Pumpkin Pie

I decided to go whole Betty on this recipe and use fresh pumpkin. I have also made this with canned pumpkin and, while fresh pumpkin is very nice, this is great with canned too.

Makes one pie

Ingredients

Crust

• 1 1/2 c graham cracker crumbs
• 1 t ground ginger
• 1 t orange zest
• 1T honey
• 2 T butter, melted
• 1 T water, plus 1 t if necessary

Filling

• 2 egg whites + 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4 c honey
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t ginger
• 1/2 t nutmeg
• 1/4 t mace
• 1/4 t sea salt
• 2 c fresh pumpkin or solid pack canned pumpkin
• 1 t vanilla
• 12 oz evaporated skimmed milk

Directions

To bake fresh pumpkin, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut pumpkins in half, remove pulp and seeds, and place face down on baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until knife easily pierces skin. Remove skin from pumpkin and place in medium bowl, mash with potato masher until consistent.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and prep pie plate according to the method of you liking.

For the crust, combine graham cracker crumbs, ginger, and orange zest, honey, butter, and water and mix until crumbly. If mixture is dry, add additional water. Press mixture onto bottom and sides of pie pan and bake for 8 minutes.

Combine all filling ingredients, except evaporated milk, in medium bowl. Mix, add evaporated milk, and mix again. Pour into pie shell. Bake for 40 minutes or until center is set.

Buying fresh pumpkin: The best pumpkins to use for pumpkin pie are sugar pie pumpkins or pie pumpkins. They are small, dark orange, sweet and great for pies, cheesecakes, soups, and breads. These pumpkins are about 4 lbs each, and you will need one for this recipe.