Mom, me, Dad
PUMPKIN PIE
From Judi Troyer
When I was growing up, we always had pumpkin pie and pecan pie and some type of cream pie at Thanksgiving and Christmas. I continued the tradition when I got married.
My first pumpkin pie recipe was given to me by Frances Berry, wife of Professor E. Wayne Berry. I was working in the office at our college the year of our first Thanksgiving and asked her how to make a pumpkin pie. She gave me this recipe. Below is a picture of her at work in the mail room at school. The mail room was also where the coffee was always brewing for everyone working in the offices, so there were friendly and funny conversations in the mail room every day!! Good memories.
Frances Berry, front center
To Cook a Pumpkin:
Wash and cut in half crosswise. Remove seeds and strings.
Place pumpkin in a pan cut side down.
Cook in a moderate oven at 325 degrees, until tender and it starts to fall apart.
Scrape pulp from shell and put it through a ricer or strainer. This is like the pumpkin in a can.
Pumpkin Pie
1 3/4 cup cooked pumpkin, mashed
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 t. salt
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. ginger (optional)
1/2 t. cloves
1 3/4 cup milk
1 9-inch pie shell, unbaked
Combine pumpkin and eggs.
Mix all dry ingredients together.
Add all to pumpkin mixture.
Stir in milk.
Pour into pie shell.
Bake at 425 for 45-55 minutes or until a dinner knife comes out clean, or nearly so, when tried in the center of the pie. (If some of the pumpkin stays on the knife, it's not done.)
Let it cool a little while before you cut it.
In later years, I used my Betty Crocker cookbook recipe which follows below:
2 cups cooked pumpkin, or 1 can (16 oz.) pumpkin
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. ground cloves
1 2/3 cup evaporated milk
Baking is a little different, too.
Heat oven to 425. Prepare pastry. Beat eggs slightly with hand beater; beat in remaining ingredients. Place pastry-lined pie plate on oven rack; pour in filling (*tip: place pie plate on a cookie sheet, in case of a spill--that will protect the bottom of your oven).
Bake 15 minutes.
Reduce oven temp to 350. Bake until knife inserted in center comes out clean, about 45 minutes longer--keep watching over it near the end of the cooking time and check it for being done).
Cool.*
Serve with sweetened whipped cream, if desired. (Yes, please!!)
*I think the flavor is better if put in the refrigerator and eaten the next day instead of eating it the day I made it. Or, make it early, refrigerate, and eat several hours later.
