Everyone’s Favorite Pumpkin Pie
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This easy pumpkin pie is made completely from scratch and is sure to become everyone’s favorite for the holidays.
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This easy pumpkin pie recipe is incredibly creamy and it comes together in a snap. Thanksgiving wouldn’t be complete without one on your dessert table.
The filling has all the flavorful fall spices like cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and even a little bit of molasses. Molasses is my secret ingredient here. It just does something magical to the flavor profile.
It’s truly the best pumpkin pie I’ve ever had, and my taste testers said the same!
The crust is my homemade pie crust recipe. The one I’ve been raving about for weeks now! I love how puffy it bakes up and it’s so tender. It’s perfect for making pumpkin pie pop tarts also.
The pie crust cutouts are completely optional but they’re a fun way to make the pie look festive. I’ve added instructions for them down below in the recipe notes.
Next, you should try my sweet potato pie or the version with caramel. And if you’re gluten-free, try my mini pumpkin pies instead.
Why this recipe works
- Homemade pumpkin pie starts with pure pumpkin puree. You can use canned pumpkin or make your own puree.
- The pie is meant to be creamy so it’s important not to overbake it. The center of the pie should look jiggly and undercooked slightly. It will continue to “set” as it cools.
- The crust is barely sweetened and works nicely with the sweet filling.
Pumpkin pie recipe
While you can make my recipe with homemade puree, canned pumpkin will give you consistent results. However, making fresh pumpkin puree will yield different flavor profiles.
Roasting pumpkin can create a deeper, more profound flavor. This may not be something everyone will enjoy. But feel free to experiment and decide what you prefer best.
And, for the crust, I highly recommend you make it from scratch. I’ve tested the recipe with my homemade crust and store bought and found the homemade crust to work best. It’s thicker and flakier!
Ingredients
- Pumpkin puree: Canned pumpkin puree will give you consistently good results.
- Sugar & molasses: Adds sweetness. I decided to use this combination instead of just brown sugar.
- Spices: Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt add warm fall flavors to the pie. I prefer mixing my own instead of using pumpkin pie spice.
- Egg: Holds everything together.
- Milk & cream: Makes the pie extra creamy.
To make this pie you’ll need:
- 9-inch pie pan: I much prefer glass pie pans. I feel they retain heat best and the crust gets crispier.
- Whisk: You only need a whisk to mix the filling.
- Pastry blender: Makes it easier to cut butter into flour for pie crust.
How to make pumpkin pie
This is honestly one of the easiest pies to make! And it’s best when served with whipped cream.
The Crust – The crust uses a handful of staple ingredients. It does require chilling and blind baking, so plan ahead for that.
All you do is cut butter and shortening into a mixture of flour, sugar, and salt. Aim for pea-size crumbs. Then, drizzle in just enough water to hold it all together without being wet and sticky.
Shape the dough into a disc and refrigerate for 30 minutes. You only need it to be chilled enough to roll out.
Roll it large enough to fit the pie pan, trim the excess overhang, and flute the edges as desired. Return to the refrigerator for another 30 minutes before blind baking.
The Filling – Whisk the pumpkin pie filling in a bowl, then pour it right into the pre-baked crust. It’s really all too easy.
It’s very important to gently mix the filling once you add in the eggs. Beating too vigorously will add air causing the filling to puff up too much during baking. It will deflate upon cooling and cause cracks.
I prefer my pumpkin pies to be on the creamier side so I only bake the pie for 50-55 minutes. The center is slightly jiggly still but will set during cooling and/or refrigeration.
Once sliced, you can let slices come to room temperature or enjoy cold.
Make it ahead
Pumpkin pies can easily be made in advance without ruining the integrity of the product.
The crust and the filling can be made one day in advance. Make them separately and refrigerate until the next day. Then, assemble and bake accordingly.
Or the fully baked and cooled pie can be refrigerated for up to four days. Keep the pie wrapped loosely in plastic wrap.
Pumpkin pie also freezes beautifully. It will keep for up to one month in the freezer. Wrap the baked and cooled pie in 2-3 layers of plastic wrap plus 2-3 layers of aluminum foil. Make sure to wrap it tightly.
When ready to use, thaw the pie overnight in the refrigerator.
Expert tips
- Use a glass pie pan. This will ensure the crust comes out crisp and not soggy.
- Blind baking the crust for 10 minutes at 400°F helps keep the bottom of the pie crisp. Don’t skip this step. Line the crust with parchment paper before filling with pie weights.
- You can skip the molasses if you just simply don’t want to use it but I highly encourage you to give it a try.
- To prevent cracks in pumpkin pie, it’s important not to overbake it. I find that 50 minutes is the perfect amount of time in my oven. Remove it from the oven once the edges are set but the center is slightly jiggly. The pie will set as it cools.
More fun pumpkin recipes
Pumpkin Pie
Ingredients
For the crust
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
- 4 tablespoons vegetable shortening, cold and cut into pieces
- 1 ½ cups (195 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 tablespoons ice water
For the filling
- 15 ounce (425 g) canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon unsulphured molasses
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- ⅔ cup (160 ml) heavy cream
- ⅔ cup (160 ml) whole milk
Instructions
Make the crust
- Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut the butter and shortening into the flour mixture just until coarse crumbs form. Don’t try to work it in too well. A few large clumps are perfectly okay.
- Drizzle just enough ice water over the flour to moisten it. You will know you have enough liquid when you can squeeze the mixture and it holds together. Shape the dough into a ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap the disc with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the pie crust to fit a 9-inch pie dish. Place in pie dish; trim the edge so there’s a 1-inch overhang. Fold the excess under so it sits up on the rim of the pan and flute as desired. Using a fork, prick the bottom and sides of the crust. Refrigerate the crust for 30 minutes.
- While the crust is chilling, adjust the oven rack to just below the center of the oven and preheat to 400ºF.
- Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove the crust from oven and carefully lift out the parchment paper with pie weights. Reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF.
Make the filling
- In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin, sugar, molasses, cinnamon, salt, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves until well combined.
- Gently whisk the eggs, cream, and milk together until combined. Add to the pumpkin mixture and whisk gently until well combined.
- Pour the filling into the prepared crust and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the center is almost set (it should be a little jiggly). Cover the edges with aluminum foil or a pie shield if they become too brown before the pie has finished baking.
- Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack for 2-3 hours to cool completely. Serve once cooled, or cover tightly and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
Notes
- You can use cooked fresh pumpkin puree in place of canned pumpkin if you’d like.
- For pie crust cutouts, make another crust according to steps 1-2 of the recipe above. Roll the dough into a 10-inch circle and use a 1-inch leaf & pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter to cut shapes from the pie crust. Place them in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush the cutouts lightly with milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake at 350°F for 10-15 minutes, until lightly golden brown. Cool completely before using.
- Baked and cooled pie will keep for up to 4 days covered tightly and stored in the refrigerator.
- Baked and cooled pie will keep for up to 1 month wrapped tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and stored in the freezer. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
- The pie crust can be prepared up to 1 day in advance. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and keep it refrigerated until ready to use.
- The filling can be prepared up to 1 day in advance. Cover it with plastic wrap and store it in the refrigerator until ready to assemble the pie.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided is for convenience and as a courtesy only. It is not guaranteed to be accurate because nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator and input the exact ingredients and brands you used in the recipe.
Hello, Jen,
I cannot see how many eggs to use. I hope nothing else is missing. Can’t wait to make this!!!
Cathy
Use 2 eggs. It’s listed in the recipe card under “for the filling”.
Thank you!
Jen, is the pumpkin pie recipe for a standard depth pie dish, or a deep-dish pie. My family prefers the deep-dish variety because of the ratio of crust to custard. If this isn’t a deep-dish recipe, could ingredients be increased to make it work?
This recipe is for a standard pie dish. I’m not sure how much the recipe would need to be increased to fill a deep-dish pie.
Just found your site. OMG!!!! everything looks great. Hope to be baking this week. First up will be your vanilla cake.
Thank you for the kind words, Marvina!
Hi Jen, Can I replace canned pumpkin with steamed and mashed fresh pumpkin? Thank you!
Yes, you can use fresh cooked pumpkin.
I once posted a comment on someone’s authentic Italian tomato gravy. They used canned whole peeled tomatoes. My comment, “not very authentic using canned tomatoes”. Their rebuttal, “I assumed the recipe would be used by lazy Americans who don’t know how to can”.
Did you know you can cook a whole raw pumpkin in a crock pot for the meat? It’s a whole lot easier that way. Puree and use or freeze.
It’s perfectly okay to take shortcuts when needed and it that doesn’t necessarily mean they are “lazy Americans”. People all over the world are busy with work, families, etc. and need a shortcut once in a while in order to get food on the table.
If you have fresh pumpkin and want to use that, that’s perfectly fine too.
This is one amazing pumpkin pie!
This is one amazing pumpkin pie!