Fifi's Pumpkin Pie Recipes

Here are four different pumpkin pie recipes we have tested recently. One involves substantial ginger, and many of the Kitchen's testers don't agree with Fifi, Glenn, and Gina on the value of candied ginger to the culinary world. The others are variations of a moderately traditional pumpkin pie recipe, with maple flavor. You can pick one or another based on your flavor goals, and also vary the sweetness as noted according to your own taste.

Ginger Pumpkin Pie

Maple Pumpkin Pie 1

The maple in this recipe is very subtle; the seasoning, and heavy custard, pretty much overpowers it. If you want a more distinctly maple flavor, use one of the following two. You may also find that this is not sweet enough; to sweeten it more, incorporate up to 1/2 cup sugar with the eggs. All in all, this is pretty close to traditional pumpkin pie flavor, with a hint of maple.

Maple Pumpkin Pie 2

The maple flavor in this much richer than that of the previous recipe. We use a combination of maple syrup and maple sugar to provide give us the maple intensity we want; maple syrup alone is more delicate, and maple sugar has a heavy richness (like brown sugar), which we don't want to overpower other flavors. You can vary the proportions of maple syrup and maple sugar, remembering that when increasing the syrup, decrease the amount of pumpkin, and the amount of maple sugar, by the same amounts.

Maple Pumpkin Pie 3

This variation lightens up the previous version just a bit; we still use some cream, and keep all the eggs. That quarter-cup of plain sugar is optional; with it, this pie will be pretty sweet; without it, it will still be sweeter than the first Maple Pumpkin Pie recipe given above. Our test panel prefers this variation.

Procedure

1. Prepare pie crust. We recommend freshly baked regular pie crust, in a pyrex pie dish, at 400 degrees. (See notes below.)
2. Heat pumpkin puree in a heavy pan; stir frequently.
3. Add milk and cream to pumpkin puree, continue heating gently and stir until smooth. Keep it hot but don't let it boil.
4. In a heatproof bowl, beat eggs (and sugar or maple sugar) until smooth.
   • Beat in dry spices
   • For Maple Pumpkin Pie, beat in flour, then maple syrup.
5. When the pie crust is baked, beat the egg mixture while pouring the hot pumpkin mixture into it in a thin stream. The resulting mixture will be hot but not so hot as to cook the eggs.
6. Carefully pour hot pumpkin filling into hot pie crust; return to center of oven and bake at 400°.
   • We fill the pie partway out of the oven, then top it off with a cup or ladle with the pie positioned in the oven, as the slightest sticking of the oven rack is liable to cause filling to slosh all over.
   • For Ginger Pumpkin Pie, carefully sprinkle the candied ginger evenly over the pie filling. It will settle gently to the bottom forming a loosely packed layer.
7. The pie is done when the outside edge of the filling is firm and slightly puffed, but the center is still jiggly. Remove to a rack and let cool gently, so the custard can first finish cooking, and then set.

Notes

The first recipe for Maple Pumpkin Pie is loosely based on the Martha Stewart Pies and Tarts recipe which Fifi's Kitchen prepared last year. We are in the process of taste-testing additional variations, which will be described here as they are developed.

The technique of adding hot filling to a hot, fully baked pie crust is described in detail by Steven Schmidt in the something issue of Cook's Illustrated. All details of the pie preparation, from start to finish, are presented.

The flour in the recipes is not strictly needed, but provides a little insurance for the custard. The pie pictured at the top of this page was made without flour in the custard. (It is otherwise exactly the second Maple Pumpkin Pie recipe.)

We obtain our crystallized ginger from either of two sources: locally, from the Joyce Chen Unlimited grocery store, on route 2A in Acton, Massachusetts, or mail order from the King Arthur Flour Company, in Norwich, Vermont. Joyce Chen's tends to be somewhat hotter. Both are far more economical than supermarket spice-rack crystallized ginger, which is outrageously expensive.

This pie filling works very well as a baked pudding:

1. Fill porcelain ramekins 2/3 to 3/4 full
2. Bake in a bain marie at 350° - put them into a pan in the oven, then add already-boiling water to the pan, until the ramekins are 1/2 submerged. The pudding can be baked in a hotter oven (e.g. if you are also baking a pie) if the ramekins are loosely covered with foil, and the ramekins are in somewhat deeper than usual water, to protect the top of the custard from drying.
3. The pudding is done when just the center jiggles a bit if it is shaken. Since a pudding doesn't have to set to be sliced, these can be served without being cooled thoroughly. (Do let them rest 10 minutes after removing from the bain marie, though.)

We recommend whipped cream with appropriate flavoring:

1. In a chilled bowl, with chilled beaters, gently beat one cup of heavy cream to not-quite-soft-peak stage.
2. Add either
   • 2 to 3 teaspoons confectioners sugar and 1 to 2 tablespoons of appropriate booze, such as ginger liqueur or ginger flavored brandy (for the ginger pumpkin pie) or dark rum (to offset the maple pumpkin pie)
   • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
3. Carefully beat to desired stiffness.

© 1996 Fifi's Kitchen. All rights reserved. Comments? Suggestions? Questions? Send mail to fifi@camellia.org. Problems with these pages? Send mail to webmaster@camellia.org.