All About Pumpkin Pie (Patreon)

Hello friends! It's not Saturday, but it is Canadian Thanksgiving! And in the spirit of giving thanks, I will teach you what I know about pumpkin pie!

Over my years on this earth, pumpkin pie has always been my favourite pie. Possibly one of my all time favourite foods. I just find it irresistible! And although I'm wildly untalented at baking in general, I've practiced and attempted for years to make the perfect pumpkin pie. I consider it a side-quest of great importance in my life.

So, today I will teach you my current number one recipe for Pumpkin Pie! This recipe is wonderful because it's easy, it tastes great, and it has a subtle twist that will impress your friends and family.

BEFORE YOU BAKE:

• Bake your pie a day in advance! This is EXTREMELY important with pumpkin pie. Resting overnight in the fridge gives the pie a completely different [ and better ] texture than from when you baked it

• Dont forget to buy whipped cream when you buy your ingredients! Unless you're one of the very few who prefers your pie with no cream, you GOTTA get that whipped cream

TOOLS REQUIRED:

• Oven

• Large cookie sheet [ optional ]

• Large mixing bowl

• Spatula [ or large spoon ]

• Whisk [ or large spoon ]

• Plastic cling wrap [ optional ]

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 frozen pie shells these can be shallow, this recipe makes 2 fairly shallow pies. You can also make your own pie shells from scratch but I can't be arsed

• At least 2 cups worth of pure pumpkin puree If you're buying a can, be careful to buy pure puree! Many stores will also be selling 'pumpkin pie filling' and you don't want that because you're adding the other ingredients yourself

• 2 large eggs

• 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice you can assemble your own pumpkin pie spice for fresher more custom results, but I find that the pre-mixed stuff works just fine

• Half a teaspoon of salt

• One 300ml Can of Dulce De Leche Caramel Sauce This is the secret ingredient! Normally, a pumpkin pie recipe would have a can of sweetened condensed milk here. Dulce De Leche is just a can of sweetened condensed milk that's been heated for long enough to caramelize the sugars in it- many brands will offer this sauce right next to the condensed milk in the store. Using Dulce De Leche instead of condensed milk will give the pie a slightly caramel, more deeply browned taste

HOW TO ASSEMBLE:

1. Preheat your oven to 425ºF

2. Take out your pie shells and place them on a cookie sheet. Then, poke holes all over them with a fork to help air escape.

3. While the oven is still preheating, put your naked pricked pie shells in the oven for 10 minutes. Pre-baking you pie shells will give them a perfect crisp by the end of the process. If they come out of the 10 minutes bake all poofed up, poke them again with the fork real quick to let the air out.

4. Mix all of your other ingredients together in a large bowl. That's the pumpkin, the eggs, the dulce de leche, the pumpkin pie spice, and the salt. I find that a whisk really gets everything smooth, but you can probably get by with a large spoon if you mix long enough.

5. Pour the mix into the pie shells. 

At this point, hopefully the pie shells will be somewhat cooled [ they don't have to be perfectly cool ] and your oven will be about preheated.

6. Bake for 15 minutes at 425ºF

7. Turn the oven heat down to 350ºF and keep baking for 35 more minutes. You don't need to take the pies out or anything- you just gotta turn the temperature down and set that timer again

8. Let your pies cool COMPLETELY. They might look a little poofy right out of the oven but they'll deflate flat again within minutes. My pic below shows them still poofy

9. Refrigerate overnight or for at least 6 hours. THIS IS MANDATORY. Otherwise, you'll have a weird kinda gross texture. I know your whole house probably smells amazing now but you must wait.

I personally found that gently pressing cling wrap to the surface of the pie is the best way to keep it clean and fresh in the fridge- plus it gives the pie a professional looking glossy sheen by the next day.

10. Enjoy!