Historic Scratch Pumpkin Pie Not As Hard As You Think Food

CLASSIC PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Roll out pie crust and place in a pie pan. Poke the bottom with a fork several times and scallop the edges or crimp with your fingers.
• Bake the pie crust for 10-15 minutes or until the crust just begins to turn light brown in color. Remove from the oven and set aside.
• In a large bowl add the pumpkin puree and sweetened condensed milk and mix until combined. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth.
• Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 40-50 minutes Cover the pie crust edges with foil or pie crust shield if it browns too quickly.
• The pie is done when the center slightly jiggles less than a dime in circumference or a knife inserted near the center comes out fairly clean. Turn off the oven heat, open the oven door and let the pie cool for 20 minutes.
• Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool completely.

OLD-FASHIONED PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Beat eggs slightly; beat in remaining ingredients.
• Pour into pie shell. Bake 15 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Bake 45 minutes loner or until a knife inserted between the center and edges comes out clean. Cool.

FROM SCRATCH PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• For the pumpkin: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Remove the stem from the pumpkin and scrape out the insides, discarding the seeds. Cut the pumpkin in half and lay the pieces cut-side down on a rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Rub canola oil all over the skin and bake until fork-tender, about 1 hour. Let cool.
• For the easy pie crust: While the pumpkin is cooking, make the crust. In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add in the butter and work into the dough with a fork until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in just enough cold water (4 to 5 tablespoons) with a fork just until the flour is moistened. Divide the dough in half, shape each half into a ball and flatten slightly. Wrap one ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate for another use.
• Roll out the remaining dough ball on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch round. Transfer to a 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Fold the overhangs under and crimp decoratively. Pierce the dough all over with a fork. Chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
• Line the crust with foil, fill with dried beans or pie weights and bake until the sides are set, about 12 minutes. Remove the foil and beans. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
• For the filling: Scoop out the pulp from the roasted pumpkin and puree in a food processor until smooth (you should have about 4 cups). Add the condensed milk, cream, cornstarch, molasses, canola oil, cinnamon, ginger, salt and eggs and combine thoroughly.
• Pour the filling into the crust and bake until the filling is set in the center, about 1 hour. Transfer the pie to a rack and cool for 30 minutes. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

HISTORIC, SCRATCH PUMPKIN PIE (NOT AS HARD AS YOU THINK!)

Steps:

• The day before, wash your pumpkin, pierce it 3-4 times to vent steam, and set it into a pan large enough to hold it. (If the pumpkin is very large or if you want the seeds for planting slice the pumpkin in half and bake the halves cut-side-down in a shallow dish.
• Bake it whole at 350 for 1-2 hours depending on size or until the flesh is very soft and the skin color has deepened.
• When cool, separate the flesh from the skin and the seeds. If the flesh seems watery, drain it in a colander.
• Mash the flesh (some breeds of pumpkin have stringy flesh that resists mashing. This will give the pies an unusual texture but does not affect the flavor).
• Prepare your favorite pie crust recipe and line 4, 8-9" pans or 3, 10" deep-dish pans.
• Mix the pumpkin, spices, vanilla, 2 cups of half and half, mollases, and 1/2 cup of sugar together thoroughly.
• Taste to check the sweetness and the balance of flavors. Some pumpkin is sweeter, some not so sweet, some more richly-flavored, some fainter. Add additional sugar until the sweetness is right and add a pinch or two more of each spice if the flavor needs perking up.
• Beat the eggs into the remaining half and half then combine well with pumpkin mix.
• Ladle the mix into the pie shells, being sure to get an equal amount of pumpkin flesh and custard in each.
• Bake at 425 for 15 minutes then at 350 for 40-60 minutes (or more for very large pans or a very full oven) -- until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool on wire racks then refrigerate.
• Serve topped with real whipped cream.
• Note: Because of the molasses and the variability of individual pumpkins the pies are likely to be more brown than the vibrant, even electric orange of a store-bought pie.
• Historical note -- While the modern pumpkin pie is mainly sweet custard with some pumpkin and lots of spices the pumpkin pie of our ancestors was mainly pumpkin, held together with custard, lightly sweetened (perhaps only with a little molasses), and just enough spices to enhance the pumpkin without dominating it. It was actually served more as a vegetable dish than as a dessert and might even be eaten as the main course at lunch or for a light supper.
• This pie is a compromise between the two -- rich with pumpkin but not candy-sweet.

PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Make the dough by hand. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Using your fingers, work the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles yellow corn meal mixed with bean-sized bits of butter. (If the flour/butter mixture gets warm, refrigerate it for 10 minutes before proceeding.) Add the egg and stir the dough together with a fork or by hand in the bowl. If the dough is dry, sprinkle up to a tablespoon more of cold water over the mixture.
• Alternatively, make the dough in a food processor. With the machine fitted with the metal blade, pulse the flour, sugar, and salt until combined. Add the butter and pulse until it resembles yellow corn meal mixed with bean-sized bits of butter, about 10 times. Add the egg and pulse 1 to 2 times; don't let the dough form into a ball in the machine. (If the dough is very dry add up to a tablespoon more of cold water.) Remove the bowl from the machine, remove the blade, and bring the dough together by hand.
• Form the dough into a disk, wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 1 hour.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough with a rolling pin into a 12-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch pie pan and trim the edges, leaving about an extra inch hanging over the edge. Tuck the overhanging dough underneath itself to form a thick edge that is even with the rim. Flute the edge as desired. Freeze the pie shell for 30 minutes.
• Set separate racks in the center and lower third of oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Put a piece of parchment paper or foil over the pie shell and fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake on a baking sheet on the center rack until the dough is set, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and lift sides of the parchment paper to remove the beans. Continue baking until the pie shell is lightly golden brown, about 10 more minutes. Cool on a rack.
• Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
• While the pie shell is cooling make the filling. In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, brown sugar, eggs, half-and-half, spices, and salt until smooth. Return the pie shell to the baking sheet and pour in the filling.
• Bake on the lower oven rack until the edges of the filling are set but the center is still slightly loose, about 50 to 60 minutes. (If the edges get very dark, cover them with aluminum foil.) Cool on a rack. Serve room temperature or slightly warm.

HOMEMADE FRESH PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Prepare pie crust by mixing together the flour and salt. Cut shortening into flour; add cold water 1 tablespoon at a time (you may need only 3 tablespoons, or up to 4 tablespoons). Mix dough and repeat until dough is moist enough to hold together.
• With lightly floured, hands shape dough into a ball. On a lightly floured board roll dough out to about 1/8 inch thickness. With a sharp knife, cut dough 1 1/2 inch larger than the upside-down 8- to 9-inch pie pan. Gently roll the dough around the rolling pin and transfer it right-side up onto the pie pan. Unroll, easing dough into the bottom of the pie pan.
• In a large bowl, beat pumpkin with evaporated milk, eggs, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt with an electric mixer or immersion blender. Mix well. Pour into a prepared crust. Bake 40 minutes or until when a knife is inserted 1 inch from the edge comes out clean.

SCRATCH PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Wash pumpkin, remove seeds,place in bowl and set aside,(more on seeds later).
• cut pumpkin into pieces small enough to fit into metal colander, or veggie steamer, place into large enough pot so colander fits into it, fill bottom with water (to your second knuckle) put tight lid on pot and bring to boil. When water is boiling reduce to a hard simmer. Fork test for doneness after 1/2 hour, check water level. Repeat every 15-20 minute until done-like your boiled potatoes.
• Drain water carefully, with clamped on lid and potholders.
• Set aside to cool. When cool, place skin side in palm of hand and remove pulp with spoon, spoon into bowl.
• If you want puree type pumpkin, put through sieve, food mill, blender, or food processor. I like mine using the hand potato masher, mashed well.
• Measure out 2 cups pumpkin for pie, put into bowl. Place the rest into freezer containers for later (2 cups for pies) pies and bread or cookies, or as a side veggie.
• Add in bowl sugar, salt, spices, eggs. Mix then carefully add milk and stir.
• Pour into pie shell, foil edges, and place on foiled, cookie sheet and bake 350°F for 50-60 minutes. Give knife clean test. If not clean, bake longer.
• Left over pumpkin pie mix I place into a greased 1 qt.oven proof dish and bake in a water bath like, custard.
• Pumpkin seeds keep the kids busy, let them clean them, do not worry about the strings this is there project. Soak over night in salt water. Heat oven to 300°F; melt some butter (2-3 tsp) on cookie sheet in oven. Place drained seeds on sheet and add pumpkin pie spices and sugar or cinnamon and sugar to taste. Stir every so often- 15-20 minutes, they will stick together, just mash out with your pancake flipper. After about 30-45 minutes they should be done. Give them the "crispy" test. Careful--the hot sugar will burn your fingers.

DEPRESSION ERA APPLE CANDY PIE

Steps:

• Fill a medium sized casserole three - quarters full of peeled, cored, and sliced apples.
• Add the lemon juice.
• In a separate bowl, mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, butter, and nuts.
• Blend until mixture looks crumbly.
• Sprinkle on top of the apples. Do not stir.
• Bake in a 350 degree oven about forty- five minutes.
• Turn oven to 450 degrees and allow it to brown quickly.
• It can be served hot or cold.
• If you like, you may pour cream on top.