It is often served during the American holiday season, especially at Thanksgiving and Christmas in place of pumpkin pie, which is more traditional in other regions of the United States.

The filling consists of mashed sweet potatoes; evaporated milk; sugar; spices such as cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg; and eggs.

[1] The baked custard filling may vary from light and silky to dense, depending on the recipe's ratio of sweet potato, milk and eggs.

The sweet potato, which is native to the Americas, was likely used by enslaved Africans as an alternative to the yam found in their homeland.

[3] Recipes for sweet potato pie first appeared in printed cookbooks in the 18th century, where it was included with savory vegetable dishes.