Pumpkin can be savoury or sweet but combined in a pie and one as famous as Pumpkin Pie for Thanksgiving is a tall order. I was asked to come up with a recipe so here is my version. I don't like desserts that are too sweet and I like to add sweetness in the form of a crumb or a sauce or syrup. So for this reason I have added these just in the same way you would add cream or ice cream.
Ingredients - Makes a medium sized pie
1 medium sized Pumpkin peeled with skin and deseeded cut into 2cm chunks
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1/2 grated fresh nutmeg
10 cloves
3 cinnamon sticks
200g soft brown sugar
300ml double cream
2 whole eggs and 3 egg yolks
icing sugar for dusting
For the Pastry
Buy prerolled shortcrust pastry. But take it out of fridge for 10 minutes before you roll as I find it often cracks at the end which I find very annoying. I always have 2 in the fridge as like to be prepared.
To make your own Pastry
250g unsalted diced butter
120g caster sugar
Finely grated zest of a lemon
1 egg and 1 egg yolk
500g of plain sifted flour
Lemon Cream
250ml single cream
Finely grated lemon zest
Dulce de Leche
1 small tin of shopbought dulce de leche
or make your own by putting an unopened (peel paper off the tin) tin of condensed milk in a very large saucepan covering the top with ample enough boiling hot water from the kettle (keep topping up the water if it goes down. Keep an eye on it)
Place on the hob on a soft simmer (not boiling) for 5 hours with the lid on the saucepan
When cold and cooled take out of the saucepan and open the lid and the colour should be brown and caramelised and silky smooth
Burnt Chocolate Crumb
100g bar of white chocolate
Put on greaseproof paper
Put in the oven on low temperature - Gas Mark 2 or 3 until caramelised
Break and ground in a pestle and morter or rolling pin to get large crumbs and smaller ones
Put into a container in the fridge
Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6 and put the pumpkin onto an oiled baking tray ensuring all segments are basted with oil. Grate the nutmeg over the pumpkin and sprinkle with the cloves adding the cinnamon sticks in between. Roast for 45 minutes until soft.
Place the pumpkin but removing the cinnamon sticks and cloves into a blender so that you have a puree. Put through a sieve. In a bowl combine the brown sugar, cream, eggs and egg yolk and add the pumpkin puree. Return this mixture to the blender and puree until smooth. Put aside in the fridge.
To make the Pastry
Beat the butter and sugar together in a food mixer until light and creamy. Add the grated lemon zest and the egg and egg yolk which will make a smooth paste. Add the sifted flour and gently knead together to make a dough (you can use the dough attachment of the food mixer). Lift the dough into a ball and wrap in clingfilm and put in fridge for 30 minutes.
To assemble roll out your dough to fit your pie dish into a circle of 25cm diameter with an overhang. Grease your pie dish and gently ease the pastry into it. You must now line your pastry dish with greaseproof paper and some dried baking beans or rice so that the base of the pastry stays flat and doesn't rise up with the weight of the baking beans or normal rice to weight down. Blind bake the pastry in the oven until dry and cooked through for 30 minutes.
Remove the paper and the baking beans from the pastry dish. Lower the temperature to Gas Mark 2 and pour the pumpkin pie filling into the case. Level off and then bake for 1 hour or until set. You should be able to gently shake the tin and touch the centre. When removed from the oven cut the excess pastry from the side of the pie dish using a serrated knife carefully.
The pie should be cooled for 30 minutes before dusting with icing sugar and serving with cream or the sauces. If you are making beforehand then refrigerate and before serving take out the pie 30 minutes beforehand to assemble and decorate. Sprinkle with icing sugar.
To decorate
Heat a knife in hot water and place in a large cup. Wipe the knife with kitchen towel and carefully cut the pie. The 2nd cut is always easier as you will have more room to manoevre. Using a fish slice carefully put the pie onto a plate. Using a cookie cutter put the crumb on the plate. Heat spoons in hot water and then put into the dulce de leche for a nice shape. Place onto the burnt chocolate crumb. Sprinkle with icing sugar. For the lemon cream combine the single cream with freshly zested lemon skins finely grated. Or you can use a scoop of ice cream or double cream. I like a tartness and acidity to the pumpkin pie adding sweetness with the smooth caramel of the dulce de leche.
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