This could be my favourite pumpkin pie recipe to date. I had to do a little searching around to find a new recipe because I could not for the life of me find my usual dairy free one. Change can be a good thing if this is any example. Many pumpkin pie recipes call for creepy condensed milk which I can’t make myself use and others seem too rich and sweet with lots of cream and sugar. It was a bit of compromise with the half and half but well worth it for this delightful pie.
While this pie was heavenly the next day, it’s best made on the day you’ll be serving it- which is often Thanksgiving. I like to make the pumpkin puree, make and pre bake the pie crust in the morning and have the pie baking by mid day so I can then move on to the rest of the Thanksgiving supper.
There is very little reason why you can’t make your own pumpkin puree. It’s SO much better than canned for very little effort! The leftover puree can be used in oatmeal, pancakes, muffins….
Here’s what I did:
- Flaky Pie Pastry
- 1 1/2 cups fresh Pumpkin Puree
- 2 large Eggs
- 1/2 cup packed Demerara Sugar
- 1 1/2 cups Half and Half
- 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
- 3/4 tsp ground Ginger
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted
- Preheat oven to 350’F. Cut one sugar pumpkin in half. Scrape and remove seeds and pith (?). Place upside down on a parchment lined cookie sheet and roast for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Peel skin and puree pumpkin in food processor. (Separate seeds from pith if you are going to roast them. Recipe coming!)
- Make pie pastry and set aside in the fridge wrapped in wax paper for 30 minutes or until you are going to make your pie.
- Line a 10 inch pie pan with rolled out dough and crimp the edges. Pre bake crust for 10- 15 minutes for a crisper bottom crust. To avoid the pie crust from puffing up in the centre, carefully place a piece of parchment inside with the edges of the paper sticking straight up and fill with dried beans, dried rice or ceramic pie weights. Set aside to cool.
- Preheat oven to 375’F. Whisk eggs in a large mixing bowl until they are blended. Add sugar, half-and-half, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, ginger and salt. When they are blended, stir in the melted butter and pour into the filling into the pie shell.
- Place the pie in the oven and decrease the temperature to 350’F. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick poked into the centre comes out clean. Set the pie on a rack to cool and serve at room temperature with plain or maple whipped cream.
Maple Whipped Cream
- 1 cup Heavy Cream
- 2 tbsp Maple Syrup
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- Chill the bowl and beaters you plan to use to make the whipped cream for at least a couple hours. (Or not if you forget)
- Add the cream, maple syrup and vanilla. Beat until soft peaks form. If you are using a mixer, turn it off before the cream is completely whipped and whisk the final few seconds by hand to avoid over whipping it.
How do you choose pumpkins to make puree? We love pumpkin puree for pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, a couple of breads and a few pies here and there. I’m not sure I can beat stocking up on the organic cans during the season’s sales, but I was thinking about making and freezing a huge batch this season. How do you choose pumpkins and what is the yield?
I just picked up a couple sugar pumpkins from the organic section at my grocery store. (No farms on the island I live on.) These were more than enough to make a couple pies but like you, I like to make pancakes (recipe soon!) and a number of other recipes with the extra puree. It does freeze well.
These two smallish pumpkins gave me roughly five cups of puree. http://www.flickr.com/photos/51044395@N00/6279165754/
I’m planning on buying a couple more to freeze more puree for the winter. I’ve also been thinking about trying to can some myself. That would be ideal. Fresh made puree is the greatest but if you have to go canned, you’re probably best off with the organic version you’re already buying.
I have yet to make a pumpkin pie from a REAL pumpkin. I might just have to try it for Thanksgiving this year. We are going to be having it in Maine with my mother-in-laws new wonderful kitchen at our fingertips… Fun! Thanks!