Pumpkin Pie

A sweet shortcrust pastry tart, with a sweet spiced pumpkin filling. The perfect pie for autumn and a Thanksgiving must have!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Pie

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 1 5

Total Time 1 50

Servings

Calories 232kcal

Author thebakingexplorer

Ingredients

For the pastry

200 g Plain flour
100 g Butter or baking spread unsalted, cold
1 tbsp Caster sugar
45-50 ml Milk or 1 egg, or cold water will work too

For the filling

285 g Pumpkin puree
100 g Light brown soft sugar
2 Eggs large
160 ml Double cream
1 tsp Cinnnamon
¼ tsp Ground ginger
¼ tsp Nutmeg
¼ tsp Ground cloves
Pinch of salt

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

To make the pastry put the plain flour and caster sugar into a bowl and stir together, then add the butter and rub the mixture together with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs
Add the milk or water, add it a bit at a time as you may not need all of it (or you may need a little more), and bring it together into a dough. Wrap it in cling film and chill for 30 minutes
Pre-heat your oven to 180C Fan/400F/Gas Mark 6
Roll out the pastry onto a floured surface (you can roll it out onto cling film or a silicone mat to make it easier to lift up) and line a 9 inch tart tin. Trim the edges and use a fork to prick the bottom of the pastry
Scrunch up some baking paper and line the pastry, then add baking beans. Bake it for 15 minutes
Take the pastry out of the oven and remove the baking beans and paper
Bake the pastry again for 10 minutes on the same temperature, or until golden brown all over and cooked through. Set aside while you make the filling
If you like, make pastry leaves with any leftover pastry cuttings, brush them with beaten egg and bake on a lined baking tray for 10 minutes or until golden. Leave to cool
Reduce the oven temperature to 160C Fan/350F/Gas Mark 4
For the pumpkin pie filling, whisk the eggs and sugar together
Add the double cream and pumpkin puree, and whisk in
Then add the spices and salt and whisk again
Pour the filling into the pie crust, it's easier to put the crust in the tin on the oven shelf and pour in from there as it'll stop any spills as you lift it from the work surface to the oven
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the filling is a rich orange colour and only has a very slight wobble to it. It will look puffed up when you remove it from the oven, but it will sink back down and flatten out as it cools
Leave to cool fully, then put in the fridge to chill
Serve with whipped cream, store any leftovers in the fridge and eat within 3 days

Video

Notes

I used unsalted butter for the pastry, you can also use a baking spread like Stork.

If you live in a place where pumpkin pie spice mix is easily available, then you can use 2 tsp of that instead of the mix of spices I've listed in the recipe. I live in the UK so pumpkin spice mix is not something that's sold here.

I really recommend using light brown soft sugar if you can for the filling, but if you can't get hold of it, caster sugar will work well too.

You can use shop bought pastry, or even a pre-baked pie shell, if you need to save time.

Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50).

For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.

Nutrition