It is basically the month of pumpkin, I won’t lie I don’t like pumpkin but love carving them. There are two different kinds of pumpkin. The ones you buy to carve for Halloween and the ones that you buy to cook.
You will need to cut the flesh off the outside of the pumpkin as this wont soften up when being cooked.
I have never had pumpkin pie and it isn’t a big thing here in the UK. I believe it is more of an american dessert. However, my boyfriend wanted to try it so I said I would make it for him. I was expecting it to be more orange because of the pumpkin but the sugar and spices give it a darker colour.
If you have a blender make sure you use it to get a nice puree. I didn’t have a blender and think my pumpkin mixture was too lumpy. Mashing does work but you will need to mash for a while to get the right consistency.
The spices in this recipe give off the best fall smell. I’ll admit the pie smelt so good while it was cooking and even once out of the oven.
Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
- short crust pastry
- 450 g pumpkin flesh
- 2 large eggs plus 1 yolk
- 75 g soft dark brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground allspice
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 275 ml double cream
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Roll it out the pastry and use it to line a 23cm/9in pie plate (not loose bottomed). Bake the pastry case blind for 20 minutes.
- To make the filling, cut the pumpkin into cut into 1in/2.5 cm chunks then place the pumpkin chunks on a baking tray, cover with foil and roast until tender. This will take about 20-30 minutes, depending on your pumpkin.
- Press the cooked pumpkin in a coarse sieve and to extract any excess water. Set aside to cool before blending in a food processor, or mashing by hand to a pureé. Lightly whisk the eggs and extra yolk together in a large bowl.
- Place the sugar, spices and the cream in a pan, bring to simmering point, giving it a whisk to mix everything together. Then pour it over the eggs and whisk it again briefly. Now add the pumpkin pureé, still whisking to combine everything thoroughly.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Pour the filling into your pastry case and bake for 35-40 minutes, by which time it will puff up round the edges but still feel slightly wobbly in the centre.
- Remove the pie from the oven and place the tin on a wire cooling rack. Serve warm or chilled (stored loosely covered in foil in the fridge) with some chilled créme fraïche or whipped cream.
