FRESH-BAKED PUMPKIN PIE FROM "REAL" PUMPKIN

[maggie~hamilton]

Sugar in the Raw is also much healthier and nutricious -- it actually has nutritional value rather than the empty calories of refined sugar. And, yes, it does have a subtle taste that adds just a touch of flavor to anything you use it in. It IS delicious in coffee.

I think the other questions were answered.

btw I use fresh-grind spices when baking -- whole cinammon sticks, whole cloves, whole nutmeg, whole allspice and fresh ginger root. The ginger in particular gives a real hearty "zing" to dishes. You may as well not bother to add powdered ginger at all.

Also, when I make my own pie crusts, I use whole-wheat flour. Again, it has better taste than bleached/refined flour and is so much healthier. This time around, I have to confess I cheated a little. I was short on time as we were leaving that evening for Palm Springs for the weekend, and with everything else I had to do, I just didn't have time to make pie crusts. So I used Marie Calendar frozen deep-dish crusts which, from experimentation, are the best prepared crusts you can get.

I have also used the "pie crust sticks" that you can get in the baking goods section; they 'look' like home-made crusts but are not as light and flaky. There's also Krusteaz Pie Crust Mix which also works pretty well. Admittedly, anything other than home-made is a compromise.

And again, I do use whole wheat flour whenever I can use it. Some people find that cakes and cookies made with whole-wheat flour are too heavy and chewy; so what most bakers do is use half and half whole white and bleached refined. I personally like the 'heaftier' texture.

 

[maggie~hamilton]

oh - yes, do please post the recipe for pumpkin chiffon pie. sounds heavenly!

 

[petek]

Charles, to clarify something for non-bakers and foreigners.

1/2 cup of light brown sugar,,, packed right?
1/2 cup of Sugar in the raw,,,,,poured or packed.

Sugar in the raw is more pourable than regular browns so I'm not sure if it also gets packed when measuring..
Someone like Louis might not have Sugar in the Raw so if he had to substitute it with more brown sugar he probably wouldn't want to add another full 1/2 cup of brown or else it might be too sugary.

 

[maggie~hamilton]

1/2 cup of light brown sugar -- LIGHTLY packed
1/2 cup of Sugar in the raw -- poured

 

[parunner58]

Charles,

Your pies look soooo good. I made them one year from fresh pumpkins and it is worth the time.

Mike

 

[vinvac]

Charlie,

Thanks for sharing this wonderful thread with us. I have only had real pumpkin pie once, we had a lady at our church that made from scratch, pumpkin pies...they were awesome...

I am going to the store to find some pie pumpkins and give this a try.

Looks like work...but well worth it.

Morgan

 

[tlee618]

Thanks for sharing this Charles, those pies look outstanding. I have never seen pie pumpkins before but will look for them.

 

[mielabor]

Allspice

Louis, the Dutch word for allspice is "piment".

 

[gewa1054wguy]

Yumm

Hi Charles,

Look forward to tasting your great cooking at the next wash-in, planned for late January.

Mike

 

[gansky1]

They look beautiful and delicious, thanks for sharing! My grandmother used to do this with pumpkins from their garden, but I've not had one made this way in over 20 years.

Terry, you'll have to come up and we'll hunt for pumpkins and try it together - I wonder how they'd do broiled instead of baked? ;-)

 

[sudsmaster]

Forgive me Cookie, for I have sinned

OK, I made a late night run to deposit some checks at the bank, post a bill in the mail, and pick up some sundries at the local Safeway.

Looked for fresh pumpkins; they were all out. But Sara Lee came to my rescue, and got a killer 2 for 1 deal on a big frozen pie and also 2 for 1 deal on aerosol whipped cream.

OK, I admit, I've never really cared for pumpkin pie but Maggie's delicious recipe inspired me. Hopefully Sara won't let me down.

 

[maggie~hamilton]

Sudsie, are you going to have a cup of Tasters Choice® Freeze Dried Coffee with your Sara Lee pie?

*urg*

 

[sudsmaster]

Maggie, even I have standards

And instant coffee isn't one of them...

I hate to say it, but I think homemade pumpkin pie turned me off to the genre in childhood. Maybe the pumpkin was rotten or something. Or maybe it was from low quality canned puree. I have occasionally tasted a good pumpkin pie since then, but the quality seems unpredictable and don't care for that rancid taste that some pumpkin pies seem to feature. So it took some act of faith actually to buy the first pumpkin pie of my life, even if it was from the freezer compartment.

This got me wondering - is there such a thing as avocado pie? I would think that it might be pretty good, especially with some of the lighter tasting avocados, like Bacon.

 

[gizmo]

It is interesting that different cultures do different things with certain foods. I remember when I was in USA and first tried pumpkin pie, it was very sweet and slightly bland, but I enjoyed it. (pancakes and bacon with maple syrup was another strange sensation - sweet and meat on the one plate!)
Here in AU pumpkin is served as a vegetable, almost never as a sweet, except in Senator Flo's Pumpkin Scones. AU pumpkins have stronger flavour and colour than those I remember from USA.
I love roast pumpkin or steamed pumpkin, pumpkin and cashew curry, and pumpkin soup is very popular in AU - at work we make a batch of pumpkin soup most weeks. The restaurant where I work caters mainly to overseas tourists, and one tour company catering mainly to Germans will not allow us to serve Pumpkin soup to their German groups - he says that for German people, pumpkin is pig food not human food! Yet we have other German groups who love it.

Allspice - I use it in my Sugarless Fruit Cake, it has a complex flavour reminiscent of cinnamon and nutmeg. On the label it says it is also known as piment.

Chris.

 

[turquoisedude]

Maggie, here's the chiffon pie recipe

Enjoy!!
Be warned: the pie contains uncooked egg whites, so keep this pie refrigerated and use up leftovers quickly.

3 eggs
1 ¼ cups cooked pumpkin
¾ cup Milk
¾ cup brown sugar
1 envelope (1 tablespoon) unflavored gelatin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ginger
¼ teaspoon mace
1/3 cup granulated sugar

-Separate eggs, put the whites in a mixing bowl and set aside.
-Put egg yolks, pumpkin, milk, brown sugar, gelatin, and spices into the blender jar. Cover and blend at high speed for 2 minutes until the mixture is smooth.
-Pour blended mixture into a microwave-safe bowl or pan and cook in the microwave at high power for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until the mixture is thickened. If you prefer, cook on the stove for about 5 or 6 minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cool the cooked mixture to room temperature, then refrigerate until the mixture mounds slightly when spooned. Check often – don’t allow the mixture to set.
-Whip the egg whites with a whisk or mixer until soft peaks form. Beat in the granulated sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold gently, but thoroughly, into the pumpkin mixture.
-Pour into a baked 9-inch pie shell or crumb crust of your choice and chill until firm.
-Serve topped with a fluff of whipped cream, if desired.

 

[sikiguya]

Maggie

Those pies look to die for!! I LOVE pumpkin pie and this year I didn't get any. BOO HOO! My in laws are from Hong Kong and we do not do traditional Thanksgiving dinners. We have fish, squid, octopus, duck, etc.

But I really wanted a pie this year and now that I see yours, I am really wanting one.

Baker's Square, here I come. LOL

 

[maggie~hamilton]

*blech*

squid pie just doesn't have the same appeal somehow

hahaha

 

[foraloysius]

Thanks Theo and Chris for explaining what allspice is. I wondered long about that but never looked it up. I always thought it was a combination of spices.

As for sugar, overhere in the Netherlands we mostly use refined beet sugar. I believe in the USA mostly refined cane sugar is used, is that correct? In most stores overhere you can buy cane sugar too but that is always sugar in the raw.

 

[sudsmaster]

Odd that people won't serve what they call "pig food". Pigs are very similar to humans with regard to their internal organs, and just about anything a pig will eat, is ok for humans as well (if you are talking about clean/unparasitized/not rotted foods).

But cultural differences mean a lot. I understand in general that Europeans will not eat fresh corn - it's "pig food". They are missing out on a delicious delicacy. On the other hand, most Westerners won't eat termites, grasshoppers, etc., but I understand that in many parts of Africa they are considered not only a delicacy but a vital source of protein.

And then there are all the kids who won't eat broccoli and other healthful veggies. It's a learned thing. I remember loving broccoli as a kid, because it was presented to me as little trees, the type that dinosaurs would eat.

And so it goes.

 

[turquoisedude]

How funny - I was just recalling to someone the other day how my father, of Latvian origin, told me and my brother that if we ate corn we'd turn into chickens! Being the precocious little brat (still am, I guess) I ate the corn just to prove him wrong. He tried the same with celery, beets, green peppers and so on... Sadly, my older brother still refuses to eat these veggies.