Thanksgiving Recipe: Perfect Pumpkin Pie

Thanksgiving is only three days away. Still struggling to find an easy, homemade recipe for the all-time favorite holiday dessert? Below is a recipe for pumpkin pie sure to please any holiday crowd.

Pumpkin Pie (recipe origin: unknown. It was clipped from a newspaper before I was born-we have it every year!)

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:
9-inch pie crust (make your own or grab a frozen one. Not gonna lie, I was lazy this weekend.)
6 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/2 cup dark syrup
3 slightly beaten eggs
1 1/2 cups cooked pumpkin (can use fresh pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin)
1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla or 2 tablespoons brandy or rum (I used vanilla)

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2) Blend the following ingredients well: brown sugar, white sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, dark syrup, and eggs
3) Add pumpkin, evaporated milk, and vanilla (or brandy/rum)
4) Pour into pie crust
5) Bake for about an hour, or until a knife can be inserted in the filling and come out clean

Rating: A
Level of Difficulty: Easy (just use steady hands getting the pie in the oven!)
Cost: Roughly $6.00 if you own all these spices already, if not-it will be a little higher.
Cost per Serving: $1.00 (at 6 servings)
Bad Breath Factor: You'll refuse to brush your teeth until your spouse demands it-it's that good.

Suggestions:
1) Use fresh pumpkin puree. I know it's extra work-but it tastes SOOO good. I wrote an article called "How to Cook a Pumpkin" and I would highly suggest using it for this pie. Come on, you know you have leftover pumpkins that are decorating the house. Use them! Try this! It's absolutely worth it!
2) Don't overfill the pie or you'll end up spilling the filling as you transport it into the oven. Be careful and use steady hands: the filling sloshes around.
3) Use a cookie sheet: place the pie on a cookie sheet before pouring the filling in. This makes it easier to transfer in the oven. Also-in case you spill upon transport, the cookie sheet catches the filling (rather than having it spill to the bottom of the oven.)
4) SIDE PIE: Family tradition alert! This pie makes extra filling. Too much to pour into a regular pie crust, but too little for two pies. My mom always poured the extra filling into a Pyrex dish and baked it along with the pie. We called it the "side pie." It was a crustless version of the regular pie. And whomever was in the kitchen keeping her company, or helping with dishes, got to eat it with her. Huge incentive to get your kids or spouse to help you out with preparation of the pie, but also a great chance for you to sample the filling to make sure it turned out ok.
5) Prevent crust burning by brushing some butter along the edges of the pie crust. This will help-but if any filling gets on the edges of the pie crust-it will burn. The crust will still taste great, but it will look a little darker. So again, steady hands as you place the pie in the oven.
6) Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream! Soooo good!

This pie recipe has been used in our family for as long as I can remember, and it turns out great every time (except when I was "helping" by making the Thanksgiving pie when I was 12 and forgot the evaporated milk-not good!) Try it out-you'll love it so much you'll definitely repeat it for the holidays!

Looking for more pumpkin recipes? Try How to Cook a Pumpkin, a tasty Pumpkin Soup, how to Toast Pumpkin Seeds, made a unique and delicious Baked Stuffed Pumpkin (a great side for Thanksgiving Dinner) and blend up some bright green Pumpkin Seed and Basil Pesto.

Happy Cooking!