Butternut Pumpkin Pie 🇺🇸

When American Thanksgiving comes around in November, memories bring me back to those years living in San Francisco when there would be fields of bright orange pumpkins for the picking just south of the city.  Everyone travels to be with their family and feast on sumptuous food on that special last Thursday of the month.  There would inevitably be a turkey on the table with all the trimmings, and a pumpkin pie for dessert.  American recipes will ask you to use tinned pumpkin puree and I often find their pies too sweet for my taste.  Try this Aussie version using fresh butternut pumpkin, only mildly sweet, and super delicious.  When I make and present it for my Australian friends, they are quite intrigued, thinking first it is a savoury pie.  The pie crust can be made using a food processor or by hand.  The dough is chilled, rolled into a sheet, then blind baked in the pie pan prior to adding the filling to ensure the crust will be crisp.   If this sounds like too much work, frozen short crust pastry sheets from the shops will do just fine.  Simply follow package instructions. (I have had success with the 'Pampas' brand of short crust pastry cases if you can get hold of them, but you'll need two cases for the amount of filling in this recipe.)  And it doesn't have to be Thanksgiving to enjoy a pumpkin pie after all!

Serves 8-10

INGREDIENTS

Filling:

• 500g / 1lb 2oz butternut pumpkin
• 340ml / 11½ fl oz evaporated milk
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon sea salt

Crust:

• 330g / 11½oz plain flour
• 165g /  5¾ oz unsalted butter, cubed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup cold water

METHOD

To make the filling:

1. Remove the skin of the butternut pumpkin with a vegetable peeler.  Discard any seeds and stringy parts.  Cut into cubes.  In a saucepan over medium low heat, cook pumpkin, covered, in ¼ cup of water for about 10 minutes until soft and the liquid has been absorbed.  Mash the pumpkin with a potato masher.
2. In a food processor with mixer speed on medium, combine mashed pumpkin with evaporated milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt until well mixed.

To make the crust:

1. Mix together the flour, salt and butter cubes in a large bowl.  With your finger tips, rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, working as quickly as possible to prevent the dough from becoming warm.  Add the cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time until a dough begins to form.  (Alternatively, you can blitz it a few seconds at at time in a food processor on pulse setting for this step.)
2. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead gently into a disc.  Avoid overhanding or the crust will end up greasy.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for an hour in the refrigerator.
3. Remove plastic wrap from the dough.  With a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a circular pastry sheet that would fit generously into a loose-base 23cm /9" fluted pie pan (see picture below on the left).  Gently roll the pastry sheet around the rolling pin and transfer it over to the pan.  Unroll and ease the sheet into the bottom of the pan.  Use the side of your finger to press the pastry into the fluted side of the pan.  It is fine for some of the pastry to hang over the edge of the pan.
4. With a fork, prick the bottom of the crust in numerous places (see picture below in the middle) to allow steam to escape while baking.
5. Line the pie crust with a crumbled piece of baking paper slightly larger than the size of the pie and place some baking weights (or dried beans) on top to prevent the pastry from puffing up while cooking (see picture below on the right). Blind bake the pie in a preheated 200°C/400°F oven for 10 minutes.  Remove the baking paper and the weights and bake for another 8-10 minutes until the crust is slightly golden.
6. Remove the pie pan from the oven and let it cool completely.

           

   

Baking the pie:

Pour the filling into the prepared crust.  Place the pie pan on a heavy baking tray or sheet in the oven.  Bake in a preheated 200°C/400°F oven for 40 minutes or until tip of a knife inserted into the centre of the pie comes out wet but relatively clean.  Let the pie cool before trimming excess crust around the edge of the pan with a knife.   Remove the pie from the pan onto a plate.  

Serve each portion of pie with a dollop of thick cream on top.