Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin pie is one of my favorite pies- that is as long as it is one made from the recipe I use and also made with fresh pumpkin. The canned stuff just makes it taste gross. The recipe is from my mom. Before we get to making the filling though, we need to get some pumpkin ready. Let me show you how easy it is........

Pumpkin Pie from scratch: First you need to get yourself a pumpkin. This one was actually called a pie pumpkin. I don't think it matters what you use though. Cut it in half and scoop out the seeds. Don't toss them though, we'll use them later.
Then you need to get a big pan and put your pumpkin face down. Pour a little water in the bottom of the pan to keep it from sticking and help cook the pumpkin. Put it in a 350 degrees oven. While it is cooking, you can go make your pie crust.
Cook it until it is very soft and a fork easily sticks in. It usually will take at least an hour. I forgot to time mine so I don't know how long it took. I just keep checking.
If you are brave, you can scrape the soft pumpkin out of the skins. Or you can wait until your pumpkin has cooled a little before doing this step. This is what you should have left.
I put mine in a colander so any extra liquid can get out.The last step is making your pumpkin nice and smooth. I ended up having to use the Cuisinart and the blender. I put some in the Cuisinart to get it going then put it in the blender. My blender won't mix things if there isn't enough liquid so this way helped it get going.

Now that you have nice smooth pumpkin, you can put it in the fridge for a few days or freeze it in 1 cup measurements or use it right away.

Let's make us some pumpkin pie with our fresh pumpkin!! Shall we?

I spilled the filling on the crust by accident so it isn't the most beautiful pie. And I forgot to get a picture of a slice of pie with whipped cream.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups pumpkin
1 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cloves
2 eggs
2 tsp. flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup evaporated milk (or regular milk)
1 tsp. vanilla
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Put all the ingredients into the blender and blend until completely combined. It helps if you put some liquid in the bottom to get it going.
Pour into prepared pie crust. Cover with foil and put on cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake at least another 50 minutes. Remove foil for last 10 minutes. Done when knife inserted near center comes out clean.
Pumpkin pie is best when cold and served with real whipped cream.