It's a rainy Sunday before Thanksgiving, perfect weather for making pies. I can't take the credit for this recipe. I found this in Julia Child's-The Way to Cook several years ago. The filling has the consistency of a mousse. It's divine and I'm not a big pumpkin pie fan. The recipe is enough to make 2 9 inch pies. If you don't need that many, just cut the ingredients in half. The pie dough is my own and you can also cut it in half for 1 open top pie or make the entire recipe for a closed top pie. However if you decide to use a pre-made pie shell, I'll never tell!
Cook's Notes- if you notice the crusts on your pies are browning too fast, at about minute 15-20, lower the temperature of the oven by a few degrees and this should take care of the problem.
Crust
2 1/2 cups flour
2 sticks cold butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
6-8 tablespoons water(depending on the humidity of the day)
Cut the butter into small cubes and return to the frig. Fill a small bowl with ice and water and set aside. In a food processor, place the flour, sugar and salt. Pulse 10 to 15 times until they are combined. Open the lid and dump in the butter. Process again until the butter is incorporated and is the size of small peas. With the processor running, measure in the water, 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough forms a ball in the processor. Dump out onto a board and roll into a ball. Cut the ball in two. Reroll into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the frig for about an hour or until the dough is firm. Roll out the dough to fit your pie plate on a floured cutting board. Lay it into the pie plate, gently press the dough into the plate and crimp the edges. Return to the frig while you make the filling.
Filling
3 1/2 cups pumpkin puree(fresh or canned)pack it into the measuring cup
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 tsp salt
3 tablsps light molasses
3 tsp each of ground cinnamon and ginger
1/4 tsp each of ground nutmeg and cloves
4 egg yolks
5 egg whites
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup milk, or more if needed
Preheat oven to 450 while you roll out chilled dough and make the filling. In a large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, sugars, salt, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, egg yolks, cream and milk. The mixture should be thick and hold its shape in a spoon. Set aside and beat the egg whites in a clean bowl until stiff. Gently fold the egg whites into the pumpkin mixture until just combined. Pour the filling into your prepared pie shells. Set the pie plates onto a lined rimmed cookie sheet. Place in the oven and bake at 450 for 15 minutes.Lower the heat on the oven to 375 and continue to bake your pies for another 15 minutes. Then turn the oven down to 350 and bake for another 15 minutes. At this point a toothpick inserted into the middle of the filling should come out clean. If it does, turn off the heat to the oven, leave the oven door ajar, and let the pie sit in the oven as it slowly cools for another 20-30 minutes. This will prevent your pies from cracking in the middle.
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