When we lived in Canada, almost a decade ago now, pumpkin pie was new to us. The idea of a pumpkin being a desert just sounded down-right strange. And then we had one and the rest is, as they say, history.
Ingredients:
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| Image stole from bbc.com |
- 700 g butternut pumpkin, peeled and chopped
- 30 g butter
- 2 sheets ready-rolled shortcrust pastry, thawed
- 1 large orange, zest and juice
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- ¾ cup caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Putting it all together:
Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan forced).
Line a baking sheet with baking paper and bake the pumpkin for 25 min, or until soft and very lightly golden. While pumpkin is still hot, add the butter and mash and then let it cool for 30 min.
Lightly grease a 20cm loose-bottom flan tin. Lay two sheets of pastry on top of each other and roll together. Re-roll until large enough to evenly line the base and sides of the pan. Line with paper and fill with baking beans (or cover the pastry with tinfoil and fill with rice...a bit wasteful, but hey). Bake for 20 min, then remove the pie shell from oven. Remove beans (or rice) and paper, bake a further 15 min.
Add orange zest and juice, eggs, sugar and cinnamon to the cooled pumpkin. Pour into the pastry shell and smooth the top with the back of a spoon. Bake for 20 min, then reduce heat to 170°C (150°C fan forced) and bake for a further 15-20 min. Let it cool for 15 min before cutting. Serve pie with whipped cream.