Pumpkin Pie

This is a classic Thanksgiving dessert, and while not my personal favorite, my husband and his family very much enjoy it.  I was asked to make a lot of these this year, and so I got a jump on it today while I was working on the Apple Cranberry Pie as well.  It's a pretty straight forward, classic recipe, so I think you'll find it's about the same everywhere.  The only difference is, instead of using cloves in the filling, I used allspice because to me, cloves are a bit too strong.

Pumpkin Pie

1 1/2 c sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
4 eggs
1- 29 oz can of pumpkin puree
2- 12 oz cans of evaporated milk
1 recipe double crust pie--2 wrapped discs (makes 2 pies)

Mix sugar, salt, and spices together in a large mixing bowl.  Add eggs and pumpkin and blend well with hand mixer or stand mixer.

Add evaporated milk and mix well to combine everything.  It should look like this when you are done:

It will be very soupy and liquidy.  Don't worry, it will set up in the oven and after it cools.  Set this aside so you can get your crust rolled out.

Just like with the apple pie, we will go over this again.  Dust your pastry board with some flour.  Place your dough in the center and dust with flour again.  Place plastic wrap over the top, and roll it out.

Make sure when you roll it you roll up and down, as well as diagonally so you get a round shape instead of a long oval shape.  When you are done rolling it (it should be pretty thin), peel the dough and plastic wrap off the pastry board (the dough will stick to the plastic wrap, it makes it easier to transport to your pan) and place in the bottom of your pan.  You will do this twice for two pies because the recipe makes 2 pies.

Trim your edges this time because you won't be using a top crust.  You can crimp the edges if you like, or you can just let them lay flat, but you don't want the ragged edge or any overhang.  Pour half of the filling into each pie pan.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, and then drop the temperature to 350 and bake for another 45 to 50 minutes.

Let cool and then chill in the refrigerator til ready to serve.  Serve with whipped cream on top.

Apple Cranberry Pie

My mom makes this every year for Thanksgiving and I love it.  She used to just make a plain apple pie, but one year she decided to add some fresh cranberries to the mix and see how it worked and we all loved it.  You do need a bit more sugar, but it's a hit!  A little sweet, a little tart, and very delicious.  Here's how to make it.

Apple Cranberry Pie

1 recipe double crust pie--two wrapped and refrigerated discs of dough (tutorial and recipe posted previously)
3 granny smith apples
3 jonagold apples
6 oz (half a bag) of fresh cranberries
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp each allspice and nutmeg
4 tbsp flour
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 c brown sugar

I used a mixture of Granny Smith and Jonagold apples because I thought the sweetness of the Jonagolds would help balance the tartness of the cranberry.  I personally like a tart apple pie, so the granny smiths are what I use on a regular basis for plain apple pie.

First, you'll want to peel your apples.

 I used a vegetable peeler, but if you do that, it needs to be fairly sharp.  You can also use a paring knife.  After you have peeled them, quarter them and core each piece, and then slice into a big mixing bowl.  Toss with the lemon juice while cutting them so they don't go brown.

Next, you'll need to mix your ingredients together.  Add your cranberries to the apples, and then the spices, and the flour.  Make sure your brown sugar is not clumped together, and then mix all of this together until apples are well coated with spices and sugar and flour.  The flour will help thicken the juices so when you bake it your pie doesn't become runny.

Your filling mixture should look like this:

Now you are ready to roll out your dough, which you should have made and refrigerated for a least 2 hours.  You'll need a pastry board, flour, and a heavy rolling pin (it helps if your rolling pin is cold, so if you have a marble one, great, if not, just put your rolling pin in the fridge when you refrigerate your dough).

Place the pastry board on the counter and generously dust with flour.  Place your dough in the middle of the board, and then dust again with flour.

Cover dough with plastic wrap you wrapped it in before placing in the fridge.  The plastic wrap helps so your dough doesn't stick to your rolling pin, and it helps when you need to move the sheet of dough to your pie pan.  You'll want to roll up and down, and diagonally to the sides so you get a nice rounded sheet of pie dough.  Place this into your pie pan, and it should look like this:

Fill your pie with the filling you made with the apples and cranberries.  It will look too full, but don't worry because when you bake it, the apples will shrink and you want to over fill it so you will still have a full pie when it's done.  It should look like this:

Dot the top of the pie with butter, to keep it moist so the top doesn't dry out while it bakes.  Like this:

Roll out your second crust (for your top crust) and place on top of the pie.  You will have some ragged edges.  Trim them with a paring knife and pinch the top and bottom crusts together, and then go back around the outer edge and pinch them between your thumb and finger to make a pretty edge.  Vent the top by cutting slits in the center of the top crust.  It will look like this:

Bake at 400 degrees for half an hour, and then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake another half an hour.  Serve warm with vanilla ice cream on the side.