Decadent Pumpkin Pie Recipes

DECORATED PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Roll out 1/2 pie dough recipe on a lightly floured surface and fit into a 9 inch pie pan. Trim any uneven overhang then crimp the edge around the pie.
• In a big bowl, whisk the pumpkin, cream cheese, and molasses until smooth. Whisk in the sugars and spices. Whisk in the eggs and half-and-half until well blended.
• Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and bake an additional 35-40 minutes, until the pie is still very jiggly in the center. Remove from oven to a rack and cool to room temperature.
• Meanwhile roll out the second disc of dough to about 1/8 inch thick and cut out desired shapes or strips to make lattice. Attach to cooled pie, brush with egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar if you like. Bake an additional 15-20 minutes until the crust decorations are golden brown. If the edges are getting too dark cover them with foil to prevent burning. Remove and cool on a wire rack, serve at room temperature.
• In a big bowl combine the flour, salt, and sugar and make a claw with your hand to mix it up real good. Toss in the cold butter cubes and massage them into the flour mixture so you get nice big chunks.
• Combine the vinegar with 1/2 cup cold water (this is called acidulating, which just means adding acid to something - usually water). Stir the acidulated water into the flour mixture and gently work the dough until a ball is formed.
• Divide dough and shape into 2 discs, wrap in plastic squeezing out the air and chill it in the fridge for at least 1 hour. This also freezes awesome for up to a year.

DECONSTRUCTED PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• Make the ganache: Place 10 ounces of the chocolate in a bowl. Reserve the rest for decoration.
• Bring cream and syrup to a boil. Pour over chocolate. Mix well with a whisk without incorporating any air. Place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface. Refrigerate until well chilled and fairly firm, about 4 hours.
• Make the confit: Mix sugar with 2 cups water in a 2-quart saucepan. Add vanilla bean, orange and lemon zest. Bring to a boil and when sugar has dissolved, add pumpkin. Reduce heat to very low and simmer until pumpkin is translucent, about 2 hours. Use a slotted spoon to remove pumpkin to a small container, cover with about half the sugar syrup, cover container and set aside.
• Add cranberries to remaining syrup, simmer 5 minutes, then set aside for 15 minutes. Drain cranberries into a small container, cover with some syrup, cover container and set aside.
• Make the mousse: Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with foil, spread the 1 1/3 cup of pumpkin purée on foil and bake about 25 minutes to remove some moisture. Transfer to a bowl.
• Place gelatin in a small dish, stir in 1 1/2 tablespoons cold water and set aside. Place 1/3 cup cream, the vanilla, sugar and spices in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in softened gelatin. Mix thoroughly into pumpkin purée. Cover and refrigerate until cold, about 2 hours. When cold, whip remaining cream. Fold into pumpkin purée. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Make the cake: Butter a 9-by-13-by-2-inch baking pan. Line with parchment, allowing overhang on the long sides. Butter the paper. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Place flour, baking soda, salt and spices in a sieve. Sieve into a large bowl. Stir in sugar. Mix eggs with pumpkin purée. Fold into dry ingredients. Add melted butter and mix well.
• Spread batter in pan and bake 20 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cake will not rise to the rim of pan. Cool in pan at least 1 hour. Use parchment overhang to help remove from pan. Refrigerate until ready to assemble.
• Assemble the dessert: Place pumpkin confit in a strainer. Rinse briefly in cold water, drain and place on paper towels. Repeat with cranberry confit. Set aside.
• Place cake on a cutting board. Trim 1/2 inch from all sides. Nibble trimmings or let the army of assistants have at them. Cut cake in half lengthwise. Place half the cake on a large platter.
• Use a spatula to spread or a pastry bag to pipe ganache in a thick layer all over the top of the cake half on the platter. Place second half on top and press lightly.
• Place mousse in a pastry bag and pipe peaks or rows all over the top of the cake. Alternatively, form ovals with 2 teaspoons to cover top of cake, or simply spread the mousse on the cake and use the point of a knife to make peaks.
• Break up reserved chocolate and the ginger cookies and stick them randomly into the pumpkin mousse. Place some of the pumpkin and cranberry confit on the mousse and scatter the rest on the platter around the cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

DECADENT PECAN PIE

Steps:

• In medium bowl, mix flour and salt. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle with cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves side of bowl (1 to 2 teaspoons more water can be added if necessary).
• Gather pastry into a ball. Shape into flattened round on lightly floured surface. Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate about 45 minutes or until dough is firm and cold, yet pliable. This allows the shortening to become slightly firm, which helps make the baked pastry more flaky. If refrigerated longer, let pastry soften slightly before rolling.
• Heat oven to 375°F. With floured rolling pin, roll pastry into round 2 inches larger than upside-down 9-inch glass pie plate. Fold pastry into fourths; place in pie plate. Unfold and ease into plate, pressing firmly against bottom and side. Trim overhanging edge of pastry 1 inch from rim of pie plate. Fold and roll pastry under, even with plate; press with times of fork or flute if desired.
• In another medium bowl, beat all filling ingredients except pecans with wire whisk or hand beater until well blended. Stir in pecans. Pour into pastry-lined pie plate.
• Cover edge of pastry with 2- to 3-inch-wide strip of foil to prevent excessive browning. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until center is set, removing foil for last 15 minutes of baking. Refrigerate at least 2 hours until chilled before serving. Store in refrigerator.

DECADENT PUMPKIN PIE

Steps:

• 1. Pre-heat oven to 450º 2. Prepare your favorite 2-crust pie crust recipe. Use 1.5 of the dough for the bottom crust. Use the remaining dough for a lattice or decorative crust topping. Be sure the fluted pie crust rim is high and substantial. 3. Thoroughly whisk all filling ingredients together in a very large bowl. 4. Fill a thick, 10-inch crust with the pumpkin filling. Add a lattice top or pastry decorations to the top if desired. 5. On the middle rack of the oven, bake at 450º for 20, then reduce heat to 350º for 30-40 minutes (or longer if needed.. (See instructions for checking 'doneness') If the fluting begins to turn to dark, protect it with a narrow strip of foil wrap, gently bent over the fluting. Doneness: The pie is done when a sharp knife comes out dry from the filling centre, or a small crack appears at the centre of the filling. If using a glass pie plate, double-check that the bottom of the crust is a light golden colour. 6. Allow to cool. Refrigerate until served 7. Serve with English cream, whipped cream or ice cream if desired.

DECADENT PUMPKIN PIE BELGIAN WAFFLES

Steps:

• Preheat a waffle iron.
• If you want to hold the finished waffles until serving time, preheat an oven to 200°F (93°C).
• Melt the butter, set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin, brown and granulated sugars, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg and salt.
• Using a rubber spatula, or handheld electric mixer, mix together well.
• Stir in the flour, baking powder and baking soda.
• The mixture will be thick and a little lumpy.
• Don't try to smooth it out; just mix until the ingredients are incorporated.
• In another bowl, beat together the milk, sour cream, eggs, rum and vanilla.
• Add the liquid ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and stir until combined.
• Fold in the melted butter.
• Whether or not your waffle iron's grids are well seasoned or made of a nonstick material, it is best to lightly butter or spray the grids for these waffles because the batter is quite sticky.
• Brush or spray the grids again only if subsequent waffles stick.
• Spoon out 2/3 to 3/4 cup of batter for a Belgian waffle iron (or the amount recommended by the manufacturer's instructions) onto the hot iron.
• Use a metal spatula or wooden spoon to spread the batter evenly over the grids. Close the lid and bake until golden.
• If the waffle is hard to remove from the iron, peel it off gently and carefully. Serve immediately or keep the waffles, in a single layer, on a rack in the preheated oven while you make the rest.
• Serving: Serve these warm and golden, one to a diner, topped with vanilla ice cream and maple syrup. They're great with a cup of hot or cold cider.

PUMPKIN PIE FOR DIETERS

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix together the pumpkin, milk, and instant pudding mix. Stir in the pumpkin pie spice, and fold in half of the whipped topping.
• Pour into an 8-inch pie plate, and spread remaining whipped topping over the top. Chill for 1 hour, or until set.

DECADENT PEANUT BUTTER PIE

Steps:

• Beat together 1 cup peanut butter, cream cheese and sugar in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium, until well combined. Gently mix in 3 cups whipped topping until thoroughly combined. Spoon mixture into pie shell. Using a spatula, smooth mixture to edges of pie.
• Reserve 2 tablespoons of hot fudge topping into the corner of a resealable plastic bag. Microwave remaining topping, on HIGH (100% topping), for 1 minute. Stir. Spread topping over pie, covering entire peanut butter layer. Refrigerate until set. Spread remaining whipped topping (1 1/2 cups), over hot fudge layer, being careful not to mix the two layers.
• Cut a small corner from bag containing topping. Squeeze bag to drizzle topping over pie. Place remaining 2 tablespoons peanut butter in a resealable food storage bag; cut bag corner and squeeze to drizzle in opposite direction from topping. Refrigerate until ready to serve.