It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a pumpkin pie.
But that doesn’t mean it has to be the same old recipe from the back of the pumpkin can.
There are plenty of ways to change up pumpkin pie so that you can keep with tradition and start a new one at the same time. Nuts, maple syrup, caramel, cream cheese, even a little booze can take a pumpkin pie from something common to something special.
Michele Stuart, author of Perfect Pies & More ($26, hardcover, Ballantine Books), will bake more than 1,000 pies in the next few weeks at her shops, Michele’s Pies in Norwalk and Westport, Conn., to fill Thanksgiving orders.
One of the recipes featured in her new book is a rich and velvety pumpkin pie topped with a crown of meringue. It’s not unusual to top a custard pie with meringue, but few bakers ever consider giving a pumpkin pie the same treatment, even though it is essentially a pumpkin custard.
Stuart’s recipe is truly a custard pie, made with heavy cream, eggs and dark brown sugar. Its filling is smooth and creamy, not at all like some of the dry, stiff fillings that pass for pumpkin pie in many bakeries.
Stuart began baking pies as a child with her grandmother and soon became the appointed baker in her family.
“It was my grandmother’s thing and I was just able to carry on the tradition in the family,” she said.
She won her first National Pie Championship first prize in 2007, and since then has amassed 27 first-place finishes in both amateur and professional categories in the contest sponsored by the American Pie Council every April.
Her bakeries followed and Stuart has been able to turn her passion into her profession, looking for new and different takes on classic pie flavors.
The council last year released a book of winning recipes, America’s Best Pies, to showcase all the categories of its competition. The 2008 first-place winner for pumpkin was a three-layer pie called Oktoberfest by Raine Gottess of Florida.
The pie combines a layer of baked cheesecake with two layers of no-bake pumpkin cheesecake on top, in a cinnamon graham cracker crust. This deep-dish creamy creation will satisfy cheesecake and pumpkin lovers alike.
Adding nuts is an easy way to jazz up a pumpkin pie, either by crushing candied nuts over the top, or by baking them right into the pie. The Spiced Pumpkin Pecan Pie from Crisco combines pecan halves into a spicy custard filling for one pie that will satisfy pumpkin and pecan pie lovers.
PUMPKIN MERINGUE PIE
Crust:
1 pie crust for a 9-inch single-crust pie (see sidebar)
¼ cup heavy cream (to glaze the crimped pie edges)
Filling:
1 cup canned or fresh pumpkin puree
2 eggs, beaten
½ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1½ cups heavy cream
1 recipe Classic Meringue (recipe follows)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Fit pie dough into 9-inch pie plate. Using your thumb and index finger, crimp the edges of the pie shell. Brush the edges of the pie shell with heavy cream to create a perfect, golden brown finish. Set aside.
To prepare the pumpkin filling, using an electric mixer set on medium speed, combine the pumpkin puree and eggs. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Mix the ingredients together, scraping the bowl several times. Add the heavy cream and mix until thoroughly combined. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the unbaked pie shell.
Place the pie on the lined baking sheet on the middle rack of the oven and bake it for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the filling is firm in the middle but still soft to the touch. Transfer the pie plate to a wire cooling rack and allow the pie to cool for at least 2 hours.
When the pie has finished cooling, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the meringue on top of the pumpkin pie, forming a mound of meringue in the middle. Use a spatula to pat and lift the meringue across the top of the pie, forming peaks. Spread the meringue all the way out to the edges of the crust.
To brown the meringue, place the pie on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, or until the desired brownness has been achieved.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Makes 1 pie.
CLASSIC MERINGUE
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ tsp. cream of tartar
pinch of salt
½ cup sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Using an electric mixer set on high speed, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and salt and continue mixing until soft peaks form. Slowly add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Add the vanilla and beat for 30 more seconds. The meringue should be light and fluffy. Test by inserting a spatula into the mixture and quickly pulling it out. If the meringue forms little peaks but does not fall, you have achieved the desired consistency.
— Adapted from Perfect Pies & More, Michele Stuart
SPICED PUMPKIN PECAN PIE
1 pie crust for 9-inch single-crust pie
1 cup pumpkin puree
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
¼ tsp. ground cloves
¼ tsp. ground ginger
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup pecan halves
Prepare single pie crust according to recipe directions, using a 9-inch pie plate; chill unbaked crust.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine pumpkin and eggs in large bowl; beat until well blended. Add brown sugar and granulated sugar; mix until well blended.
Add cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, heavy cream and vanilla. Mix until well blended. Fold in pecans.
Pour into chilled pie crust. Bake about 50 to 60 minutes, until a knife inserted into the center of the pie comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Allow to cool before serving.
Makes 1 pie.
— Adapted from www.crisco.com
OKTOBERFEST PIE
Crust:
18 whole cinnamon graham crackers
½ cup butter, melted
4 tbsp. sugar
Filling, Layer 1:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
⅛ cup sour cream
1 small egg
¼ cup sugar
½ tsp. vanilla
1 tbsp. flour
Filling, Layer 2:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1½ cups powdered sugar
½ cup canned pumpkin
¼ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. ginger
⅛ tsp. cloves
8 oz. nondairy whipped topping
Filling, Layer 3:
4 oz. package cheesecake-flavored instant pudding
½ cup milk
¾ cup canned pumpkin
¼ tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. cinnamon
⅛ tsp. nutmeg
⅛ tsp. cloves
1 cup nondairy whipped topping
For the crust: Using a food processor, finely crumble the graham crackers. Add sugar, and then place in a bowl. Toss in melted butter until moistened. Using the back of a large spoon, press mixture into a 10-inch, deep pie pan to form a crust. Freeze.
For layer 1: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Using a mixer, beat well the softened cream cheese, sugar and egg. Add in sour cream, flour and vanilla. Pour into graham cracker crust. Cover edges with foil. Bake as follows without opening the oven door: In a 450-degree-oven, bake for 8 minutes. Decrease oven temperature to 250 degrees and continue baking for another 20 minutes. Turn off oven, and leave in oven for 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
For layer 2: Using a mixer, beat softened cream cheese with vanilla. Add powdered sugar. Mix in pumpkin and spices. Fold in nondairy whipped topping. Spread over cooled pie. Freeze.
For layer 3: In a bowl, using a wire whisk, toss pudding and milk until thickened. Add in pumpkin and spices. Fold in whipped topping. Spread over layer 2. Refrigerate for about 6 hours until firm.
Makes 1 pie.
— Adapted from America’s Best Pies: American Pie Council with Linda Hoskins
Lisa Abraham can be reached at 330-996-3737 or at labraham@thebeaconjournal.com. Find me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter @akronfoodie or visit my blog at www.ohio.com/blogs/lisa.