pumpkin pie madness

love pumpkin.
a lot.
pumpkin muffins. pancakes. cake. ice cream. latte (ahhhh! now i want one. bad). cookies. donuts. pie.... pumpkin pie.
there is just something about pumpkin pie with whipped cream.

my mr. c had requested (really more like begggggged) for pumpkin pie for over 2 years.
it hit him one day and that was that.
i'm more a fall weather pumpkin kind of gal and when fall hits i'm full in.
i'm not thinking pumpkin in say april or july. but he is... like he just couldn't get it out of his head. really.

he loves pumpkin pie or thinks he does. it's been 20 years since the last time.

so autumn has rolled around again like it does and so this whole pumpkin pie madness he's had going on has been coming up more lately. like a lot more.
if he read this he would say all this is true, he would admit he in fact does have
'pumpkin pie madness'.

there is not a pumpkin flavor craze going on here like there is at home.
so you sure ain't gett'n no pumpkin pie here.
forget about it.
it's just not their thing.

sooo a year ago'ish in the over priced american section of  a downtown grocery store... shoved between the boxes of horrid looking off brand pop tarts and bbq sauce there was pumpkin puree.
so very random!
for the sake of fulfilling a beloved childhood memory the pumpkin became ours!

and so the lone can has sat in the pantry for over a year, for pumpkin alone does not make it pie.

the truth is, i wanted to make him pie.
i did. really.
but... sigh...
i was intimidated by this wish of pie.
i am not one to be easily intimidated in the kitchen. bring it i say. brinnnng it!
but there was 4 things holding me back...

a)
no carnation evaporated milk here.
a must for pumpkin pie. am i right! just say yes.

b)
we got us a pie crust situation.
bad pie crust pretty much equals bad pie.
what makes a good flaky crust?
flour and crisco. it's what i know to be true in my heart. just let me have this one too
the flour here is still a great mystery to me
annnnd
i refuse to pay the premium for crisco. highway robbery i tell you.

c)
pie tin. deep dish.
seriously.
shallow tart pans as far as the eye can see.
hey, this is what they have going on over here.
i get it.... but can a sister get a real deep dish pie tin for crying out loud!

d)
the worst.
living up to the memory of his mother's pumpkin pie.
i hoped with my whole heart that (my mother in law) the original mrs. c's pumpkin pie was store bought. but guessing no.
her baked goods are legendary.
no pressure. psssshhhhhh.

so there it was.
it was time to just do it. face the fear for it was only a pie. written in my most dramatic voice!

i did some homework and took a leap of faith that the carnation milk could be substituted for a can of milk type product that was russian in origin.

i read it might be found in a 'well equipped grocery store in finland' so i went to a grocery store that i hoped was 'well equiped'.

i looked high and low.
baking isle. sure like why would it be that easy. forget it.
or i could actually ask someone.
how do i even explain this special can of milk.

in this case especially, i know me... asking for help would just lead to way over talking the whole situation and revealing that my husband has pumpkin pie madness...
and the poor sales person would think crazy yankee woman!

trust me... i just didn't ask for help, it was for the best in this situation.
i eventually found it on my own and it felt like a sweet little can of victory!

maybe you can pronounce this. ummm i can't. do you see the intimidation here. can you.

 

whewwww what a color tour!
so now that i have it...
i'm afraid of it.

i'm not entirely sure what's realllllly in there. can i really believe this IS the real deal?

what if it ruins the over priced pumpkin and i wasted money on the russian milk...
oh and hello the build up of pumpkin pie madness of it all... oh the anxiety!
seriously.
so the russian milk sets next to the american pumpkin for a few weeks and i hope they become the best of friends as i go in search for pie crust ingredients and a pie tin.

as i was planning the 'i want you to feel extra loved weekend' i continued my secret shopping and research, which means a side trip to ikea... you know... love... a lot...
okay i'll just get to this.
no deep dish pie plate but at this point i just couldn't get hung up on the shape of this dream pie to-be.
i needed a deep 8x8'ish pan to make some other things and the fact that the bottom side of the pan is red made me happy so life and pie will just go on....

the big reveal!

a bit on the rustic side. doesn't 'rustic' cover a whole lot of homemade look'n stuff! hahahaha
homey or homely.
it's pumpkin.
not like cooked pumpkin is really ever going to win a beauty contest. so don't be all judgy and stuff.
it doesn't matter, for it was made with love. lots and lots of love i tell you!
LOVE.

and when my husband saw it you would have thought he won such a prize!
he yelled out with joy. he danced. he sang. he kissed me like crazy. he honestly did all that!
pumpkin pie madness. yes. yes indeed.

how did it taste... well thank you for asking...
he LOVED IT!
and i must say... it was the best pumpkin pie i have ever made from scratch in my entire life! ever.
i don't think there was a thing i would change.

the crust...
not my very very best ever, i admit it.
but it was pretty good.
i am now on a pie crust mission.

in my research i looked at a lot of recipes mostly spin offs of the go-to libby's recipe we all know. mostly i followed it.
i kicked up the spices and i believe this is what pushed it from good to fantastic.
personally i will never use a premixed 'pumpkin pie spice' again.

pumpkin pie madness recipe

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
2+1 large eggs (1 beaten egg with a splash of milk separate to brush on crust edge)
1 can (15 oz.) 100% pumpkin puree 1 ingredient; pumpkin (not the canned pre-mixed pumpkin pie mix)
1 can (12 fl. oz.) *evaporated milk (the sweetened stuff)

1 unbaked  9-inch deep-dish pie shell (bought or homemade)
top with whipped cream

*i learned before posting this you may be able to find the condensed milk in asian groceries.
also i found a recipe to make it myself, i'll let you know on that.

lets get mixing
mix sugar, cinnamon, salt, ginger and cloves in small bowl. beat eggs in large bowl. stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. gradually stir in evaporated milk.

pour into pie shell.
brush pie crust edge with egg/milk mixture

time to bake in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes (at this point my crust edge was already browning so i covered with foil strips)
reduce temperature to 350° F
bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.
cool on wire rack for 2 hours.
serve or refrigerate.