Like anybody needs another pumpkin pie recipe…I promise this is a little different.
Different as in what do you do when your hubby is tired of 500# of winter squash sitting in your living room.
I have found over the years I can buy a little more time if I bake a pie or two. I’m actually getting tired of the dogs jumping over the squash and throwing their chew bones in the middle of the pile and playing cucurbit and seek. They just think I have brought the garden in, and gamboling inside on a rainy day is right up their alley.
These are our Sweet Meat winter squash. Our pumpkin substitute that keeps until May without any processing. That’s why we like them so much. Any vegetable I can store without processing is a winner in my book.
The squash are just curing here in the livingroom, because it is warmer. Soon they will be moved to our unheated upstairs, where it is cool and dry. Ideal squash storage area.
On average, we use at least a 15# squash per week, mostly as a vegetable, but sometimes for desserts. Nothing goes to waste, we eat the seeds or they go to the milk cow, the dogs eat the cooked skin, and we eat the flesh. We save the seeds from the longest keeping, best tasting squash in the spring.
To have it on hand all week, I steam half the squash at a time, and store it in the fridge. This way it is cooked and ready to heat and eat for a quick lunch, or dinner vegetable, or… .
I do steam it, because I like it moist, and it takes less electricity or wood than baking it. To make a pie, the texture is better steamed.
Here is the difference – the praline filling before the pumpkin squash pie filling. Placed in the bottom of the pie shell and baked for 10 minutes, then cooled while you are making your custard, and baked again.
Praline baked and cooling.
I got in a good habit in Home Ec in high school, having everything ready before making a recipe, but I had kind of let this good habit slip. When I started homeschooling, I saw this as a perfect opportunity to teach my daughter, not only the basics of cooking, but also math, and reading. To make it easy for a child, I would have her measure everything and put each ingredient in a pile so she could see where she was in the recipe. It helps me too, sometimes I have to do recipes in small snippets of time. Even if I measure this out hours before I actually make the pie, I can easily look in the bowl and check to see if I forgot something or measured incorrectly.
Sweet meat squash doesn’t have strings to speak of, so the egg beater will take care of what little there is. The strings will wrap around the beaters and can be rinsed off before adding other ingredients. I just puree it as I needed.
Filling ready to bake. The foil is to protect the edge during the second baking.
Not bad for squash pie.
Here is the recipe for enough filling for two pies, and praline for one. It is rich, and sweet, a little goes a long way. Pie crust is pretty subjective so I didn’t include a recipe for crust.
PUMPKIN PRALINE PIE praline for one 8″ pie, filling for two 8″ pies
Praline for one 8″ pie
2 T softened butter
1/3 c brown sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans or ?
Preheat oven to 450*F. Cream butter and brown sugar. Blend in pecans. Press firmly into unbaked pie shell. Bake for 10 minutes, watching for so crust does not puff up or slip. If it does puff, prick the puffs with a fork and pat the crust back into place with the back of the fork. Cool before filling.
Pumpkin pie filling enough for two 8″ pies
4 c pureed squash or pumpkin
1/2 c granulated sugar
1/2 c brown sugar
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t ginger
1/2 t salt
1/4 t nutmeg
1/4 t cloves
2 eggs, beaten
2 c whole milk
Preheat oven to 400*F.
Combine pureed pumpkin and dry ingredients. Mix well. Add eggs, milk and mix well. Pour into pie shells and bake for about an hour. Depending on your oven, the pie may be done sooner. When a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, the pie is done.
This filling can be made a day in advance and refrigerated. I use this for pumpkin custard without the crust or praline too.
Looks delicious! I’ll have to try it out!
Yum! Can you ever have too many recipes for pumpkin pie? Or for anything for that matter.
Holy Toledo. Praline. Squash. Like I am not already facing vast food orgy opportunities in the next week. ~sigh~
YUM! I’d like a slice with a glass of cold milk, please. If it were possible, I’d like to reach through the screen and break off a section of that crust to nibble on. I like crust. Oh, and is that a trundle sewing machine in the background? I’d like to pilfer that, too! I’m bad that way. :-)
That sounds good. I never thought to use squash as pumpkin in recipes. I have a bunch of hubbard and buttercup that I need to use up before they rot or a rodent gets them. This is our first year trying to keep root crops so we are learning as we go.
Susy, thanks!
Judy, I agree, pumpkin pie is good all year, not just for the holidays!
Matriarchy, I know, next week is looming with too many desserts. I’m glad I have a lot of salad greens for “cleansing.”
Paula, I like the crust on pie the most too. An all butter crust makes for a flaky delight. Everytime I look at that sewing machine, I’m reminded of Tim’s tallest tale. ;)
Kim, better pie for you, than for the rodents! The hubbards should keep like rocks.
I agree with Judy that one can never have enough recipes, especially of a pumpkin/squash pie.
I love the thought of your living room being a temporary holding area for produce.
Pumpkin pie is my absolute favorite and you just made is MORE tempting!!! Yum!
Squash in the living room is all the rage! :) Oh lands, that pie looks wonderful!! do you have a no-fail pie crust recipe? You know it’s funny, but Jack and I were just talking last night about how he and I never grew up with much pumpkin or winter squash, and how we SO missed out…they are so delicious in so many things. We look at the seed catalog and we want to try so many!
Don, it is pretty hard to find a bad pumpkin pie recipe isn’t it? ;)
I need to move the squash, they need dusting now!
Gina, thanks, mine too.
Robbyn, you guys did miss out, it is hard to beat a good squash, cooked any ol’ way.
Here’s my recipe, but don’t hit me, I hate the taste of the “no fail” crusts with vinegar, so I just remember my diligent home ec teacher, telling me to add a little water – or not, and ONLY roll the crust about 6 times. Depending on humidity, if the dough seems to dry add additional water a drop at a time. Also measure the flour by spooning into a cup and then leveling off.
Basic Pastry 8″ 2 crust pie
2 c flour
1/2 t salt
2/3 c butter
1/3 c cold water
Mix salt with flour, cut in butter until the crumbs are the size of peas, add water and stir lightly until the dough can be pressed together. (If you need more water only add a drop at time) Do not chill before rolling out.
Seed catalogs are arriving here too, spring is around the corner!
I’m wondering about using some acron squash I have for a pie… hmmm….. why not?
Ok, I’ll quit stalking your blog now and leaving odd messages with weird requests. LOL
K
Funny thing, I was talking to my friend K today and she said last year she couldn’t find fresh pumpkins around Thanksgiving so she used acorn squash instead and no one could tell the difference!
don’t ‘they’ use squash for canned pumpkin pie filling?
anyway, i use pumpkin/squash interchangeably depending on what i’ve got laying around.
i’m making the pumpkin pie for thanksgiving….with neck pumpkin. anyway, i think i’ll try your recipe and jazz it up a bit!
You’re right – they do use squash for canned “pumpkin.” I always use the squash because I never have pumpkins anyway. The acorn would be great, I think.
I grew some Winter Luxury pie pumpkins several years ago, and they were terrible for pies. I’m sticking with my squash.
Gina, I was thinking you would probably use your hickory nuts in the praline…