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Archive for the ‘Thanksgiving’ Category

Pumpkin Pie

Every year I tell myself, that this year I am going to make a Pumpkin Pie myself. But every year I resolve to to a store-bought pie which is pretty good and so quick and easy. But if you make the pie crust ahead-of-time and store it in the freezer then it’s really not too much trouble making the pie yourself, not to mention, how wonderful this Pumpkin pie taste. The filling has an added wonderful orange flavor which really compliments the pumpkin and it is light in texture. I was contemplating making my own pumpkin puree as well but was concerned with getting the correct water content in the puree and possibly ending up with a soggy pie crust, so I opted for the canned puree, which is just fine. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie (serves 8-10)

Ingredients:

For pie crust (makes two pie crusts)

350 grams all-purpose flour ( 12.3 oz or 2 1/2 cups)

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

226 grams unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (8 oz or 2 sticks)

1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water (60-120 ml)

For the filling

15 oz canned pumpkin puree (425 grams)

1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoon grated orange zest

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup whole milk

2 tablespoons dark rum

Directions:

For the pie crust: Cut up butter and place in refrigerator until ready to use. Place flour, salt and sugar in a food processor, process of combine. Add cold butter to flour and pulse until butter is the size of small peas. Add 1/4 – 1/2 cup ice water in a steady stream through feed tube, only until dough starts to clump together when pinched. Careful not to overmix. Turn dough onto countertop and quickly work it together into a ball. Divide into two equal portions and flatten each portion into a 5 inch (12 cm) disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes. At this point you can also freeze dough for up to 1 month. Defrost dough in refrigerator overnight before using.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to fit into a 9 inch (23 cm) pie dish. To prevent dough from sticking to countertop keep lifting and rotating dough. Roll dough onto rolling pin and lift dough into pie dish. Gently press dough into place, do not pull dough as this will cause shrinkage. Trim dough with a knife around the outer edge, fold excess dough inward to form an edge and crimp edge to create a scalloped look if desired. Chill dough before blind baking.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (218 degrees C). After dough has chilled, place pie dish onto a baking sheet. Using a fork prick holes in the bottom and sides of dough. Line pie with parchment paper and fill 3/4 full with pie weights or dried beans. Bake crust for 15 minutes. Remove parchment paper and weights and bake for another 5 minutes.

For the Filling: Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, orange zest, eggs, cream, milk and rum,  making sure egg whites are broken up. Pour filling into pre-baked pie shell and cover pie edges with foil to prevent excessive browning. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a knife inserted 1 inch from outer edge comes out clean. Place baked pie on a wire rack to cool. Serve at room temperature with a dollop of whipped cream. Store leftovers in refrigeator. Enjoy!

Source: Pie Crust – Joy of Baking. Pumpkin Filling – BarefootContessa, Foolproof.

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Perfect Pie Crust

The Holiday season is upon us and with so many foods to be baked and cooked it is really tempting to use a store-bought pie crust instead of making your own. However, this pie crust is both delicious and quick and easy to make…so why use a store-bought? This Perfect Pie Crust comes out light and flaky and it contains more butter than vegetable shortening (which I like) plus it can easily be made a day ahead saving you precious time on your busy day 🙂

Ingredients:

12 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon sugar (plus more for sprinkling)

1/3 cup very cold vegetable shortening

6-8 tablespoons ice water (about 1/2 cup)

1 egg, beaten for egg wash

Directions:

Measure out ahead of time the vegetable shortening and place in refrigerator to allow to get very cold.

Dice the butter and place back in refrigerator until ready to use. Place flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse a few times to mix. Add the cold butter and shortening. Pulse until the butter is the size of peas (8-12 pulses). With the machine running, add the ice water through the feed tube. Continue to pulse until the dough begins to form a ball. Divide dough into two equal parts and form each dough ball into a slightly flattened disk. Wrap each dough disk tightly in plastic wrap and store in a large zip-loc bag. Place dough in refrigerator until ready to use. Can easily be stored in refrigerator overnight.

When ready to make your pie, make sure your work surface is well-floured. Place first disk on floured surface and roll out into a circle, making sure to frequently move and flip the dough, adding more flour as needed to ensure dough does not stick to work surface. Gently roll dough onto rolling-pin and lift to pie dish letting the dough extend over the edges. When fitting the dough into the baking dish, do not stretch dough as it will shrink a little during baking. Fill with pie filling and brush the edge of dough with egg wash so top dough will adhere. Roll out second dough disk and place on top of filled pie. Trim the edges to about 1/2 inch over the rim. Crimp the two layers of dough together using your fingers or a fork. Brush the entire top crust with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Cut four or five small slits in dough to allow venting. Place on a baking sheet and bake pie at 400 degrees. The baking instructions I had said to bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until the crust is browned. However, oven temperatures may vary and my pie was done in just 45 minutes so I would recommend to watch the pie like a hawk while baking or if your oven tend to run a little on the hot side, perhaps lower the temperature.

Perfect Pie Crust

Source: Barefoot Contessa Family Style

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