I'm not happy with the pumpkin pies I made last night. Oh, they're probably going to taste good, but they're very much on the soggy side. What happened was, I used previously frozen pumpkin instead of canned. The pumpkin was much too liquidy for the recipe, but I didn't realize that at the time. Also? I poured 12 ozs of condensed milk into a bowl before reading that it should only have been five! But in this case, I managed to skim most of the milk right back out, so that mistake probably doesn't count.
Heck. Maybe I will make another dessert before the trip. I have lots of pumpkin left. Maybe a pumpkin spice cake. I'm pretty good with cakes. And I've learned my lesson re: the liquidity factor ...
Naah. They'll be fine. They're cooked enough - just a little squishy. Plus, I have whipped cream for the top. Whipped cream covers a multitude of sins! (Mwheh-heh.)
Well, happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope you spend the day surrounded by your family and friends, with or without the whipped cream.
A tip (too late, I know) for liquidy pumpkin (thanks to America's Test Kitchen): spread the pumpkin out on layers of papertoweling and let it rest for about 10 minutes. The toweling will absorb the moisture and still release the pumpkin.
I love pie made with real pumpkin... don't know why it tastes better. And I'm sure your pies will be fine.
Posted by: Debra | November 24, 2005 at 07:49 AM
Happy Thanksgiving, all.
Posted by: Dan | November 24, 2005 at 10:16 AM
Mmmm, pumpkin pie. I'd happily take those off your hands so that you could make a fresh batch but somehow I think it the shipping costs might be a little prohibitive... ;-)
Happy Thanksgiving!
Posted by: Daisy | November 24, 2005 at 05:09 PM
The pie was wonderfull!!! A small slice of the store bought apple pie was eaten in the first round, but all of the first pumpkin pie was eaten, and the 2nd pie had major encroachments. I think she sold her soul to the all-imbibing Yak.
Posted by: BB | November 24, 2005 at 10:31 PM
Your pie reminds me of a Thanksgiving dinner I attended when I was in college. I went to the friend of a friend's for dinner...and kind as she was, the woman was no cook. A hilariously unedible meal (the kind where you push the food around your plate, trying to make it look like you've eaten much more than you have) was topped off by a pumpkin pie that oozed from a slice shape into a puddle on the plate...and had the distinct flavor of tabasco. Yours sounds like a great success. And kudos to you for using *real* pumpkin.
Posted by: Kathryn | November 27, 2005 at 04:32 PM
MMM! Tabasco and pumpkin! SO Wolfgang Puck and yet so New California Cuisine at the same time! Makes me hungry for Spagos and any power lunch I could get invited to!
Personally, the whole Thanksgiving edifice of carefully prepared cooking in a loving family setting is, I don't know, so very pre-Kurt Cobain irony. Can you honestly SEE Kurt, Courtney and little Francis Bean actually holding hands and thanking Whomever Is Listening for the lovely turkey and cranberry dressing and the loaded .38? I doubt it. I think we need a NEW holiday, one designed to be enjoyed at whatever fast food joint or smack club you actually are at. No attachments, loud soundtrack, and hopefully no lousy pumpkin pie, either.
Posted by: Anthony | November 28, 2005 at 05:33 AM