Pumpkin Pie

I'm not particularly fond of Fall because it means Winter is soon to descend upon the region. I am however a huge fan of many of the vegetables that are in in season right now and that includes pumpkins. Though I have yet to try my friend Holler's creative Pumpkin Fondue, I did make a few pumpkin pies from scratch. Canned pumpkin simply does not compare to the taste of fresh pumpkin. An additional advantage to using fresh pumpkin are the seeds which you can save and later roast in the oven.

Even a small pumpkin yields more pumpkin than you will need to make one or two pies, but pumpkin freezes well, so long as it is cooked. Boil or steam the pumpkin until tender and then mash. I suggest freezing it in one cup portions for future use.

As usual, I have prepared my own pie crust, but you can also purchase an unbaked single pie shell for this recipe.

Pumpkin pie

Filling:

1 1/8 cups pumpkin, cooked
1 large egg
1/3 to 1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup milk powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup milk

To make the filling, mix together the pumpkin and egg, then stir in the honey. In a separate bowl, slowly add 1/4 cup of the milk to the milk powder and spices, being careful to remove all lumps. Then add the rest of the milk and blend thoroughly.

Combine the milk mixture with the pumpkin and egg mixture, and pour into a pie shell.

In a preheated 375 degree oven, bake for 50 minutes or until set.

I used two different pastry recipes for the pies that I made. The flaky pie crust made with butter was richer but lighter than the whole wheat crust and thus a better a accompaniment to the dense filling.

Flaky Butter Pie Crust

1 cup of flour
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/8 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 cup of cold butter, cut into 8 pieces
3 - 4 tablespoons of ice water

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Cut in the butter using two knives or a pastry cutter until the butter is reduced to very small pieces. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of ice water over the dough and combine with a fork. The dough is ready for rolling once it holds together when you squeeze it. If the dough is too dry, add more of the ice water.

On a floured surface, roll the dough out into a flat circle shape with a floured rolling pin. Gently fold the rolled dough in half and transfer to the pie plate. Trim the dough and fold to make the crust edge. Crimp the edges.

Cooks tip, courtesy of Cook's Illustrated: If your dough is too dry to roll, add a few tablespoons of vodka. Too much water leads to more gluten formation, which results in a tougher crust. But more liquid makes the dough easier to roll, so adding vodka, which consists of 40 percent ethanol, makes for an easy to roll, tender crust because gluten does not form in ethanol.

Whole Wheat Pie Crust

1 cup of whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/3 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of cold water

Mix the flour and salt in a bowl. Slowly add the oil and water and stir to mix. Form into a ball and roll out as thinly as possible on floured wax paper.

I've submitted this recipe to Columbus Foodie who will be hosting Homegrown Gourmet #3. The theme this month is pies and tarts.