I did a different sort of pumpkin carving today. No scary faces, no intricate designs, just a good chop in half.
Seeds scooped out (and set aside to dry for next year’s garden), pumpkin halves placed cut side down in a 400 degree oven for 40 minutes or so, we’re on our way to pumpkin pies.
Pumpkins will last quite a while in a cool spot (best leave the stem intact), but I prefer to cook and puree a bunch at once so that when the mood for making pie hits Andrew, all he has to do is pull a pint jar from the freezer. I like to do lots of things ahead of time in the kitchen: boiling noodles for tomorrow’s lasagna today, roasting peppers on Tuesday for the veggie burgers I want to make on Thursday, chopping and freezing peppers for fajitas in the future. Sometimes cooking from scratch can feel just one step too many to want to do, but if that one step, that extra bit of time and effort, has already been done, it feels manageable.
And anything that gets Andrew baking more pies works for me.
Andrew’s Pumpkin Pie
Preheat oven to 375.
Combine:
16 oz pumpkin puree
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
Lightly beat 3 eggs into mixture.
Add 1 cup milk.
Pour into pastry lined pie plate. (Need a pie crust recipe? We like this one.)
Cover edges with foil.
Bake 25 minutes.
Remove foil and bake for another 25 minutes, or until knife inserted into center comes out clean.
Another Roadside Attraction 