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Homemade Pumpkin Pie


This is a great classic homemade pumpkin pie. I like it best when made with fresh pumpkin purée, but you can also make it with organic canned pumpkin.

This recipe does not use any canned evaporated milk products as many pie recipes do, because I think it's better to use all-natural cream (or try coconut milk); this homemade pumpkin pie is also different because it features predominantly organic ingredients.

I will be completely honest here and tell you that I do not usually bother with making traditional pie/pastry crusts (aka pate brisee). I don't really like the way they taste, they aren't very good for you, but perhaps most of all I find them difficult to make. So in the spirit of my "easy healthy recipes", I prefer to make crusts out of all-natural cookies like the recipe below (or sometimes I use nuts and dried fruit) instead.

If you truly enjoy the other sort of pie crust, though, feel free to use your favorite recipe (try to find one that's not made with shortening as these are filled with hydrogenated oils/trans-fats. It's better for you to use a combination of butter and lard from grass-fed animals instead (and this combination produces a very flaky crust).

Ginger Cookie Crust with Variations:
1 1/2 cups Newman's Own Organics Ginger-Os
1/3 stick organic butter, melted

Directions:

In a blender or food processor, or by hand, blend or crush cookies into crumbs. Mix with melted butter and pack into the bottom of an unbuttered 9-inch springform pan or pie pan. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes.

If you want to make a graham cracker crust, use 1 1/2 cups graham crackers and 6 Tb. butter. Add 1/3 cup of sugar because graham crackers are not very sweet, if you like. The natural brand "Mi-Del" makes vanilla wafer cookies and ginger snaps which make very good pie crusts, as do the other varieties of Newman's Own organic cookies. A gluten-free option is to use the raw walnut date crust.

Pumpkin Pie
1 3/4 cup pumpkin purée
or 15 oz. organic canned pumpkin (1 can)
2 eggs, preferable organic and free-range
1 cup raw or homogenized but not ultra-pasteurized cream or creme fraiche (or use coconut milk)
1 cup organic sugar or brown sugar (or a combination)
1 tsp. molasses
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. Himalayan or sea salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°F. Process all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Pour into prepared pie crust and place in the oven. Reduce heat to 375°F and cook for 15 minutes. Turn the heat of the oven down to 300°F and continue to bake until the pumpkin custard is just about set in the middle (it will continue cooking a bit after you take it out). This will take about 40 minutes. If the pie is getting too brown, cover it loosely with foil while it finishes baking. Voila- homemade pumpkin pie!

Cool and serve with homemade whipped cream. Store leftovers in the refrigerator; pumpkin pie does not freeze well.

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Copyright 2008. Dr. Winnie Abramson
The information on this website is for educational purposes only.
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