I love homemade pumpkin pie, especially this one. The filling is outrageously simple and made with heavy cream instead of sweetened condensed milk, which makes it super rich and creamy. This pie’s filling can be made in under 5 minutes and tastes amazing. You can use canned pumpkin (it’s excellent!) or make your pumpkin pie from scratch with homemade pumpkin puree. This recipe is a keeper!
Key Ingredients
Pie Crust: You can use your favorite homemade pie crust or a store-bought one. I love using my homemade butter pie crust for this classic pumpkin pie. It hasn’t failed me yet. Pumpkin: This pie recipe works well with either canned or homemade pumpkin puree. I love using canned puree (I use Libby’s), but making your own fresh pumpkin puree is easy and means your pie is 100% homemade. Plus, when you make your own puree, you get to roast the pumpkin seeds! If you prefer sweet potatoes, I highly recommend our sweet potato pie. Eggs: I use 3 eggs to help the pumpkin pie filling set up. They also add a rich flavor that you’ll love. Sugar: This pie is less sweet than other pumpkin pie recipes. I hold back on the sugar but love using both granulated and brown sugar together. The brown sugar adds a bit of extra flavor. Cream: Instead of sweetened condensed milk, I use heavy cream, which makes the pie filling super smooth, rich, and delicious. Spices: I like tasting the pumpkin in the pie, so I don’t go overboard with my spices. I love using vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, ground cloves, and some salt. Since publishing this recipe, we have shared our pumpkin pie spice blend, which you can use in our recipe below (tips are below the recipe).
How to Make My Favorite Pumpkin Pie
Our pumpkin pie filling takes less than 5 minutes to make. You’ll whisk the pumpkin, eggs, sugar, cream, and spices until blended. For our crust, I use my butter pie crust, which you can make well in advance (I’ve shared make-ahead tips in my pie crust recipe). This is a single-crust pie, so you’ll need to roll out enough pie dough to fit into the bottom of your pie dish (watch the video to see how I do it). Then, you’ll pour in your pie filling and bake! I do not blind-bake my crust for pumpkin pie. Blind baking means partially cooking the crust before adding the filling, which helps it stay crisp and flaky. I actually LOVE the more soft and tender bottom crust when you don’t blind-bake the crust in this pumpkin pie recipe. The bottom of the crust is golden and flaky, but where the crust and filling meet, it’s softer and tender. If you’d prefer to bake blind, feel free! I have shared tips for blind baking the crust in my pie crust recipe. I use two oven temperatures when baking pumpkin pie. First, I preheat my oven to 425°F. The pie bakes for 15 minutes, and then I reduce the oven temperature to 375°F for the remaining bake time. From there, you want to cool your pie to room temperature and, if you have the option, refrigerate it overnight. I do this with both pumpkin and sweet potato pie. Refrigerating overnight improves the texture of the custard filling. It also makes this pie perfect to make in advance! I love making this pie for Thanksgiving. For more classic Thanksgiving recipes, see my favorite apple pie, this incredible homemade apple cobbler. I also have to share this garlic herb butter turkey with you (it seriously makes the best Thanksgiving turkey). 3 large eggs 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar 1/3 cup (65g) light brown sugar 1 (15oz) can of pure pumpkin puree or 2 cups (440g) homemade pumpkin puree 3/4 cup (175ml) heavy whipping cream 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt Homemade whipped cream, for serving 2Carefully place the dough into the pie dish without stretching it, and trim the edges to within 1 inch of the dish. Refrigerate while you prepare your filling. 2Place the pie dish on your baking sheet. Pour the pumpkin filling into the pie shell. 3Bake the pumpkin pie at 425°F (218°C) for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F (190°C) and bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick or thin knife plunged it into the pie, about 2 inches from the edge, comes out clean. Rotate once or twice during baking. If, while the pie is baking, the top of the crust becomes too dark, cover it with a thin strip of aluminum foil. 4Cool completely on a wire rack for 2 to 3 hours or until room temperature. Serve or refrigerate overnight (the pie sets even more after a night in the fridge). 5Cut into eight wedges and serve alone or topped with whipped cream.
