Pumpkin Pie with Maple Whipped Cream

Hi! May I know ro be precise your 1/4 cup if I were to convert to gram/kg or ml
how much will yhat be? Thank cos I want to be precise. Alex

If you were to use ml instead of 1/4 cup you'd be looking for 60ml. I hope you get this info in time to bake your pie. Good luck it's absolutely fantastic, you'll love it.

Thanks Steve. Wishing you a blessed 2008

Is the dough shortcrust pastry? Thank

This dough is a type of shortcrust. Shortcrusts are known for their medium to high proportion of fat to flour, and also have low moisture content. It is important to work quickly and not over-work the dough, or you may wind up with a greasy crust.

THe video shows what appears to be a Pyrex pie plate being used and the instructions state to place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat the over to 325 degrees. One assumes here that you will take the pie crust from the freezer and place directly into the oven. It has always been my understanding that only Corningware can go directly from refrig/freezer to a hot oven. Pyrex should always go into a cold oven or it it will crack. Please comment.
Thanks.
Charlotte S

It's actually ok to transfer Pyrex from the freezer to the oven. According to the Pyrex website, "PYREX® glassware products can go directly from refrigerator or freezer to a microwave, convection, or preheated conventional oven."

When do you blind bake a pie crust, versus filling it just after it is made then baking it once with the filling in it.

My family makes a double crust (top and bottom crust) blueberry pie (the only filling is wild blueberries, and a couple tablespoons of sugar and a dash of flour mixed with the berries (berries can be fresh or frozen).

I've just begun making the pie crust (after my grandmother passed away we had been using frozen crust - but found that making crust isn't so hard, and is much better in both taste and texture. But we follow my Grandmother's way of making the pie, we don't pre-bake it.

we make curst according to one of several cookbook recipes (depending on my mood). Then put it in pie pan, let sit in fridge for a bit, then fill it. We do not prick the bottom, but do put slits in the top to let out steam (and to see the bubbling blue berry juice as a test of doneness.).

Where do you get those round silver trays you set the pie plate on, I see you use them a lot in your cooking videos. Also what Grade of Maple Syrup did you use in the whipped cream recipe, Grade A, Grade B, Light, Medium or Dark.

Jackie, I purchased the cooling rack that I use quite often, at a local restaurant supply store...at least I think I did, either that or at one of the local kitchen stores.

Little tip, anyone can shop at local restaurant supply stores, you don't have to be a member or have a business. We have many items that came from stores like this.

As for the Maple Syrup, I believe it was Grade B (which are usually darker) because it has a stronger more robust flavor than grade A, but either would be fine as long as you use the real thing.

Thanks Dawn.

I used to make pumpkin pays as my school´s work in Newark DE, years ago. I have to make many of then in order to achieve the recipe. From this dish I became to know american food since then I´ve enjoyed it as well as people. For me though is a confort food! About the ingredients and the methods are almost the same.

What can I use instead of evaporated milk? Here in Croatia, they do have it.What is the best way to make the pumpkin puree, istead of buying it in a can? Thanks everybody.

Would all butter work, like in other crusts like Pate Brisee? Is this a Pate Brisee dough method or something else?

You could use cream instead of evaporated milk.

I have also heard that you can reduce regular milk down (for every 1 cup needed, reduce about 2 1/4 cups of milk). I personally have not tried this, but logically it makes sense to me.

As for the pumpkin puree, the best way to do this is to roast it in the oven. To do this place, peeled, seeded, diced chunks into a casserole dish and add some water. Then cover and roast at about 400°F, until cooked (this should take about 20 to 30 minutes). When done the pumpkin should be soft but not too mushy. Drain the water and then puree it using a food processor.

Alternatively you could cut the pumpkin in half, remove the seeds and cover with foil and bake (foil side up) in a 325°F oven for about an hour. Then puree using a food processor. Hope this helps, good luck!

Hi Jack, This is essentially a pate brisee recipe. You can substitute unsalted butter for the shortening. Shortening provides flakiness, but butter tastes better :) This is why there is a combination of the two in this recipe. Just make sure the butter is very cold and you should have great results.

Made a rookie mistake,
just put 1/2 TBSP of BK pwdr in my flower mixture vs the 1/8 required. What do I do? How will it affect it? Too puffy?

Hi Lauren. Short of starting over again with the dry ingredients, there is no way to correct this mistake. It might rise a bit more and wind up having a bitter flavor. If it is just the dry ingredients you have measured, you might want to consider starting over again. If you've already filled the pie and it's ready for baking, keep going. It might not be too bad. :-). Let us know how it goes.

Which one is supposed to be used in this recipe? The ingredient list says condensed but in the comments there is a suggestion for what to use in place of evaporated milk. It says that sweetened condensed milk can be used instead, but to leave out the sugar, but there is no sugar in the recipe. Can you specify whether to use evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, or unsweetened condensed milk (which I don't think you can get in the US)?

I ended up going with evaporated milk and adding 3/4 cup sugar. The pie is cooling now--it looks great and smells delicious!

The recipe calls for condensed milk, it could be more clear to say "sweetened condensed milk" (but like you said, I am not sure if you can buy "unsweetened condensed milk" these days. Nowadays "condensed milk" and "sweetened condensed milk" are most often used synonymously.

The comment above has been corrected, to be more clear. I should not have said "omit the sugar" as there was no added sugar in this recipe (I was referring to any recipe where there may have been sugar...but I can see how this may have been confusing).

I am sure your pie will work out just fine. Please let us know how it turned out. Hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Hi - living in Vzla I'm not making my Thanksgiving dinner until Sunday so I have the whole day off to cook, and my guests have the day off to enjoy - sorry to be late with these comments - I've been making pumpkin pie for years from scratch. Roasted pumpkin or butternut squash works great. I also have substituted mild yogurt for the evaporated milk when I can't find it - sometimes a local "crema de leche", but this has a saltier taste so you have to adjust. I'm sure every country has some sort of dairy cream or thickened milk product that could be used.

Thanks Dawn! The pie was excellent--it even got raves from people who "don't usually like pumpkin." I'm not surprised...I have yet to find a bad recipe on Rouxbe. Thanks everyone for putting so much time and effort into this site :)

Hi,
If you can`t buy the pumkin puree could you please tell me how to make it.
Thanks.

We currently do not have a recipe for this; however I did a quick google search and found several recipes. Hopefully one of these will work for you. Cheers!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pumpkin-Puree/Detail.aspx

http://jeenaskitchen.blogspot.com/2009/10/pumpkin-puree-recipe-how-to-make.html

http://www.sophistimom.com/how-to-make-pumpkin-puree/

http://www.chewonthatblog.com/2008/11/04/step-by-step-how-to-make-pumpkin-puree/

http://www.ehow.com/how_8304_make-quick-pumpkin.html

http://southerncuisine.suite101.com/article.cfm/fresh_pumpkin_puree_for_recipes

Thank you so much

What's the difference between parchment paper and wax paper and are either okay in this recipe?

Here are some links that identify the difference between parchment paper and wax paper. I would use parchment paper in this recipe. Wax paper could burn or smoke along the edges.

Parchment paper can be more expensive, but you can re-use the parchment paper rounds when blind baking tart shells. Keep the rounds in a bag with your dried beans or pie weights. Cheers!

I haven't tried this recipe yet, so I'm only speaking from my own experience. I've been baking pies for 30 years, and I would think that baking the pie for another 40 minutes after blind baking the crust to a golden color would result in a very burnt crust. Am I missing something?

I've done this recipe a couple of times now (still working on my crust skills), but the crust comes out a very nice golden brown, not burnt at all. The crust ends up only slightly darker at the end then it was after the blind baking.

FYI: I had to do this crust without parchment paper and the wax paper worked just fine. I did trim the paper so it didn't stick up very far, but there wasn't any smoking or anything. I did it with parchment paper today and noticed very little difference with the wax.

Everything in this (and every other good pie crust recipe) emphasises cold ingredents, cooling the crust, etc. I don't understand why cold is so important to the creation of the crust.

Cold ingredients equals a more tender and flaky crust. For a more scientific answer you may want to check out page 562 of Harold McGees book called "On Food and Cooking - the Science and Lore of the Kitchen". Cheers!

I try this recipe and it was delicious, I actually tried it with homemade pumpkin puree :). The only thing that did not came out so good was the whip cream. I am located in Mexico and I try searching a translation for heavy cream but did not have success, I though it might be what we call here media crema but I wanted to see if you know what is the exact translation or what can I use?

Look for the fat content on the package or carton. The difference is in the fat content and may vary depending on where you live. Make sure to choose something that has a minimum of 33% milk fat. In some countries, the fat content can be as high as 48%. If you try and use a light cream or even half and half to make whipping cream it will not work. Hope this helps. Cheers!

p.s. As an alternative you could use a dollop of Crema or Creme fraiche instead of whipping cream. It won't be the same but it would be good as an alternative.

I am just about to bake the pumpkin pie... The directions say to bake crust at 325, but what should the temperature of the oven be when you put the filling in?

I'm in the throws of baking Thanksgiving pies, and I'm wondering how long I can keep these crust doughs stay in the fridge. Should they be left out on the counter to warm a little before rolling out and baking? Thanks!

Hi. The crusts will be fine for a few days.

And yes, it would be good to take the pie dough out of the fridge, wrapped on the counter for about 20 minutes or so. It will be much easier to roll out. Don't let it get too warm though as cold dough will produce a flakier crust. It needs to be just warm enough to be somewhat pliable (so it doesn't crack when you roll it) but not warm so that the fat starts to soften.

Have a great T-day.
Joe

I am not sure what went wrong. The crust is perfect. The pie set up wonderful. If it was for a photo contest I would get first place... but the taste is awful, like a bad squash pie, bad is being kind. Should I have added sugar? I used carnation condensed milk, and canned pumpkin. I am so confused. I'll try it again. I had to have missed something.

On another note I am new to your site and I am LOVING IT!!! Thank you so much for creating this training series. I always wanted to go to school to learn to be a better cook, but college is expensive and includes training I don't want.. like kitchen management and business. This is perfect for the home cook and foodies that really take cooking seriously and want to gain the skills needed to go to the next level.

I am telling everyone about Rouxbe.com! Thank you!

We glad you are enjoying the site and spreading some Rouxbe love :)

In regards to the pumpkin pie, it could be the brand of puree you are using. Are you using solid pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)? Smell it and taste it to make sure you like it before using. Here is a drill-down on Pumpkin Puree.

You shouldn't need to add more sugar to this mix. The sweetened condensed milk gives the filling a nice balanced flavor. If you have time, try it again and perhaps buy a different puree to compare. It really is a nice pie. Pumpkin pie isn't one of my favorites but I don't pass up a slice on this one.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I will try again. I think I used both a bad puree and the wrong milk. I am sure my next attempt will be a success.
Enjoy the Holiday!

One of the many reasons why I love your lessons is that you explain, not only the whats, but the whys as well. I have a question: What is the advantage of using the egg yolk and vinegar with the ice water, rather than just ice water?

Thank you always for your excellent school!

Good question Kathie, in fact, someone else just asked the same question yesterday :-) Here is the link to the other thread. The egg yolk is used to enrich the dough. Happy Thanksgiving. Cheers!

Maybe my pie dishes are too steep on the sides, but when I pre-baked the crust it sunk down on the sides. Then when I took the pie weights out after the sides were set (I had pushed them back into place as much as possible, the middle rose up during the final baking. Should I have poked holes again? It seemed the first ones had sealed up. Thoughts?

I believe what you are experiencing is called shrinkage. This can happen for a couple of reasons: 1) the dough was overworked during forming; and 2) the dough was not very cold when it went into the oven. Working with pastry takes lots of practice. Just make sure for next time you work the dough just enough so that it comes together and always keep it as cold as possible when shaping. Formed pie crusts also benefit from being chilled before being baked. With regards to the pie weights, next time leave them in a bit longer until the bottom sets. I have removed them too soon in the past and the bottom bubbles. It's all about practicing :)
Hope this helps!

First pumpkin pie I've ever made and it was - for sure - the best pumpkin pie I have ever eaten! The pie crust - well - it looked like what you would see out of a magazine - was light and flaky - and I have never been able to make pie crust so always bought the shells. This alone is a huge improvement. But make it all up into this pumpkin pie and holy moly it was good. The texture was velvety smooth unlike any other pumpkin pie I've ever eaten before. I can't believe I really made this pie - wow! Thanks for turning me into the much better cook you promised I would be with my Rouxbe membership.

If I wanted to try a pie without eggs what would I substitute? could I make a whipped cream with coconut milk?
I have never used shortening what is it?
I want to make a vegan version if possible. and lastly can I use maple syrup instead of regular sugar?
Thank you.

i love the techniques and how easy it is to view these recipes

We have not tried this pie without eggs: therefore, you would have to experiment to see how it works for you.

As for making a whipped cream with coconut milk, unfortunately, you cannot just whip coconut milk and get the same results as you when you whip heavy cream.

Here is a more information on "What is Shortening?"

As for making a vegan pie, again, this is a different recipe and you cannot just simply leave out the dairy. You may want to search online for a vegan pumpkin pie recipe.

As for using maple syrup instead of sugar, sometimes it can be substituted but it does depend on the recipe and or how you are substituting it.

Cheers!

I've always used Crisco as shortening but am having difficulty getting it into cubes. Are you using sticks of margarine? Haven't bought that in years but might consider...I'm known as the pie queen around here but want to try another crust for fun. All your other recipes are more than good so I'm venturing into an area that has already been successful. We had our Thanksgiving a couple of weeks ago so this is an experiment and know that none of you should be answering any questions today!! Happy Thanksgiving to each of you!

We used Crisco shortening in this recipe because it adds great flakiness to the crust (part butter is used for flavor). Both are placed in the freezer prior to using to firm them up. Happy Thanksgiving! Cheers!

I made this pie for Thanksgiving. It came out great.

Here are some general comments if you're interested:

1. I used evaporated milk and added my own sugar (3/4 cup), as another person commented earlier. The sweetened condensed milk at my grocery store was sourced from another country not known for its rigorous food inspections. It made me a little nervous.

2. I doubled the recipe to make two pies. I knew it would take me at least two attempts to get the crust rolled out properly :) I had to patch my crusts in a few places after I had rolled it out -- it felt like an art project. Also, after I blind baked the crusts, one developed a few small holes. It didn't make much difference once everything was baked.

3. I made the dough the night before and stored overnight in the fridge in plastic wrap. It was too much to try to make everything on turkey day.

4. I used organic non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening from the local health food store. Not sure if it's any healthier than regular shortening, but it worked well.

5. The pie filling was a bit looser than what was shown in the video. It was much more like a liquid than a paste. It cooked well, although the top wasn't as perfectly smooth as shown here. It had a few small cracks. I'm not sure if doubling the recipe or using the different milk could account for that. I also wonder if I didn't let it simmer long enough. Thoughts?

6. I had some leftover pie filling and baked it in a ramekin in the toaster oven. It wasn't bad and let me "taste the pie" without making a dent in the real pies. For those that want to stay away from gluten/flour, that might be the way to go. The pie tastes much better cold than it does hot. My family sampled the ramekin "pie" almost out of the oven, and it was not great.

I thought pie crusts would be very hard, but your technique (and the right tools) made it simple. I just wish there was a way to speed up the whole crust process -- making dough, chilling, blind baking, etc. It's best to spread it out over a couple of days if you don't have lots of time.

Thanks for listening!

What a great pie! I used sweet potatos instead of pumpkin and everyone loved it. Thank you.

I do have one question. After you use the beans to bake the crust can they be used as normal or should they be discarded? Just being thrifty I guess...

My son said that this crust was my best yet! So I will be using this for all my pies from now on-as Bill wrote, just wish it didn't take so long to make but it IS worth it. My son suggested getting the Crisco in the sticks and freezing it partially even before cutting it into little pieced so that part will go more quickly. I was trying to measure the messy stuff out of the can and then get it into little pieces to freeze :) The only problem was that I used the crust for an apple pie and it got a little brown before it was done because of the pre-baking. Could I have baked the apple pie without that step? Or pre-bake and just cover the edges with foil?

Par baking is something that can be done to many different degrees, like par cooking, it really depends how wet the filling that will go in is. It takes some experimentation, a lot of people do not par bake their shell and have good results, and yes you can also cover the edges with foil if they get too much colour.

excellent! Thank you.

If I can't find distilled white vinegar for the crust, is there a substitute? In various other places I've read anything acidic or even vodka.

Thanks

Matt

Joe

Can I keep the pie crust in the frig or freezer a couple of days in advance and then take it out and roll it later? Thanks!

Also, could you use apple cider vinegar to give a different flavor? What does the vinegar do to the crust? Thanks!

how many days can the pie be stored in the refrigerator:? or should I store the pie crust and filling separately? and pour the filling when ready to bake? thanks

The addition of the acid, in this case, white vinegar, cuts the gluten strands in the pie dough making for a more tender crust. It also helps to keep the crust from getting too brown.

If you were to use apple cider vinegar, I am not sure that you would notice a difference. You could certainly give it a try though. You can also use lemon juice. Some people even use vodka instead of vinegar.

Regarding making the crust ahead, we actually make it and bake it the day before. As for just making the crust ahead and then rolling it later, yes this can be done. If freezing, be sure to thaw it well in the refrigerator before attempting to roll it. Cheers!

While the pie will still be good after a day or two in the refrigerator, it will likely start to get a bit soggy on the bottom, the longer it sits. We often make and bake the pie 1 day ahead but not much more than that. Cheers!

may i let the pie sit out for a few hours after baking or does it need to be refrigerated? thanks for the quick response.

The pie should be okay to sit out for a bit. However, for food safety reasons, I wouldn't recommend any longer than a couple of hours. That doesn't mean you wouldn't be okay if it was left out for a bit longer, I just can't say that it would be okay, if you know what I mean. Cheers!

HELP!!! so I made the pie dough as i was rolling it out it kept riping. My crisco from the tub never got firm after in the freezer for 30 mins. Will crisco get as firm as butter? Also as I was rolling it out I had big chunks of butter which kept sticking to the rolling pin. My dough as I was gathering it in a ball was cracking. Not sure if I added enough liquid. I would like to attempt this recipe again. Any thoughts how I can improve my pie dough? thanks

Pie dough can sure be frustrating, so let's take a step back and evaluate what is going on. From what I can discern, everything you describe can be easily remedied- so let's take it step by step.

Crisco will get as firm as butter, it just needs time to set and harden. 30 minutes in the freezer should be ample time, but the core may not be getting cool enough and the temperature differential between the very cold exterior and the not-yet-cold interior may be contributing the textural issues.

If there are large chunks of butter that cause sticking, simply sprinkle a small amount of flour on your board and rolling pin to keep things from clinging. I find it's best to have small clumps of butter in the dough--something around the size of a pea. Keeping the dough as cool as possible and handling it minimally also helps--remember that when we touch the dough with our hands, we are essentially melting the fat.

If you are experiencing dry dough--that cracks and doesn't stay together as a mass when formed in a ball-- then you can add 1-2 tsp. of very cold (iced) water. Go slowly in adding more water, as too much liquid will make the dough gummy and a yield a somewhat tough finished product.

Happy Cooking. Enjoy!

I made these pies again this year and wanted to post back my experiences and more comments.

Here they are:

1. I froze the cubes of butter and shortening the night before making the pies. That worked well and saved me some time in the morning. I thought the fat would be too hard to mix in the food processor but it actually seemed to work well.

2. I searched several markets, but none of the stores in my area carried cake flour. I used Bob's Red Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour. It seemed to work well and the crust tasted good.

3. I used non-sweetened evaporated milk again and figured I'd add my own sugar as I did last year. However, I didn't remember to add the sugar until after I was admiring my perfect pies baking cozily in the oven :) Fortunately, it was in the first 5 minutes of baking and I was able to remove the pies and stir in the sugar carefully with a fork. No one was the wiser. There's a lot to be said about organizing each ingredient beforehand instead of working down a list.

Despite the error above, making the pies was definitely easier this year.

I, too, didn't have cake flour but it is easy to make (although I am definitely going to try your whole wheat pastry version). Put 2 T. of cornstarch in a measuring cup and sprinkle all-purpose flour in to fill. I did this three times (yield 3 cups) so I would have enough cake flour for 4 crusts. You must put it into a sieve or sifter and sift it at least 5 times to distribute the two ingredients and to aerate it to be light. Then measure out the 3/4 cup per one-crust recipe. I freeze the rest although this is probably not necessary.