This is my own recipe, made after deciding I disliked other ones. The main adjustments are:

  • The pie: Using soft brown sugars for a more molasses-like flavour; Freshly steamed & non-sweet pumpkin for a slightly earthier flavour.
  • The crust: Adopting a savoury shortcrust recipe into a sort of "gingerbread shortcrust"; Using wholegrain flours like Rye or Spelt to both get a nuttier flavour and a softer crust.

pumpkin

Index:

Making the puree
Preparing the crust
Making the filling
Adding a sugar topping
Storage & Finishing

Equipment:

  • Whisk, mixing bowl, baking paper, pie weights (or dry rice/lentils), fan oven, washing up gloves, blender, steaming pots.

Ingredient totals:

  • 200g flour, rye or spelt
  • 120g butter
  • ~270g soft brown sugar
  • 250g pumpkin puree
  • 250g double cream
  • 2 eggs
  • powdered: cloves, ginger, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, white pepper.

pumpkin

pumpkin puree

  • Do not use frozen pre-prepared puree or canned pureee. The goal is to have pumpkin flesh that will become "fluffy" and absorb some of the moisture introduced by the cream and eggs once cooked and cooled.
  1. Acquire pumpkin. Aim for less sweet, larger variety if possible.
  2. Steam long and hard till the flesh sloughs off easily, and scrape out the flesh while hot wearing e.g. washingup gloves. Squeeze out excess moisture by hand and blend. Do not spice or salt. Put aside.

crust

Make a sweet tart crust with the following ingredients:

  • 200g ryeflour or spelt.
  • 120g cold-cubed butter
  • 60g soft brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp powdered ginger
  • 1/4 tsp each of: white pepper powder; salt (omit if butter is salted).
  • ~70ml very cold water
  1. Blend all powders.
  2. Add cubed butter ~1cm each. Blend till crumbing. As doing, pour small amounts of water in until a ball is formed. Using all the water is not necessary.
  3. Form into a puck and wrap in baking paper, and refridgerate ≥1hr. Roll to around 1cm thick or more and refridgerate ≥1hr between two sheets of baking paper. Flouring well may be necessary if sticky.
  4. Put in a tin ~7" across & ≥1" deep, with foil or baking paper in shell packed tightly, and filled with blind-bake beads or rice/lentils.
  5. Blind-bake. I do so in a fan oven at ~190'c for 20 minutes. Ensure base goodly done.

filling

  1. Whisk together:
  • 2 eggs
  • 180g soft brown sugar
  • 1/4 tsp each of: powdered cloves, salt
  • 1/2 tsp each of: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg

  1. Then add 250ml of double cream and the same quantity of puree, and mix together further. It will be very thin.

  2. Pour into the prebaked crust and bake for 30 minutes at 165'c (fan oven). You may wish to use crust shields to avoid overcooking the gingerbread.


topping

  • 30g soft brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Mix and sprinkle atop. You may not need it all. Lower oven by 10'c and bake 25m further.


finishing

This is important. This pie is not finished until given time to cool and set in the fridge.

  1. Let it cool fully.
  2. Cover it with foil, and refridgerate it for at least 12 hours.
  3. Before serving, take it out, take off the foil, and let it come near to room temperature.