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When Jennifer Garner isn’t acting, she’s putting in the work for her food brand, Once Upon a Farm. The company makes organic snacks for kids, toddlers, and babies, and Garner loves the farm-to-fridge snack pouches so much, she eats them herself. One of the newest flavors is “Farmer Jen’s Sweet Potato Pie,” and it’s inspired by the sweet potato pie recipe Garner got from her grandmother.

Jennifer Garner
Jennifer Garner | Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Jennifer Garner’s Sweet Potato Pie ingredients

Garner made the pie on her “Pretend Cooking Show” on Dec. 1. The video also starred her mother, Patricia, who cooked the holiday treat along with her daughter over a video call. The Alias alum and her mother recorded the video the day after Thanksgiving 2020 because, well, her and Ben Affleck’s kids really wanted more pie.

“@Onceuponafarm is celebrating #GivingTuesday by launching our official partnership with @savethechildren AND with our newest blend— Farmer Jen’s Sweet Potato Pie!” Garner wrote in her caption. “My Grandma Exie’s beloved holiday recipe— without the sugar!—WITH sweet potatoes grown on my family farm!—AND donations to @savethechildren!— this blend couldn’t have more meaning for my family and me if it tried. Special guest stars: my family! I love you @emmaa.carpenter (and your additional camera work, too).”

Did you catch that “without the sugar!” line? It’s true, neither the Once Upon a Farm recipe nor Garner’s interpretation call for sugar. (Natural flavors is the brand’s whole M.O.) Her mother does add sugar, however, and that’s not the step Garner skips when cooking this for her three kids—she also nixes the milk and eggs. Sugar, milk, and eggs are typical staples of sweet potato pie recipes.

Here’s everything you’ll need to make Garner’s version of her Grandma Exie’s sweet potato pie:

  • 4-5 sweet potatoes
  • 1/2 stick butter
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ginger
  • 1/2 tsp allspice
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp cloves
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tsp salt

If you’d like to make Pat’s version of the recipe (aka Grandma Exie’s recipe that she got from a flier sent out by a utility company), you’ll need 3 cups of milk and 2 eggs as well.

Jennifer Garner
Jennifer Garner | John Shearer/Getty Images
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Jennifer Garner’s Sweet Potato Pie instructions

Here’s how to make the pie. To start, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Next, peel the sweet potatoes, cover them with water in a large pot, bring to a boil, simmer until the potatoes are tender, and then drain.

Next, Garner uses a hand mixer to beat the sweet potatoes while they’re still hot. Her mother adds the spices first, but the actress prefers to add them after this step.

When you’re ready to add the spices, you’ll add all of the spices the recipe calls for.

“I use the recipe to start and then add more,” Garner notes in her instructions.

If you’re using the milk and eggs, add that next and mix in. This should lighten your mixture’s color and make the texture a little creamier. If you’re making Garner’s version, it will retain that signature sweet potato orange color.

Next, pour the mixture into a buttered baking dish. If you made Pat’s recipe, bake for an hour. If you made Garner’s recipe, just heat through. Add a layer of small marshmallows and keep in the oven until they’re browned, and your sweet potato pie/pudding is ready!

Garner and her family makes this for Thanksgiving, but let’s be real, we shouldn’t limit our tasty treat intake just to the holiday season.

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