Description
This easy pumpkin pie is the ultimate Thanksgiving dessert. It’s a classic, creamy pie filling that’s perfectly spiced, and has a crispy, buttery, flaky crust – all of that is topped with homemade whipped cream. This pie will work with any pie crust recipe, or store bought frozen pie crust. Need the pumpkin pie to be gluten free? Try my gluten free pie crust. Tastes just like regular pie crust.
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 single pie crust (see my flaky gluten free pie crust recipe, for a gluten free option)
Pumpkin pie filling
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (recipe here)
- 4 large eggs, room temp
- 1 15 ounce can (2 cups) pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (NOT pancake syrup)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream, room temp
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For sealing the crust
- 1 egg, whisked
Options for topping
Instructions
- Prepare: Before you make the pie make sure you have a single pie crust that is well chilled, and defrosted, waiting in the fridge for you. (See my gluten free pie crust recipe for a gluten free option). Also make sure to leave your eggs and heavy cream at room temp for several hours before making the pie to allow them to come to room temp.
- Roll out the crust: When you’re ready to make the pie, roll out your crust to 13 inches, so that there are about 2 to 3 inches that will hang off the 9 inch pie plate. Line the pie plate, trim the crust to about one inch, using kitchen shears, then crimp the pie crust to your desired style, (see my gluten free pie crust post for directions on how to crimp a crust) then cover the crust with plastic wrap. NOTE: see my gluten free pie crust recipe for tips on rolling out dough, and troubleshooting if your dough is too crumbly, sticking to your work surface, or if it’s too sticky (among other problems/tips). This can especially be helpful if you’re working with a homemade crust. My tips can still apply to a regular, non gluten free crust.
- Freeze the crust: Freeze the covered crust for 20 minutes (or put in the fridge for 40 minutes). You want the crust to be nice and firm before baking.
- Preheat your oven: Arrange the oven rack so that it is closest to the bottom of the oven. Preheat your oven to 435 degrees Fahrenheit. Also line a rimmed sheet pan with foil (to catch any spills from the butter melting), and place it in the oven so that it can get nice and hot.
- Dock the crust: Once the crust is firm and well chilled (but not completely frozen), use the tines of a fork to dock the crust all over (make holes in the crust), even up the sides of the crust. This will allow the steam to escape.
- Par bake the crust: Line the crust with 2 large pieces of foil, allowing a good amount to stick up for overhang. Add pie weights to the crust, making sure that they come to the top of the pie plate. You can use ceramic pie plates, dried beans, or dried rice (I use dried rice). Place the crust into the preheated oven, on top of the hot baking sheet, and bake for 20 minutes, or until the edges of the crust start to turn golden brown. Pull the crust out of the oven, and carefully remove the foil/pie weights from the pie crust, and set them aside. Reduce the oven temp to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and place the crust back into the oven to bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the bottom of the crust begins to browns slightly, and the crust mostly starts to look dry. Note: keep in mind that some butter leaking from the crust is normal, this is why the baking sheet is important to catch leaks.
- Make the pumpkin pie filling: While the crust is baking (after you remove the pie weights), make the filling. To a large mixing bowl, add the sugar, cornstarch, kosher salt, and pumpkin pie spice – whisk to combine and break up any lumps. Add the room temp eggs and pumpkin puree – whisk until somewhat combined. Add the maple syrup, heavy cream, and vanilla extract – whisk until mostly combined. Switch to a rubber spatula to finish mixing all of the ingredients together. You don’t want to overmix, or add too much air to the eggs – this may cause the pie to crack during the cooling process.
- Seal the crust: Once the bottom of the crust is lightly browned, and mostly dry, use a pastry brush to lightly brush the egg wash on the bottom, and up the sides of the pie plate (avoiding the crimped edges). Place the crust back into the oven for 1 to 2 minutes, or just until the egg wash is dry, and set – it should be a little glossy looking. This step prevents the bottom of the crust from getting soggy from the filling – don’t skip.
- Fill the pie crust: Immediately, after the crust is sealed, pour the pie filling into the crust. Use a small offset spatula, or the back of a spoon to smooth out the filling, and even it out.
- Bake the pie: Place the pie back into the oven and bake it for 40 to 50 minutes, or just until the edges are set, and the center is jiggly. You want the center to be pretty jiggly, because it will continue to cook from the residual heat as it cools. Note: if the edges of the crust begin to burn a little, remove the pie form the oven and cover the edges of the crust with foil, then return the pie to the oven. It’s a good idea to stay close while the pie is baking so you can smell any burning to catch it before it gets too bad.
- Cool the pie in the oven: Once the pie is done baking immediately, turn off the oven, and crack the oven door. Allow the pie to cool in the oven until the oven is completely cooled. This step will finish baking your pie, without overbaking it, and it helps to prevent the pie from cracking because the eggs cool gradually.
- Cool the pie on the counter: Once the oven is cool you can remove the pie from it and place the pie on a cooling rack to cool completely (this will take several hours).
- Cover and chill in the fridge: Once the pie is cooled completely, cover the pie with plastic wrap, or foil, and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours (overnight is best). Chilling the pie long enough allows the custard filling to fully set up. Due to the long chill time, this pie is an ideal one to make a day in advance (see notes for more info).
- Make homemade whipped cream: I highly recommend serving this pumpkin pie with whipped cream, especially homemade, it only takes 10 minutes to make, and is so much better than anything pre-made form the store. Click here for my whipped cream recipe.
- Slice and serve: When you’re ready to serve the pie, use a sharp chef’s knife to cut the pie into wedges, making sure to apply a lot of pressure on the crimped edges of the crust to make sure you get all the way through. Serve with homemade whipped cream, if desired and an extra dusting of cinnamon for garnish. Serve pie immediately.
- To store: To store any leftovers, keep them in the pie plate and cover the pie plate. Store the pie in the fridge for up to 1 week. The crust does soften just a touch, but it’s still very good.
Notes
Pie crust – Feel free to use your favorite pie crust recipe for this pumpkin pie. Or, you can even use a store bought, frozen pie crust that has been thawed. Just be sure to follow my directions in this recipe for working with the crust. If you need this pie to be gluten free, then use my flaky gluten free pie crust recipe – it tastes just like regular pie crust. Also, if making your own pie crust, I recommend making the pie crust in advance, when possible. If it’s stored frozen, make sure you thaw it in the fridge overnight before you work with it.
Pie weights – When par baking the crust, using pie weights is very important to make sure the crust doesn’t slump during baking. I like to use dried rice because it’s cheap, you can re-use the dried rice for future pie weights. You can also use dried beans and re-use them for future pie weights. Just make sure you have enough to come to the top of the pie.
Make ahead – I recommend making this pie 1 day in advance from when you plan to serve it. It is best when it has chilled in the fridge for 4 to 8 hours (the longer the better). You can make the pie dough up to several months in advance and store it in the freezer (highly recommend making the crust in advance). Just make sure to thaw it out in the fridge overnight. See my gluten free pie crust post for more info on how to freeze pie crust – the same method would apply to a regular pie crust recipe.
