Thanksgiving Meal Planning, Part 1: Pumpkin Pie Recipe

I'm planning a Vegetarian Thanksgiving this year. Here's the recipe for the Pumpkin pie I'll be baking. More Vegetarian Thanksgiving recipes are coming soon. Don't worry, no Tofurky recipes ;)


Ingredients:

• Use either one 9-inch deep dish crust, or two 8-inch shallow pies crusts. I usually use 2 Mrs. Smith 8-inch Pie Crusts.
  
• 1 29 oz can of Libby's pumpkin (about 4 cups). Or use a 6" or 8" pie Pumpkin.
  
• 1 6 oz container of Vanilla Soy Yogurt I use Silk Yogurt
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves or allspice
  
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp dark molasses

Pie Filling Directions:
*If you're making the filling from scratch using a pumpkin (instead of canned pumpkin) you can reference the additional directions further down the page. Then return to these directions.

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix the wet ingredients in a blender or food processor for for a few seconds. Then combine the dry and wet mixture together. Blend until well combined.

Pour the mixture into either a 9-inch deep dish pie, or two 8-inch shallow pies shells and spread evenly


Bake in a preheated 425° F oven for 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; bake for 40 to 50 minutes until filling is set.


Cool on wire rack, then store overnight in the refrigerator to allow filling to set. *Optional - Top with soy whipped cream before serving. Enjoy!


Additional Directions, Steps to Prepare a fresh Pumpkin for baking:

First select pie pumpkin, they're usually 6" or 8" big. These are the perfect for pies! Don't use the Jack-O-Lantern Pumpkins. They're full of stringy fibers and not as sweet!!

Rinse the pumpkin with water, remove the stem, and then carefully cut the pumpkin it in half.

Use a large spoon to scrape out the seeds and stringy fibers. *The seeds could be used for roasting. Discard the stringy fibers.

Cut the pumpkin into 4 pieces, place into a microwaveable bowl.


Add a couple inches of water to the bowl, cover it, and cook on high for about 20 minutes or more until soft.

Once the pumpkin is soft, let it cool a bit. Using a large spoon, gently remove the pumpkin out of the shell and discard the peel.

Use a food processor or blender to puree the pumpkin until smooth.



Then strain the water from pumpkin. I usually put a strainer in a bowl, then pour the pumpkin in, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in a refrigerator for at least a couple hours.

After water is strained, follow the "Pie Filling Directions" to make the pie.


*If you're wondering what to do with the seeds, then you may like this recipe from allrecipes.com for Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Here's the strainer I use.

And here's the food processor I use to puree foods.

*To make this pumpkin pie recipe vegan; you could use dehydrated and granulated cane juice, or unbleached cane sugar. I also believe Mrs. Smith 8-inch Pie Crusts are vegan. Sometimes I use this site to check if a product is vegan.