and prick them all over with a fork. Transfer the potatoes to the middle rack and roast for one hour.3 medium0sized sweet potatoes
- Take the potatoes out of the oven, and turn the oven off. We want the temperature to fall for 350°F, so hopefully, it will do just that while we make the filling. Set the potatoes aside until cool enough to handle. Slice down the center lengthwise and remove the skin. They should come off quite easily.
- Transfer the potatoes to a large bowl. Mash the potatoes until quite smooth. Whisk in one room temperature egg until fully integrated. Add another egg and again, whisk until fully integrated.2 large eggs
- Add the light brown sugar, fresh ginger, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, ground cardamom, and salt. Pour in the melted unsalted butter and mix until combined. Pour in the half and half and stir until well integrated. Finally, add a 1/4 cup of bourbon and stir once again.½ cup light brown sugar, 1 tsp fresh ginger, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ½ tsp ground nutmeg, ½ tsp ground cardamom, ½ tsp kosher salt, 2 tbsp unsalted butter, 1½ cups half and half, ¼ cup bourbon
- Pour the filling into the pie shell. **** Smooth the surface of the pie and place it in a 350°F oven. Bake for 55 minutes or until set on the edges but still a little soft in the center. Set the pie aside to cool completely.
For the Meringue
- Pour the sugar, water, and molasses. Stir to combine. Place mixture over high heat and cook until the mixture registers a temperature of 240°F.1 cup granulated sugar, ½ cup water, 1 tbsp fancy molasses
- While the sugar mixture is cooking, add the cream of tartar to the egg whites and whisk until soft peaks form. This will require you to divide your attention, so you can keep an eye on the progress of both.4 large egg whites, ½ tsp cream of tartar
- Once your sugar mixture has reached its target temperature, whisk it into the eggs whites in a slow continuous stream. This mixture is extremely hot, so try to keep your fingers clear as best you can.
- Once the meringue is whipped, pile it onto the pie, and using the back of a spoon, create a series of pleasing swoops. Use a culinary torch to toast the meringue and serve.
Notes
**You can walk back the amount of salt you use here. I like my pastry to be on the edge of savory to provide contrast against the sweet filling. But if you’re more of a sweet person, cut the salt in half. The pastry will be no worse for wear.
***Working with cold hands yields the best results, so if your hands run hot place them under cold water for a few minutes before plunging in. Even with cold hands, we want to be quick and efficient.
****You might have filling leftover. How much filling you have will depend on the size of the sweet potatoes your selected. If you do have leftover filling, you can pour it into ramekins and bake them alongside the pie for 20 minutes or until set.