This recipe is great EXCEPT for one huge mistake: The amount of pumpkin in the original recipe is TWICE what it should be. Other reviewers say to double the spices; the fact is, to make one pie, jut halve the amount of pumpkin and you'll be fine. Two cups of pumpkin works out to the contents of a single sugar pie pumpkin.
This recipe is OK except that you need to double all the spices except the salt. Plus I don't know how deep the author's pie plate is but I made two 9" deep dish pies from this recipe. If you include the time needed to bake the pumpkins this is not quick or easy. However getting the kids in on doing the mashing is fun. I like the texture of this filling a lot it is firmer than most others less custard-like. For that reason alone it is worth taking the time to use fresh pumpkins and make this.
This recipe is fast and easy. I ended up using canned pumpkin for this one, and it turned out fine. Make sure you use a deep-dish pan, it makes a lot! Needless to say, I am a beginner at cooking, but this recipe still made a great pie.
If you want to use FRESH pumpkin instead of filling from a can THIS RECIPE is the BEST!! We baked the pumpkin scaped into a food processor blended then put in freezer ziplock. Once that is done the recipe is a breeze. And OH SO DELICIOUS! My husband could've eaten the whole pie himself!
Thanks for sharing Paula! What a wonderful taste this pie had. Nothing like the store-bought pumpkin. My grandmother made it the same way but she separated the egg whites and folded them into the pumpkin after whipping them into a froth. She always got a very light texture. Guaranteed to be a hit during the holidays. We've already polished off two of them.
I'd never cooked with fresh pumpkin before so I was very nervous about this recipe. I used a few shortcuts including store-bought crusts (I used graham-cracker crust instead of regular pie crust). I used what I thought was a medium-sized pumpkin but I ended up with WAY more pumpkin flesh than I needed. I also had more success processing the whole mixture in a blender than with a potato masher. Halfway through cooking the cookie sheet holding my 2 pies slid off the shelf when I opened the oven. I scooped the pie filling back in (no way was I wasting it after all that effort) and continued baking. They were kind of ugly in the end but they tasted heavenly. My husband (who didn't prep the pumpkin) has asked that I make it this way from now on instead of using canned pumpkin!
I too doubled the spices (specially the cinammon) and also added vanilla paste (1/2 tsp) and an extra egg. The sweetend condensed milk comes in a smaller size in Canada (300ml) but that provided ample moisture and a great pie. I used my Braun hand electric chpper to puree and whip the filling which was a snap. Yummy. Was a great hit at our Cdn. Thanksgiving dinner.
Update 10/18/2006 Three years later my son is now 13 and he still asks for this pie!!! Just made 2 today. I make on average 5 - 7 pies every year. Awesome recipe Paula. Much love to your Grandmom...WHERE EVER SHE IS!!! KUDOS GRANDMA!!!!!----------5/2/2003 Every year for the past 7 years we go pumpkin picking with our 10 year old son Kenneth We carve out a jack-o-lantern and throw away the insides. Not this year. I used this receipe and got wonderful results for my first time pie baking. My son couldn't get enough of it. And it was sooooo easy too! Our many thanks to Paula and her grandmom.
This recipe was excellent real quick and easy the only thing that is time consuming is the pumpkin cooking and mashing. Worth the effort though the results were great be sure to serve it with a generous dollop of whipped cream definitely a crowd pleaser. Thanks for the recipe! MOSHI
