I am long overdue in gifting the recipe for My Mom’s Perfect Pumpkin Pie recipe to you guys! I promised it to you last Thanksgiving, and a string of life events happened, and I just didn’t have the energy. I’m going to make it up to you, though! Thank you so much for sticking around! I love you guys!
I have a confession!
I have to be honest and tell you that pie is not my first choice for dessert! I always lean more towards making rich and gooey chocolate confections, creamy cheesecakes, or my ultimate favorite- ice cream!!
Pie-making has always been an intimidating endeavor for me. The filling I’m fine with making! It’s the crust that trips me up! But the crust recipe I’m sharing with you today is virtually fail-proof! If I can confidently make this flaky crust, then you definitely can!
A food processor will be your best friend when it comes to creating a killer pie dough!
- Pulse flour, salt, and sugar several times.
- Add frozen butter cubes and Crisco. Pulse until pea-size {or smaller} pieces form.
- Drizzle in ice-cold white wine and water. Pulse a bit more until the dough begins to clump. If you squeeze a bit in your hand and it stays together rather than crumble, it’s ready!
- Dump the contents of the processor onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Fold the edges over and squeeze gently to form the dough into a disc.
- Chill for an hour or up to two days before rolling it!
I know that white wine sounds like an unconventional ingredient to add to a pie dough but…
It really does help create the ultimate flaky crust! I don’t know the exact science of it. It has something to do with the alcohol in the wine burning off during the baking time and creating flaky layers. I’ve seen several recipes that call for vodka. But I like to save my vodka for martinis! Are you with me?? Clink, Clink! Cheers!
After you roll out the dough and place it in the pan…
To form the outer edge, fold the excess dough under. Use the knuckle of a finger and smoosh it between two fingers on the opposite hand in the shape of a V.
If you are new to the term “blind-baking” don’t be intimidated!
Blind-baking a crust is when the crust is partially or fully baked before the filling is added. If we were to bake this particular recipe without partially baking the crust first, we would end up with a crust that was still doughy and uncooked. The crust is lined with a piece of parchment paper, and you can use either pie weights like what I used in the photo above or use a few bags of dried beans {emptied from the packaging, of course!}. I use two packages of these particular pie weights- keep in mind if you purchase some, you may need more than one package.
The crust will puff up and lose its shape if something isn’t weighing it down!
Of course, you can always skip making the pie dough from scratch and purchase a package of ready-made dough from the refrigerated section at the grocery store. There’s no shame in it, my friends!!!
Now that the not-so-hard part is over let’s move on to the best part!
The filling!!!
Oh-me-oh-my! I could write a novel about how much I love this pie!
Fun fact: My Mom’s nickname was Cookie. I have no idea why, because she was known for her delicious pies and decorating beautiful cakes! She was an amazing pie-maker! You name it; she made it! Rhubarb! Strawberry! Apple! Banana Cream! And they were all scrumptious!
But, my all-time favorite is this pumpkin pie! The crust recipe is my creation, but this pie would not be anything without her filling! It’s made with creamy pumpkin puree, dark brown sugar, heavy on the cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and an extra dose of ground cloves. Upon seeing this pie, everyone comments on its appearance. The dark brown sugar helps contribute to this pie being darker than most. It also lends a rich sweetness and a hint of smokiness that I adore! And if you love gingerbread or spiced baked goods, then you will appreciate Mom’s extra spices!
Trust me, you’ll never make another pumpkin pie recipe again!
A few tips about creating My Mom’s Perfect Pumpkin Pie Filling!
- The recipe calls for a small can of evaporated milk, be sure it’s evaporated and not sweetened condensed. The latter is super thick- and super sweet! Not a bad thing, but the recipe will not be a success if it’s mistakenly used! For the life of me, I don’t know why grocers stock them side-by-side! I can’t tell you how many times Jeff has run to the store for me and accidentally picked up the wrong can!
- You can substitute light brown sugar in a pinch, but the pie will not have the depth of flavor and richness that it does with dark brown sugar.
- Lightly beat the eggs! We don’t need to take our anxiety that 2020 has inflicted on us out on the eggs! Lightly beat them to loosen them a bit. If they are beaten too much, it could cause the pie filling to puff and crack.
And of course!
No slice of pumpkin pie is complete without a generous dollop or heap of whipped cream if you are me!! Yes, I confess, I am the girl that stands in front of the open refrigerator shamelessly squirting whipped cream from the can into her mouth!! Jeff catches me doing this regularly!
But this pie calls for the good stuff! You know~ heavy cream, powdered sugar, pure vanilla extract! Whipped until it’s soft and billowy! And pure bliss when loaded onto a slice of pumpkin pie!
And the cute little pastry leaves you see above? Well, if you love them as much as I do~make an extra batch of pie dough and punch them out! I used a set of fondant cutters. I have seen some gorgeous pies on Instagram, and I had a bit of pastry envy, so I bought a set! Sadly, they did not arrive in time to decorate the edge of the pie with them. I want to decorate everything using pastry leaves! They will look so cute scattered on our Thanksgiving tablescape! I sprinkled a tiny bit of cinnamon sugar on each one to give it a hint of sparkle. It doesn’t really show in the photo! {Insert sad face emoji!} I baked the pastry leaves on a parchment-lined cookie sheet at 400° for about 10 minutes. Bake them until they are golden brown and puffy!
I hope you make My Mom’s Perfect Pumpkin Pie a part of your holiday menu- she would be so honored! And thrilled! As would I!
If you are looking for more festive fall recipes, I have a few recommendations!
Instant Pot Mac & Cheese with Pretzel Bacon
If you purchase the items I have linked in this blog post, I may receive a commission from Amazon. At no extra cost to you! Thank you so much for your continued love and support of my work here at Yums & Kisses!
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My Mom’s Perfect Pumpkin Pie
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 8 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
My Mom’s Perfect Pumpkin Pie! Made with slightly smoky dark brown sugar, a generous amount of pumpkin pie spices, and evaporated milk! Mom’s pie will become your new favorite Thanksgiving dessert! Serve with softly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream!
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust:
1 + 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, diced and frozen
2 Tablespoons vegetable shortening {such as Crisco}, frozen
2 Tablespoons very cold white wine {such as Pinot Grigio}
3–4 Tablespoons ice cold water
For the Pumpkin Filling:
15 ounce can of pumpkin puree
2 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
5 ounce can of evaporated milk {it’s a small can}
For the Whipped Cream:
1 cup very cold heavy whipping cream
pinch of fine sea salt
1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Crust:
- In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour, salt, and sugar.
- Add the frozen butter and Crisco. Pulse approximately 20 times in short bursts.
- When the flour mixture is flecked with pea-sized pieces {or slightly smaller} of butter, drizzle in the cold wine and three tablespoons of the water. Pulse several times to combine the dough. If needed, add the extra tablespoon of ice water.
- The dough is ready when it holds together when squeezed in your hand.
- Dump the dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap. Fold the edges of the wrap over the crumbs and squish it lightly together to form a disc of dough.
- Place the pie dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour before rolling it and blind-baking.
- To Blind-Bake the Pie Shell:
- Roll the dough on a lightly floured counter using a floured rolling pin. Roll the dough until it’s approximately 10-11 inches in diameter, or a little bit bigger than your pie pan. Place the rolled dough in the pan and trim the excess dough while leaving enough to fold the outer edge to form the desired crust edge.
- Crinkle up a piece of parchment paper. Uncrinkle the sheet and place over the dough in the pan.
- Place the crust in the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 400°. Chill the crust for 20 minutes.
- Before baking, place pie weights on the parchment-lined crust.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
While the Crust Partially Bakes Make the Pie Filling:
- Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl.
- After blind-baking the crust, remove the pie weights and parchment from the shell immediately after removing it from the oven.
- Pour the filling into the warm shell. Smooth with a small spatula.
Lower the oven temperature to 375°!
- Bake the filled pie for a total of 50-60 minutes. Halfway through the bake time, cover the crust edges with strips of aluminum foil or use a pie crust shield to prevent it from becoming too dark.
- The pie is done when the center is almost set but a bit wobbly still. You can also test it by inserting a toothpick midway between the crust and the pie center. If the toothpick is mostly clean when you remove it, the pie is done.
- Remove the pie from the oven and cool completely before slicing and serving with freshly whipped cream.
- If not serving the pie within a few hours, store it in the refrigerator.
To make the Whipped Cream:
Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or a hand-held mixer, begin whipping the cream in a large bowl on medium speed. When the cream begins to thicken in volume, stop the mixer and add the remaining ingredients. Continue whipping until the cream forms soft peaks when the whisk or beaters are removed from it.
Notes
- Use super cold wine and water to make the pie crust for optimal flaky results.
- I prep the butter and shortening the night before or a few hours before making the crust. Dice the butter, scoop and level the Crisco, and freeze for at least a few hours.
- Buy evaporated milk-not sweetened condensed milk. Both are stocked in the baking aisle side by side.
- Be sure to keep the heavy cream cold until time to whip it- if the cream is warm-ish, it won’t increase in volume.
- Chill the mixing bowl for the cream for optimum volume.
- Use a store-bought pie crust if you are pressed for time! Follow the directions for blind-baking the shell as directed above!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: my mom’s perfect pumpkin pie, thanksgiving, dessert
I’m very familiar with this pie❤️ It’s incredibly awesome ❤️❤️❤️
★★★★★
Thanks, Jeff!