I know what you’re thinking. Pumpkin Pie is not a summer staple. Why did TCK make a Pumpkin Pie to celebrate Canada Day?? (Ya, that’s right, I just abbreviated my own nickname. Boo yah.) Well. As it turns out, around Canadian Thanksgiving and Christmas I spend so much time talking about, and making, Pumpkin Pie that many of my UK friends have come to believe it is eaten by Canadians at every holiday. The logic follows, therefore, that Canada Day would obviously feature this most festive of North American pies.
Let’s start with the pastry. The original recipe says it makes enough for 6 balls (3 pies if you are using a top crust) but I rolled it into 5. If you have a bigger pie plate than my 8 inch (20 cm) you might even want to cut it down to 4 balls, just in case.)
Pastry Ingredients:
625 g plain flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp brown sugar, firmly packed
450 g lard, room temperature
1 egg
2 tbsp white vinegar
Cold water
In a large bowl, mix the flour (625 g), salt (2 tsp), baking powder (1 tsp), and brown sugar (3 tbsp). Add the lard (450 g).
Using a pastry cutter, cut in the lard until your mixture is crumbly. Set aside.
In a 240 ml capacity cup, crack one egg and mix together with 2 tbsp white vinegar. Add cold water until it fills to the 240 ml line. Stir.
Add the liquid to your dry mixture and stir.
Form it into evenly sized balls.
Refrigerate until cold (2 hours minimum). Before rolling, warm the pastry up to room temperature by setting on the counter for 1 hour. The balls of pastry freeze well and can also keep in the fridge for up to a week before using.
!!!!Now time for pie!!!!
Pre-heat the oven 180 C fan (200 C non-fan)
Ingredients:
425 g canned pumpkin (1 can Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin)
150 g brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
3 slightly beaten eggs
300 ml milk
160 ml evaporated milk
Combine canned pumpkin (425 g), brown sugar (150 g), salt (1/2 tsp), and spices. Mix.
Add the eggs (3), milk (300 ml), and evaporated milk (160 ml). Blend well. The filling will be completely liquid. Set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out your pastry to a little less than half a centimetre thick. I rather like the saying that it should be the thickness of a £1 coin. You want it to be large enough to hang a centimetre or two over the sides of your pie plate. If your pastry is unevenly shaped, you can cut off excess bits and work them into the gaps. Roll up the sides so they sit nicely on the rim of your pan and either leave as is, press with a fork (like I did), or use some other fun decorative crust technique. I rolled out some extra pastry and used a knife to cut out a maple leaf.
Pour the filling into the crust. Then place it in the oven for 50 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. I turn my pie halfway through the cook time because my oven hates me.
Set the pie to cool, then chill in the fridge for a few hours or over night. It is fabulous eaten cold with whipped cream. I used to eat it with equal or greater parts whipped cream. Mmmmmm. Healthy!
The Culinary Klepto 