Three different ways to make pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving. 

Time to give thanks for pumpkin pie! The sweet-spicy-moist pie is a staple on Thanksgiving Day. Over the years of my baking adventures, I have seen many people bake this pie with different ingredients. Yeah, the spices stay basically the same, you always have the eggs, and of course, the pumpkin. But the one thing that seems to change is the dairy and the way the pie is sweetened.

After looking for pumpkin pie recipes on the back of pumpkin puree cans, cooks books and online, I decided that I needed to bake a few variations of the pumpkin pie to see which one was quote-on-quote “The Best”. I came up with my own recipe for each of these three ways of using different dairy and sweeteners.  They are basically whipped-up the same and are all baked in a 9-inch pie dish with a homemade piecrust.

If you are baking for a large family- have some fun and try and make all 3 of these pies!

If you realize you don’t have a sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk, no worries, there is other ways to make a great pie.

Check out the bottom of the blog to see which pie is crowned “the Best”!

If you want to add some more flavors (which we always support), add ½ lemon zest to the mixture. You could also increase the spices in whichever way you like. We believe that a pumpkin pie should be unique…just like you!

 
Spiced Pumpkin Pie- Evaporated Milk

What you’ll need:

1 piecrust in a 9” pie dish
2 cups pumpkin puree
1 12oz Evaporated milk
1-cup sugar
1/8-cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1-tablespoon cinnamon
1-teaspoon nutmeg
1-teaspoon ginger
1-teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon cloves
2 tablespoons flour
 
What to do:
 
Place the pumpkin, eggs, evaporated milk, sugar, brown sugar, flour in to a mixing bowl. Beat on medium until well incorporated.

Add all the spices, and beat for 45 seconds to one minute on high speed.

Gently mix with spoon to make sure all the ingredients are well combined.

Pour slowly into piecrust. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes, then reduced heat to 350 for 45-50 minutes.

Use a toothpick to check to see if it is done. The toothpick should come out clean. Let cool for 15-30 minutes. Serve with fresh whip cream or vanilla ice cream.

 
Spiced Pumpkin Pie- Sweetened Condensed Milk

What you’ll need:

1 piecrust in a 9” pie dish
2 cups pumpkin puree
1 14oz Sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs
1-teaspoon vanilla extract
1-teaspoon sour cream
1-tablespoon cinnamon
1-teaspoon nutmeg
1-teaspoon ginger
1-teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon cloves
 
What to do:

Place the pumpkin, eggs, condensed milk, vanilla, and sour cream into a mixing bowl. Beat on medium until well incorporated.

Add all the spices, and beat for 45 seconds to 1 minute on high speed.

Gently mix with spoon to make sure all the ingredients are well combined.

Pour slowly into piecrust.

Bake at 400 for 15 minutes, then reduced heat to 350 for 45-50 minutes. Use a toothpick to check to see if it is done. The toothpick should come out clean. Let cool for 15-30 minutes. Serve with fresh whip cream or vanilla ice cream.



Spiced Pumpkin Pie- Heavy Cream and NH Maple Syrup

What you’ll need:
1 piecrust in a 9” pie dish
2 cups pumpkin puree
3 eggs
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup NH maple syrup
1 ¼ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons flour
1-tablespoon cinnamon
1-teaspoon nutmeg
1-teaspoon ginger
1-teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon cloves
1/8-teaspoon salt

What to do:
 
Place the pumpkin, eggs, maple syrup, heavy cream, flour and brown sugar into a mixing bowl.

Beat on medium until well incorporated.

Add all the spices, and beat for 45 seconds to 1 minute on high speed.

Gently mix with spoon to make sure all the ingredients are well combined.

Pour slowly into piecrust.

Bake at 400 for 15 minutes, then reduced heat to 350 for 45-50 minutes. Use a toothpick to check to see if it is done. The toothpick should come out clean. Let cool for 15-30 minutes. Serve with fresh whip cream or vanilla ice cream.


 

THE RESULTS
 
So over all, each of these pies came out great. I was a little nervous about the consistency of some of the mixtures, but they all baked up prefect. Once the pies were cool enough, I served a small slice of each pie to 4 individuals who were my test turkeys.

Spiced Pumpkin Pie- Evaporated Milk
The concessions on this pie, was that is was the “old fashion” style of pumpkin pie. Like the pie you ate as a child at Grandma’s house. It was sweet, moist, and yet firm. The pumpkin mixture adhered well to the crust. The pumpkin flavor was not strong enough for some of the testers. But overall a B+.

Spiced Pumpkin Pie- Sweetened Condensed Milk
Wow. Sweetttttttt. One could definitely tell this pie was sweetened by condensed milk. It was wonderful otherwise firm, moist, spice-filled, but the pumpkin puree was hidden by the sugar. 3 out of 4 testers loved it, so A.

Spiced Pumpkin Pie- Heavy Cream and NH Maple Syrup
#1. “THE BEST”. The testers all felt the same on this pie. Not too sweet, you could taste each spice, and the pumpkin flavor held its own. Sweetening the pie with natural sweeteners- maple syrup seemed to balance out each of the ingredients. The pie was moist and firm, great adhesion to the crust, this pie won the gold.  A+.



So, head out there into the great wide world of baking and try out these variations of the Thanksgiving classic. You could also have your taste test on Thanksgiving Day!  And let us know how your results come in!


Down East will be featuring contributors from all walks of Maine Life on DE Daily. Kathryn and Dash, the women behind the Yankee Crafty B*tch blog, will be bringing you the best in the world of crafts, food, sewing and gardens — all on the resourceful Yankee budget. So kick back, check out their posts, and get your craft on.

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