Pumpkin Pie: A Thanksgiving Essential

Ma’s Pumpkin Pie Recipe

Mmmmmm, Mmmmmmm!

While checking out at the grocery counter, the cashier flippantly remarked that he was amazed at our purchase of two small pumpkins. Pie pumpkins. For making pumpkin pie. He went on to explain that he would be afraid to eat anything made like that… My wife retorted that it was the only way to go. And it sure is if you are on the eating end of it.

The kid at the grocery counter is the product of a lesser race, that eats everything if it is packaged at some factory, where they put some kind of blessing on it I suppose, which makes it edible. But you are of my race, that appreciates real stuff, good tasting food, the best in life, and I know because you are reading this blog!

This blog is dedicated to my grandmother, Bertha Spraggins, who always made a big Thanksgiving meal for her family, and always made the best pumpkin pie.


After considerable haranguing, my wife agreed to let me post her (my grandmother’s) recipe for pumpkin pie… it is very basic, almost impossible to mess up.

For two pies… (the first one always just disappears) you need:

Ingredients
One pie pumpkin, which after butchering and boiling should yield around 5-6 cups of pumpkin meat.
6 eggs
2 cups of sugar
1/2 stick of real butter
TEAspoon of Cinnamon (or a little more!) & Teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice.
2 deep dish pie shells

Directions:
Cut pumpkins into wedges that you can handle… it takes a sharp knife, a thin blade works better. Remove the fibers and seeds from inside the pumpkin and skin the outside rind with a potato peeler.

Boil the pumpkin meat for around 25 minutes… do not overcook. Check and pull the chunks when they are soft like a baked potato. They should be a beautiful light orange, and basically mushy.

Blend ½ stick of butter with the sugar thoroughly in a mixer till it is a cream. Then add 6 eggs, and spices and mix well.

Fold by hand the pumpkin meat into the mixture, it should be runny like pancake batter.

Ready to bake!

Pour mixture into shells, fill back and forth until each is about the same.
Place pies on cookie sheet (they might bubble up a bit) and in oven at 350 degrees. Bake for about an hour. Check after about 45 minutes, and watch for them to turn that pumpkin brown and for the pies to firm up considerably. The crust should be a light golden brown.

Save and freeze any excess pumpkin meat for pies at Christmas!

We eat them without topping but I’ve heard Yankees put stuff like whipped cream or as my wife says, “that canned crap” and that is where you lose us, but at least you know the pie was made right!

NOTE: Leave comments so I know how it turned out!