sweet potato pie problem

[grumpyoldman]

my wife makes the best sweet potato pie i have ever eaten , the problem is that it falls as it cools ,
its a thing of beauty while its in the oven , and she has tried to leave it in the oven to cool but it still falls
any ideas how to keep it from falling ?

 

[medtran49]

She may be beating the mixture too much, i.e. incorporating a lot of air, which causes it to rise sort of like a souffle does and then fall when the air bubbles collapse as it cools.

 

[grumpyoldman]

well she does run the sweet potatoes through the food processor to get them silky smooth , would adding something like corn starch to the mix help ?

 

[medtran49]

I'm talking about adding air when she beats in the eggs, spices, sugar, whatever kind of dairy she is using, etc. She could also try pulsing the FP as little as possible to get them smooth.
 
Have her try beating until the mixture is just combined.

Adding cornstarch will thicken the mixture and probably change the texture.

 

[caseydog]

Another tip I saw on YouTube for pumpkin pie cracking may also work for sweet potato pie. That was to let the pie cool down at a much slower rate by leaving it in the turned off oven after baking.

I've never tried it, but it does kind of make sense. Cracking is a result of shrinking of the pie filling, so it seems to be related with the problem your wife is having.

CD

 

[grumpyoldman]

she tried what you are talking about on youtube , she turned off the oven and let the pie cool in the oven very slowly ..it DID help but still sank some