Pumpkin Pie

Autumn is a time for all things pumpkin. Except for the pumpkin risotto I ate at Prezzo a couple of weeks ago, my experience of eating and baking with pumpkin doesn't extend that far. Halloween seemed to fly past this year, so much so that I didn't even have time to carve my white pumpkin (who else is loving these ghostly pumpkins? I think I may even prefer them to the standard orange ones!). So rather than wasting this beastie, I decided to try some pumpkin bakes for the first time. First up, of course it had to be pumpkin pie!

I'm not exaggerating when I say this pumpkin was HUGE. The photos don't do it justice. It took probably a good two hours to clear all the seedy gunky insides out, peel, and chop it up into chunks. Even after using some of the chunks for the pie, I was still left with THREE freezer bags full of pumpkin chunks!   

No Autumnal post is complete without a pretty leaf picture.

As I've never made anything with pumpkin before, nor really had much experience tasting it, I had no idea what pumpkin pie would taste like. All I knew of pumpkin was the awful smell it has when cutting it, so I was feeling a little bit hesitant. I decided to follow this recipe, choosing one specifically made for white pumpkins as they are apparently milder in flavour, and therefore require slight changes to the spices used in traditional pumpkin pies. As with my Masala Chai Apple Cake, the recipe used American units, so I used this website to convert them.

The recipe was very quick and simple to follow, and it all went surprisingly smooth. However, as usual with my temperamental oven, I did slightly overcook my pie, so would suggest baking it for around 40 minutes rather than the stated 45-60 minutes if you have a hot oven like mine.

I also cheated a little bit and used a pre-made shortcrust pastry rather than making my own. Though this saved time, this pie definitely needs a sweet pastry, so next time I will be making my own from scratch.

Overall though, despite my messy, bland pastry, I'm pretty pleased with my first attempt at pumpkin pie. As with most Autumnal bakes, I love the spices used. However, despite this, I'm still a bit unsure at whether or not I actually like pumpkin. With lack of a better word, it has an almost "slimy" texture that I struggle to get used to. But hey, maybe it will grow on me. After all, I do have three bags full of pumpkin to use up...

Have you ever made any pumpkin bakes?

Love, Beth xxx