I’ve never been a big pumpkin pie person. I like it okay. I definitely eat my once-annual slice around Thanksgiving, but you’ll never find me making it voluntarily unless it’s November. That’s because so many pumpkin pies can be disappointing, largely due to the reason I’ve been harping about on this site since way back in 2014: the soggy bottom crust.
Yup, I’m team Mary Berry all the way, and pretty much blame this one faux-pie (see what I did there?) for every slice of pumpkin I’ve passed on since. When pumpkin pie is good: a crisp, flaky crust encasing a silky-smooth spiced custard, it is nutso-crazy good. But when it’s orange mush sitting on top of a thin layer of uncooked pastry, it’s something else entirely.
One of the things I like about making pumpkin pie is how easy it is, relative to other holiday favorites like apple. The custard is whisked together faster than it takes to grab the ingredients from your cupboard—no peeling, no cutting, no pre-cooking and waiting to cool. But to achieve a pie worth eating, you want that crispy-bottom crust, which means par-baking. I’m a huge advocate of it, but it admittedly adds a whole lot of additional time to the pie-baking process. So I started to wonder what might happen if you turned this fall favorite pie upside-down (literally).
Same custard, same crust—just flip it.
Suddenly, the pie becomes a cobbler, with a flaky, golden-brown crust topping the most popular filling of the season.
This little swap fixes almost every pumpkin pie problem you’ve ever had: No need to bother with par-baking—the crust browns easily because it’s on the surface. Forget fretting over cracked filling, because the custard cooks slowly and evenly inside since it’s covered on top. Skip worrying about the dough warming up while you carefully crimp it; just cut it into random-size pieces and layer them on top (which creates a lovely effect for the same amount of effort that the filling requires).
Don’t have time to wait for it to cool? This cobbler is actually delicious served warm, too. Scared of cutting the perfect slice? This one just needs a big spoon for scooping. Not sure if one pie will feed your whole family? This cobbler’s made for a crowd.
I've finally found an alternative to pumpkin pie that I can use the word “love” for. (It’s even good enough to break me of my "one slice a year" rule.)
But despite its many differences, some things never change: It’s best topped, like all the pumpkin pies of my past, with a hefty dollop of whipped cream.
| Softened unsalted butter, for the pan | |
| All-purpose flour, for rolling | |
| 2x | recipe prepared pie dough (my favorite recipe is here: https://food52.com/recipes/24928-all-buttah-pie-dough) |
| 6 | (342 grams) large eggs |
| 1 | cup (200 grams) granulated sugar |
| 1/2 | cup (107 grams) light brown sugar |
| 1 | cup (235 grams) heavy cream |
| 30 | ounces (850 grams) pumpkin purée |
| 2 | teaspoons (10 grams) vanilla extract |
| 1 | tablespoon (9 grams) ground cinnamon |
| 2 | teaspoons (6 grams) ground ginger |
| 1 | teaspoon (3 grams) ground allspice |
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2 grams) ground nutmeg |
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2 grams) fine sea salt |
| Egg wash, for brushing | |
| Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling | |
| Whipped cream, for serving |
| Softened unsalted butter, for the pan | |
| All-purpose flour, for rolling | |
| 2x | recipe prepared pie dough (my favorite recipe is here: https://food52.com/recipes/24928-all-buttah-pie-dough) |
| 6 | (342 grams) large eggs |
| 1 | cup (200 grams) granulated sugar |
| 1/2 | cup (107 grams) light brown sugar |
| 1 | cup (235 grams) heavy cream |
| 30 | ounces (850 grams) pumpkin purée |
| 2 | teaspoons (10 grams) vanilla extract |
| 1 | tablespoon (9 grams) ground cinnamon |
| 2 | teaspoons (6 grams) ground ginger |
| 1 | teaspoon (3 grams) ground allspice |
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2 grams) ground nutmeg |
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2 grams) fine sea salt |
| Egg wash, for brushing | |
| Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling | |
| Whipped cream, for serving |
1. Pumpkin Cream Pie
A gingery graham cracker crust gets filled with pumpkin pastry cream, then topped with sour cream–whipped cream. Because it's supposed to be made and refrigerated in advance, there's no need to worry about it occupying oven space on Thanksgiving.
2. Salted Pumpkin Caramels
For when you're looking for a little something sweet, not a gigundo dessert. (Though if you end up eating a dozen of these yourself, we've been there!) Chewy, cozy pumpkin caramels are wonderful to begin with, but the toasted pepitas and crunchy salt really set these apart. Psst: They also make a great host gift.
3. Pumpkin Flan
This creamy, custardy, caramely pumpkin flan comes with an ingredient list that's full of pantry staples: pumpkin puree, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, sugar, spices, vanilla. The only ingredient to come from your fridge is eggs—and you have those already, right?
4. Pumpkin Pudding
Just like pumpkin pie—except, without the pie crust. This stress-free recipe comes from Alice Medrich. She writes, "My family’s Thanksgiving always included pumpkin pudding. I wish I could say that the pudding starts with a freshly baked pumpkin, lovingly mashed and blended with fresh cream, eggs, spices. In reality, it was (and still is!) canned pumpkin purée and evaporated milk, mixed with spices exactly as directed in the recipe on the can of Libby's pumpkin, but baked in a dish instead of a crust."
5. Pumpkin Chiffon Cake
A light, fluffy pumpkin cake that just so happens to be gluten-free. Rice flour creates an especially tender crumb, while cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves give it cozy fall vibes. Make sure the egg whites are at room temperature so they whip up properly.
Top-notch recipes, expert tips, and all the tools to pull off the year’s most memorable feast.
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Written by: Erin Jeanne McDowell
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58 Comments
As for this recipe, I want to try it but I am concerned about so many comments that the crust sank into the custard. Yes, I can lessen the cream. Hope that works. I want to try this with apples. I find a soggy bottom crust a much bigger problem with apples. I've taken to cooking the apples before putting them into the pie for baking. Other suggestions?
My pumpkin puree method takes a bit of time but, the beautiful thing about it is that you don't have to stay by the stove & watch it constantly! Once the initial cooking is done, the pureeing kind of does itself, with very little effort! And the 2nd beautiful thing about it is that it practically guarantees that it will bake in pie -- or any other -- form without a soggy crust, excess water/moisture, or any of the other issues I've read about here that cause people not to like -- or even love -- Pumpkin Pie!
I've tried countless ways of cooking & pureeing fresh pumpkin, and in the end, this is my go-to method now, every time!
First, turn the pumpkin on its side and carefully slice off the stem as close to the top as possible.
Cut the rest of the pumpkin into smaller pieces that will be easy to work with (Think Butternut Squash.). Use a pumpkin scraper (from a pumpkin decorating kit; you can get a cheap one at the Dollar Tree!) to scrape off the seeds & strings. No need to fret every last string!
Boil the pumpkin pieces in a large pot until fork-tender. Remove the cooked pumpkin pieces to a pasta strainer and leave to cool & drain.
Once boiled and cooled, the pumpkin skin and any remaining strings will come off easily. I usually use a spoon to scrape the pumpkin from the skin.
Put all of the cooked pumpkin pieces in a non-stick pan and just let it cook down on very low heat, stirring once in a while.
The low, slow simmer process coupled with occasional stirring will turn it into puree, while cooking all of the water/moisture off at the same time!
Once all of the water is cooked out of the pumpkin it's ready to use or you can freeze it to use later!
I buy 2-3 pie pumpkins in the Fall, cook them all down at the same time, and freeze it for year-round use in 1-2 cup containers so that it's pre-measured. I like to use the plastic Ziploc containers with screw-on lids and I put a piece of plastic wrap over the container before screwing the lid on to help keep it fresh.
When I'm ready to use the pumpkin, I defrost it in a small non-stick pan on low heat and that removes any water/moisture that's accumulated from freezing. You can do this step a day in advance of using it and then put it in the fridge overnight. If anymore water/moisture accumulates, you can usually just pour it off when ready to use.
Cooking all of the moisture out of the pumpkin like this has solved all of my problems with soggy pie crust and mushy filling! It's also a great way to use fresh pumpkin in soup or other dishes and adds some great nutrients to your family's meals -- often without them ever knowing that they're eating pumpkin!
Give it a try!
https://food52.com/recipes/15143-meta-given-s-pumpkin-pie
But my puree came out very liquidy, looking nothing like the photos here. Is anything missing from this recipe?
Appreciate your help!
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