Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: This a great pie to make 1 day in advance (without the meringue topping) because the flavors are even better on day 2—cover tightly and store at room temperature. Add meringue topping within a few hours before serving. The pie dough can also be prepared ahead of time. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can also boil, drain, and puree the potatoes up to 2 days ahead of time. Bring to room temperature before continuing with the recipe. Baked pie freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months, thaw at room temperature before using.
Special Tools (affiliate links): Rolling Pin | 9-inch Pie Dish | Pastry Brush | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Pie Crust Shield | Cooling Rack | Double Boiler (optional) | Whisk | Instant Read Thermometer | Kitchen Torch
Crust: Both linked pie crust recipes make 2 crusts. You only need 1 crust for this pie, so freeze the 2nd half for another use. For the pictured pie, I actually used half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose flour (1 and 1/4 cups each). I kept everything else in the pie crust recipe and instructions the same. It had a wonderful nutty flavor. We loved it, especially with this pie.
Butter: You need 6 Tablespoons of softened unsalted butter in the filling. To help it blend with the liquid ingredients in the filling, make sure it’s super soft. (Even softer than room temperature butter.) Cut it into pieces and microwave it for 15-20 seconds to help it soften.
Bourbon: I’m not much of a bourbon connoisseur. Since the bourbon is being used in a recipe and you only need 1/4 cup, no need to purchase the fancy expensive stuff. I used Jim Beam. If you want to skip the alcohol, try my brown sugar sweet potato pie instead. You can top that with this marshmallow topping if desired.
Eggs: You need 1 large egg + an additional 2 large egg yolks in the filling. Conveniently, you can use the 2 whites for the meringue topping. You also need 1 egg for the egg wash, which is brushed on the crust before baking. This means you need 4 large eggs total.
Toasting topping in the oven: Instead of a torch, you can use your oven. Preheat to 450°F (232°C), and bake until the meringue begins to brown, usually about 2–3 minutes—keep a close eye on it. You could also use the broiler, but I find this method quickly burns the exposed crust, so I generally don’t recommend it unless you cover just the crust with some aluminum foil.
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