Adventures in Confectionary
Does this look like the face of a pumpkin pie thief? No? Well, she’s had a couple years to perfect that innocent look, but I assure you that she is in fact a little ninja when it comes to swiping unguarded pie. The last time it happened (yes, it’s happened more than once because I am apparently a slow learner), there was a lot of shouting, some use of strong language, and a bit of running around before the fuzzy little felon was apprehended and stuffed into doggy jail, where she was instructed to “think about what she’d done.”
I can’t really blame her…I also love pumpkin pie. In fact, it’s one of my top three desserts, the other two being banana cream pie and lemon cream pie (you can find those recipes here). And far from being confined to the holidays, I feel that pumpkin pie can and should be enjoyed year round. And it doesn’t hurt that it’s soooooo fast and easy to make.
You can read about the history of pumpkin pie on the inter-webs but I didn’t find it sufficiently interesting to detail here. I was entertained by this bit of information, however:
“The world's largest pumpkin pie was made in New Bremen, Ohio, at the New Bremen Pumpkinfest on September 25, 2010.The pie consisted of 550 kilograms (1212 pounds) of canned pumpkin, 410 litres (109 US gallons) of evaporated milk, 2796 eggs, 3.2 kg (7 lb) of salt, 6.6 kg (14.5 lbs) of cinnamon, and 238 kg (525 lbs) of sugar. The final pie weighed 1678 kg (3699 lbs) and measured 6 m (20 ft) in diameter.” (From Wikipedia article)
I can’t imagine that they got it cooked evenly or that it tasted very good…and how would you even serve up a “slice”?
Okay, how to: mix together all ingredients, dump them into the pie crust, and bake. That’s it. Should I make it more complicated? Naw…the beauty of this pie is that it is so fast and easy, and if you keep just a few basics in your pantry at all times (canned pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, and a prepared pie crust), you can whip up a pumpkin pie at the drop of a hat. It takes longer for the pie to cool down than it does to mix and bake it. So make yourself pumpkin pie year round…why not? But don’t forget to guard your pie from four-legged thieves.
Quick and Easy Pumpkin Pie
Click here for printable PDF of recipe
INGREDIENTS
1 15-oz can pumpkin
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 Eggs
1.5 Tsp pumpkin pie spice*
1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Prepared pie crust (I recommend a graham cracker crust)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 425°.
If using a standard pie crust, place pie crust into pie dish. Consider wrapping the edges with foil to keep the crust from burning before the pie is finished baking. If you’re using a graham cracker crust, you don’t have to bother with all this.
Combine all other ingredients and pour into pie crust. Bake 15 minutes at 425°, then reduce temperature to 350° and continue baking until center is set (knife inserted comes out clean), which is usually another 30-40 minutes. If foil has been applied to the edges of the pie crust, it will need to be removed for the last 10-15 minutes of baking, so that the edge can crisp up.
Cool pie completely before cutting. Enjoy the easiest pie ever. And also, since it’s primarily made of pumpkin (which is a vegetable), it’s practically health food. So maybe have two slices. For your health.
*Note: if you don’t have any pumpkin pie spice, you can use instead:
1 Tsp Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp Ground ginger
1/4 Tsp Nutmeg
Pinch of ground clove
Consider adding some stabilized whipped cream…delish!
Stabilized Whipped Cream
INGREDIENTS
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl, beat together sour cream, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. In another bowl, beat the cold whipping cream until soft peaks form. Beat in the sour cream mixture and beat to desired consistency (usually just shy of stiff peaks). Spread whipped cream over custard. Should keep 2-3 days covered in the fridge.
