Pumpkin Pie:
This pumpkin pie recipe features in my blog post “Thanksgiving, Celebrating Togetherness with Great Food”. Check it out here.
About this Recipe:
Prep Time
Pastry: 15 mins
Filling: 15 mins
Total Time
1hr 35min (inc. chill time)
1hr – 1hr 15 mins
Servings:
8-10
Equipment: food processor (optional), bowl, knife, cup, cling wrap, whisk, 22.5cm (9″) pie tin Optional: parchment paper, baking beads/dried beans or rice
Recipe Introduction:
I went to the pumpkin patch this year for Halloween and bought three big pumpkins. I roasted one and made 7 pints of pumpkin puree! Luckily it can easily be frozen. Pumpkin pie was top of my list to make and I have many more recipes waiting in the wings for the kilos of pumpkin that I still have left.
I’m sure that canned pumpkin puree is not as readily available in the UK as it is in the States but I’m certain that you’ll be able to find it around Thanksgiving. If not it really is easy to make yourself.
For my pie, I made my own shortcrust pastry with some good stone-milled flour. You could just as easily buy some shortcrust pastry or a prepared pie crust from the supermarket.
Pumpkin Puree:
The big orange pumpkins sold for carving are not really suitable for cooking with. The flesh tends to be stingy and watery. They are cultivated to be largely hollow making them easier to carve, and this makes them relatively light for their size.
At the pumpkin patch, I had to search around for the right type to cook with. I didn’t want a hollow pumpkin so I focused on how heavy they were. A good heavy pumpkin is indicative of dense flesh, perfect for cooking with.
I was lucky enough to find the big orange Cinderella (aka Rouge Vif d’Etampes), and Long Island Cheese pumpkins, both favoured by chefs and perfect for my pie. Don’t worry if you don’t have pumpkin, butternut squash works just as well.
Pumpkin puree is really easy to make. Start by preheating your oven to 175C (350C).
Cut your pumpkin or squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Put them to one side so that you can toast them later.
Place the pumpkin cut side down on a roasting tin with 1/4″ of water in the bottom. This helps to steam the pumpkin while cooking and prevents it from drying out.
Bake until the flesh is really soft and comes away from the skin easily. Depending on the size of your pumpkin this could be one hour plus.
Let the pumpkin cool sufficiently to handle it and then scrape the flesh from the skin. I ran mine through a food processor to get a really smooth consistency but if you don’t have one you can mash it.
Use it as needed or freeze in jars or containers.
Pumpkin Pie Recipe:
If you have purchased dough or a pie crust jump down to the filling.
Pastry Ingredients:
Makes one pie crust
Ingredients
185g (1¼ cup) flour (plain / all-purpose flour)
2 tsp white sugar
½ tsp salt (I like coarse-grain salt for a salty zing)
115g (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small chunks
2½ tbsp ice-cold water (+ more as required)
Pastry Method:
Step 1:
Place flour, sugar and salt in a food processor to combine (if making by hand see recipe tip 1).
Step 2:
Cut in butter and pulse a few times until pea-sized (chunkier butter means flakier pastry)
Step 3:
Add chilled water while pulsing until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. The mixture should form a dough when pinched together.
Step 4:
Turn out onto a floured board and bring together into a round of dough. (don’t knead it).
Step 5:
Wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for an hour before using (see recipe tip 2).
Step 6:
Dust rolling surface with flour. Dust dough with flour. Roll out dough to a few centimetres larger than your pie dish.
Step 7:
Wrap dough around your rolling pin and drape over the pie tin. Trim the excess but leave some overhang. I leave the edge quite rustic but you can crimp or decorate the edge as you please.
Step 8:
Optional: Blind bake your crust (see recipe tip 3).
Preheat oven to 220C (424F).
Prick the base with a fork, line pie crust with parchment paper and weigh down with baking beads (I used dried peas from the cupboard).
Bake for 15 minutes. Remove paper and beads then bake for 5 mins more.
Filling Ingredients:
1 pie crust (recipe above or store bought)
450g (2 cups) pumpkin puree
3 large eggs
250g (1 ¼ cup) sugar (I used light muscovado)
½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground or freshly grated nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves
240ml (1 cup) double cream
60ml (¼ cup) milk (use full-fat but you can use semi)
Pumpkin Pie Method:
Step 1:
Preheat oven to 190C (375F) and place your pie crust in a deep 22.5cm (9″) pie tin if not prepared already.
Step 2:
In a mixer, food processor or a bowl whisk together the pumpkin puree, eggs, sugar, salt, spices, cream and milk until well combined.
Step 3:
Pour the mixture into your pie crust. Only fill to 3/4 full to allow for expansion. Excess filling may be frozen.
Step 4:
Bake for 45- 60 minutes until almost set (see recipe tip 4). A little wobble is fine.
Step 5:
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
Step 6:
Enjoy your pumpkin pie with cream, ice cream or a scoop of healthier crème fraîche.
Recipe Tips:
1. If you are making it by hand, mix the dry ingredients, rub in the butter then mix in the water with a spatula or wooden spoon. Jump back to step 3 in the recipe.
2. I like to make several pie doughs at once. Pie dough freezes well, just wrap in cling wrap and put in bags. Future pies are then super easy as half the work is done. Return to recipe.
3. Blind baking is optional. It is the process of pre-baking the crust to prevent it from going soggy if you are using a wet filling. Pricking the base helps to stop the pastry from bubbling up. If you prefer a crisper bottom, include this step. Return to recipe.
4.When baking the pie, keep an eye on the crust. You may need to protect it with aluminium foil or a pie crust guard to prevent it from catching. Return to recipe.
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