Pumpkin Pie
Butter gives the crust great flavor; shortening makes it tender.
The dough for this pie can be made ahead and frozen for up to 1 month. If frozen, thaw the dough in the refrigerator for several hours, and then soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.
To make pie crust without a food processor: Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Add the butter and shortening and work into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or fingertips
until mixture resembles coarse meal - then follow the recipe as written.
Rolling out the pie dough: be sure that your surface and rolling pin are generously floured,
to avoid sticking. Excess flour can be brushed off the pie dough with a dry pastry brush.
Serves 8
Pie Dough
Ingredients
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ tspn. granulated sugar
- 1 tspn. salt
- 1 stick butter (½ cup), chilled and cut into small pieces
- 1 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening chilled and cut into small pieces.
- 5 Tbsp. ice water
Procedure
- Blend flour, sugar, and salt in food processor. Add butter and shortening and cut in by pulsing on-off until mixture resembles coarse meal.
- Transfer mixture to large bowl. Using a fork, stir in ice water until moist clumps form. Press dough into 2 even balls; flatten each into a disk.
- Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill at least 20-30 minutes before rolling
- See notes above for other options on making the dough ahead
Filling & Assembly
Ingredients
- 1 16-ounce can Libby’s solid pack pumpkin
- 2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- Pinch of ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1/3 cup Cognac
- egg wash - in a bowl beat 1 large egg yolk with 1 teaspoon water
- 1 recipe pie dough above (or use your favorite recipe or pre-made pie dough)
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
Procedure
- Roll out half of the pastry dough on a lightly floured surface with into a 13" round and fit into a 9" deep pie plate. Trim excess dough, leaving a ½" overhang, then fold overhang under pastry and press against rim of pie plate to reinforce edge (essentially you're thickening the edge of the crust. Decoratively crimp edge and chill shell until firm, about 30 minutes.
- Pierce dough with a fork all over the surface to keep it from puffing up. Line crust with foil, pressing firmly. Bake until sides are set, about 15 minutes. Remove foil. Bake crust until pale brown, about 10 minutes more. Set aside and let cool.
- Roll out the remaining dough 1/8 inch thick on the lightly floured surface and with a 3" leaf-shaped cutter cut out 15-18 leaves. Transfer the pastry leaves to a baking sheet, score them lightly with the back of a knife to form veins, and chill them for 15 minutes, or until they are firm. Brush the leaves lightly the egg wash and bake in a preheated 350° F. oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or until they are golden. Set aside and let cool.
- Whisk together all the remaining ingredients in a large bowl until smooth. Pour pumpkin mixture into prepared pie crust. Bake until filling is just set in center and crust is golden, about 1 hour. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely. Cover pie and refrigerate until cold. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.)
- Garnish the pie with the pastry leaves just before serving and serve it with whipped cream.
From the Sur La Table kitchen.
