When fall weather arrives, pumpkins of every shape and size can be found in grocery stores, farmers markets and possibly in your own garden. While you will find many people decorating with larger pumpkins, pie pumpkins are the smaller and sweeter variety used for all kinds of delicious baking (like pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!). Making pumpkin pie from scratch will take a bit longer than using canned pumpkin, but the fresh taste is worth it!
Pumpkin is a delicious and nutritious winter squash. As a great source of beta carotene, vitamin C, fiber, and potassium, it is a delicious way to bring many great nutrients to your table. Pie pumpkins are perfect for making many dishes from soup to dessert.
Many people make their pumpkin pie with canned pumpkin, but for a traditional pumpkin pie use pumpkin fresh from the ground. Here is a simple and delicious recipe for pumpkin pie with instructions for using fresh pumpkin as the pumpkin puree.
Fresh Pumpkin Pie From Scratch
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust
- 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 6 Tbsp butter, melted
Pie Filling
- 2 pie pumpkins (2 cups pureed)
- 1 can evaporated milk
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp lemon zest
Instructions
Bake your pie pumpkins:
- Preheat the oven to 350˚.
- Cut your pumpkins in half and lay face down on a greased baking sheet. You can scoop out the seeds before or after baking.
- Bake for 45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven to cool when the pumpkin is soft enough for a fork to pierce it easily.
Make your crust:
- Preheat the oven to 375˚.
- Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter in a bowl and mix well with a fork.
- Press your mixture into your pie pan.
- Bake for 7 minutes.
- Set the crust aside to cool.
Make your filling:
- Preheat the oven to 425˚.
- Scoop out pumpkin flesh and puree.
- Strain the puree with a cheesecloth.
- Pour strained pumpkin puree in a bowl.
- Add sugar, salt, spices and lemon zest to the pumpkin puree and mix.
- Beat the eggs and add them to the other ingredients.
- Add evaporated milk and combine well.
- Pour into your cooled pie crust.
Bake your pie:
- Bake for 15 minutes at 425˚. Then turn down the oven to 350˚ and bake for 45-55 minutes until a knife comes out almost clean.
- Let it cool then refrigerate. Serve with whipped cream.
Enjoy making and eating this with your kids. Making a pumpkin pie from scratch offers lots of steps for children of different ages to take part in the baking. Use the baking time to share the nutritional information about pumpkin, and if you have several pumpkins to use the pulp from, then you may want to learn about freezing pumpkin to have a steady supply of pumpkin on-hand to make many more delicious and nutritious foods!
This recipe article has been written by homeschooling staff writers of The Canadian Schoolhouse (TCS). Enjoy more of our content from TCS contributors and staff writers by visiting our Front Door page that has content on our monthly theme and links to all our content sections.
"Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6).